Murphysville Manufacturing Company
March 2, 1867, when was incorporated. the Murphysville Manufacturing Company, a firm destined to broadcast the town’s name far and wide. The first board of directors of this once famous company included John Stevenson. R. R. Maltby, William R. Gill, Dennis C. Latham, Nathan V. Brooking and William Paul. The capital stock of the company, on incorporation, was $10,000.
Three months later the “Mill”, as it was familiarly known around Murphysville, was in full operation. The following description of this mill was printed Saturday, June 29, 1867, in the Maysville Republican:
“A TRIP TO MURPHYSVILLE.-On Monday last we enjoyed the pleasure of a visit to this ancient town, situated on the North Fork, nine miles distant from Maysville. In appearance Murphysville is in keeping with the generality of the country villages, but of late it can boast of a very fine and valt1- able acquisition in the shape of a large woolen factory, under the superintendence of Colonel R. R. Maltby, of Washington, a most thorough practical businessman. In company with him, we visited the factory and were instructed as well as delighted during our stay. The process of manufacturing woolen goods was explained to us, and we were shown the various stages through which the raw material must pass before the manufactured fabric is ready for the market.
“\Vhen wool is delivered at the factory, it goes into the sorting room, where the different grades are placed in bins, respectively, according to the color and quality. From the hands of the sorter it is taken to the scouring room, where it is thoroughly cleaned by means of most improved machinery. Being perfectly cleaned, it goes into the dye house, which is under charge of Mr. Timothy D. Lutcliffe, late boss dyer of the Bay State mills in Massachusetts, and also of the Roxburg, Mass., carpet factory. Here it is placed in large vats with the coloring matter, which is boiled by the use of steam. All the colors which are produced at the factory are warranted to stand, as the finest materials and most durable colors only are permitted to be used. After being dyed, the wool is most thoroughly rinsed in a vat prepared for that purpose, and through which a stream of dear water is forced from a large tank taken from the rinsing vat, it is allowed to drain sufficiently, when it is removed to the fourth floor of the building, which is used as the drying room. Here the raw material is scattered about and after becoming dry it passes to the third floor where it goes through the first process of manufacture. It is placed in the renovator, where dust, dirt and all foreign substances are removed from it. Passing through the renovator, it goes to the “picker”, a very complicated little machine which does its work most effectually. The tooth cylinder of the picker makes one thousand revolutions per minute, and throws the wool into a close apartment provided to receive it. To see it in operation is a striking exemplification of the old saying “It makes the wool fly.” The wool leaves the receiving room and is now oiled, preparatory to being carded. From the oiling room it is thrown down a chute into the second story, where it is weighed into equ;tl parts and placed in the first breaker. This machine converts it into a course rope, which is wound on large spools. These spools are now placed on a rack from which they are fed into the second breaker, this process making the rope smaller and stronger. It is also spooled by this machine, and now goes to the condenser, where it is more thoroughly twisted than before. The condensor separates the roping into forty-eight equal parts and twists it at the same time, by means of the vibrating and rotary motion, being one of the most complicated and beautiful combinations of machinery which genius has yet invented. From the condenser the yarn is now taken to the “rack,” which has two hundred and forty spindles. A bobbin is placed on each spindle, and the threads are wound on them with such precision that it does not vary a grain in a day’s work. After leaving the “jack”, the yarn used for felling goes directly to the loom, but that used for chain goes through the process of warping and beaming, all of which is done by machinery in a much shorter space of time than it requires to write it down.
“The looms in this establishment are seven 111 number, comprising four for weaving plain goods alone, two for either plain or plaid goods, and one broad loom for weaving plaid goods exclusively. The broad loom is of 1vfessrs. Davis and Furber’s manufacture, North Andover, Mass., and is a novelty worth seeing. \1/e witnessed the operation of weaving some white and black plaid, an operation which is very simple “when one knows how it’s done.” The colors in the chain alternate whilst the shuttle-box is so arranged that it will hold from one to three shuttles or more if required. One shuttle is filled with white yarn another with black, and when a sufficient number of strands of white have been woven into cloth, by a most ingenious contrivance called a “dropbox”, the shuttle raises and in its place appears another filled with black yarn, and vice versa. This machine throws its shuttle one hundred and twenty inches and returns it the same distance thirty-seven times per minute, giving it but little time to remain at either end of the loom, and making its flight along the reed but little short of lightning speed; and its passage is marked with such precision that it is a very rare occurrence to have a thread break.
“As previously stated this machine was made by Messrs. Davis & Furber, North Andover, Mass., as well as the other machinery in the factory, with the exception of the remaining six looms, which were built by the Staffordsville Loom Company, of Connecticut, and are known as Andrewis’s patent. Everything about the looms moves with the precision of clock-work, and the sounds and vibrations are so perfect that an experienced operator is enabled to discern the least irregularity without ever seeing the machine.
