Hillsboro Cotton Mills
220 N. Houston St., Hillsboro, TXOne of the earliest and most significant industries built in Hillsboro, the locally owned Hillsboro Cotton Mills, and its operations were managed by four generations of the A.L. Smith family. The manufacturing firm, which reached peak operation during World War II, was the major employer in Hillsboro from 1904 until production ceased in 1971. The business, housed in an outstanding turn-of-the-century industrial building, played a vital role in Hillsboro's economic development.
Virtually from beginning to end, the cotton mill has been a family-owned business. After its founding in 1901 as the Hillsboro Cotton Mill Company, the firm was reorganized in 1904 as Hillsboro Cotton Mills, with a member of its board, A.L. Smith, becoming president and manager. Smith held that position until he died in 1930. His son, A.L. Smith, Jr., then became president, remaining in that capacity until he died in 1959. A.L. Smith, III then became president, and his brother, Bill R. Smith, served as vice-president. Fourth-generation Smith children are among the present owners of the property.
The Romanesque Revival style, popular for large buildings at the time, adapted well to the mill. The arcades created by fashioning windows within the semicircular arches provided ample light and ventilation for the operation. The more commanding Victorian Romanesque style allowed the entrance bay and office area to become a focal point in the main building's facade. Though wired for electric lights in 1914, the mill provided its steam power for the shaft and belt-driven machinery, and for fire-fighting equipment for many years until electric motors were installed. A complete machine shop made and repaired milling equipment on the site.
The property once contained tenement houses which were built for employees between 1905 and 1921. The last house was removed from the property in 1975. From an initial roll of 24 employees in 1901, the mill grew to employ 250 workers during its wartime peak in the 1940s. Some employees were third- and fourth-generation mill workers.
Bibliography
Interview with Mrs. Bill R. Smith, Hillsboro, 1981.
Minutes of the Board of Directors, Hillsboro Cotton Mill Company, 1901-1904;
Minutes of the Board of Directors, Hillsboro Cotton Mills, 1904-1971.
Listed in National Register of Historic Places in 1984.
The National Register of Historic Places is the official list of the Nation’s historic places worthy of preservation. Authorized by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places is part of a national program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect America’s historic and archeological resources.