“But as we leave the carding and weaving room, and take our reader to the finishing room, which is on the first floor, we find other things to marvel at. The woven cloth is brought into this apartment, taken to the fulling mill, wherein it is placed and properly fulled. This process is a very interesting one, the fabric being placed in a large hopper where it is rolled over and over by two immense vibrating beams, the constant friction producing a great heat in the cloth and giving it moisture enough to shrink it sufficiently. Taking it from the fulling mill it is pulled by hand, and this operation is repeated several times, or until the cloth is sufficiently fulled. It is now placed on the “gig” where the nap is raised by means of a large cylinder covered with stiff burs called “teasles”. The cloth must have a very equal and gentle pressure against the cylinder, which moves with fearful velocity-lest it be damaged by the burs. After the nap is raised, the cloth is taken to the tenter bars, and stretched in the sun for drying, when it is subjected to another process no less interesting than the former through which it has passed. As may be naturally supposed the nap must be uneven on it, so to remedy this the cloth passes through a- shearing machine, having a keen-edged blade cylinder, which clips off the nap and makes an even surface on the goods. This is the last process but one, which is pressing, after which the goods go to the salesroom and is ready for the market.
“Above we have given such an account of the operation of cloth-making of our times, and we earnestly recommend the Murphysville Woolen factory to the citizens of Mason county as one of our home institutions.
“The machinery is all of the most modern manufactures, and the practical department is under the superintendence of Mr. George S. Baker, formerly of the firm of Tilton and Baker, once largely engaged in the manufacture of cloths and woolen goods at Sanborndon Bridge, N. H. Mr. Baker is a gentleman of rare attainments as a manufacturer and mechanic, and is the same gentleman who superintended the erection of the mill at Dover, in this county, as also the Clermont Mill, at New Richmond, Ohio, and a large mill at Pendleton, Indiana. He informed us that the mill at Murphysville was one of the best in the United States, and that the quality of goods made there was second to none made west of the Mountains. We will here publicly thank Mr. Baker for the many courtesies extended us during our visit to the mill, and also to Mr. R. R. Maltby, the gentlemanly superintendent and business manager of the establishment, and heartily wish him an abundant pecuniary reward for his enterprise and industry.”
At Murphysville, too, feeling was running high over a proposed Union meeting for tb.e community. This meet was finally brought about, and on Saturday, April 20, 1867, a large assemblage was brought together for the purpose of appointing delegates to atterd the County Convention to be held at Maysville on the 29th to nominate candidates for the Legislature.
Captain D. L. Wells, chairman of the Union precinct Committee, called the meeting to order and on motion D. C. Latham (Laytham) was appointed Secretary. A committee composed of Colonel J. W. Gault, D. C. Laytham and Alexander Watson, reported the resolutions adopted by the meeting, which resolutions set forth Murphysville’s willingness to support the candidates nominated by the Maysville convention. The following were appointed delegates to attend the Maysville convention: D. L. Wells, D. C. Laytham, William L. .Vells, E. L. Gault, Louis Jefferson, Alexander Watson, Nathan Hill, Robert Stevenson, George Galbreath, John Cole, Snowden Rhodes, John Stevenson, J. W. Gault, Milton McCarthy, John Rhodes, John E. Wells, Washington Kirk, Nathan Poe, James McCarthy, Joseph Keith, Albert Brooking, Walter Biggers, Ross P. Gault, Eleana Jefferson, Joe S. Ray, James Cole, R. F. Gault, George Hudson, John Johnson, Ross Prather, V. W. Gault, James Denison, Edward K. Gault, John Crawford and Nelson Jackson.
Horse training and improvement of the horse industry in Mason county was given unusual consideration September 7 (1867) when Thomas Daulton, vV. W. Baldwin, Thomas Jackson, David Heckinger, C. B. Hill, C. E. Tabb, William Preston, R. G. January, J. H. Wilson, W. Vv. Pike, and others met at the Hill House in Maysville to consider establishing a trotting park just outside that city.
Thomas Daulton presided over the meeting and G. W. Sulser was secretary. In the creation of the Association, W. W. Baldwin was elected President; Thomas Daulton, Vice-President: G. Vv. Sulser, Secretary, and C. E. Tabb, Treasurer. The Directors were: Thomas Jackson, David Heckinger, R. G. January, T. H. Mannen and Ora B. Bain. The committee appointed to make the necessary arrangement for establishing the park consisted of Thomas Jackson, C. B. Hill, C. E. Tabb, Hamilton Gray, David Heckinger, J. H. Wilson, and William Preston.
Excerpted from page 239 – 243 of G. Glenn Clift History of Maysville and Mason County Ky