Knoxville has not yet reached the rank of a manufacturing center to which, by her natural surroundings, she must eventually come.  So far, in this respect only a beginning has been made, but this fact, coupled with the vast resources of every kind spoken of on previous pages of this review, must make this field only the more inviting to prospectors.

With the increased means for transportation given to this city by her new railroad lines, Knoxville today offers better advantages to the manufacturer than at any time in her previous history.

The total number of manufacturing plants in existence here numbers one hundred and twenty-four.  The success of all in their respective lines compares favorably with those of a similar kind throughout the country.  In the majority of instances, the net results make a better showing than that developed at other points.  The following list will show the different classes of articles now being manufactured in this city.  Of the various classes there are, of course, many different forms:

While a large number of the different plants are yet small, there are several that compare in size and the amount of their annual products with the largest in the United States.  Prominent among these are the

Knoxville Woolen Mills.  This is the largest jeans mill in the United States.  It was established in 1883.  Its capital stock (paid in) is $500,000.  The total plant covers eight acres of ground, has 21 sets of cards, 600 looms, with a daily capacity of 15,000 yards.  It has six hundred employees.  Its regular shipments reach twenty different States of the Union.  The officers of this great establishment are:  R. J. Sanford, president; R. P. Gettys, vice-president; J. A. McKeldin, secretary and treasurer.  The illustration shows the southern side of this mill.

The Brookside Cotton Mills.  A view of the office and grounds and a partial view of the mill is shown in the illustration.  This plant has 5,000 spindles, employs regularly 125 workmen, and produces one-fourth of a million pounds, or three millions yards of cloth annually.  The officers of this Company are:  W. R. Tuttle, president and treasurer; W. S. Mead, secretary.

Knoxville Car Wheel Company.  The works of this Company, located in this city, are the largest of their kind between Chattanooga and Roanoke, and comprise two plants, one situated on Jacksboro Street, having extensive frontage on the East Tennessee, Virginia & Georgia Railway tracks, and consists of a Wheel Foundry, with a capacity of 125 wheels per day; Soft Foundry, with capacity of 15 tons per day, and extensive Machine, Blacksmith and Pattern Shops.  They are fitted up with the latest improved machinery, and employ ordinarily about 150 men.  Their wheels are used in all the Southern States, and are shipped as far west as Kansas City.  They make a record equal to any wheel produced, and their sale is steadily increasing.  They are made of the iron produced by this company in Carter County, Tennessee, where they have 30,000 acres of ore and timber lands, and of the very best brands that can be bought in the market. The Soft Foundry is equipped with a large stock of patterns, and makes all kinds of railroad and machinery castings, architectural work, grates and fronts, as well as repairs used by brick makers, marble men, coal and ore miners, and in fact every industry that requires iron work.  The Machine Shop makes a specialty of repairing locomotives as well as stationary engines, mounts wheels on axles, builds marble saws, rubbing beds and work of that kind for marble quarries, and all kinds of work for which there is a demand in this part of the country.

In addition to this plant, they also operate the extensive plant of the Knoxville Foundry & Machine Company, located on Hardee Street, consisting of Machine Shop, Foundry, Boiler and Pattern Shops.  The acquisition of these works adds about 75 per cent to the capacity of the Works (not including the wheel foundry) on Jacksboro Street, and the Company is now prepared to turn out on short notice an immense amount of work.

All of their work is guaranteed to be made of the best material, and in the most workmanlike manner, and the long list of their customers shows that their work is understood and appreciated.  Both works are located on the railroad tracks, so that heavy work is handled with ease and facility.  All of the electric car lines pass the works on Hardee Street, and in a short time their tracks will be laid on Jacksboro Street.  Each department is in charge of a competent superintendent, who will take pleasure in making estimates at any time on any kind of work.  The illustration shows this Company's plant on Jacksboro Street, North.

W. H. Evans & Son.  The illustrations show a partial view of one of the most extensive marble mills in the United States.  It is the property of Messrs. W. H. Evans & Son, Baltimore, Chicago and Knoxville.  This mill is devoted to the working of marble for interior decoration exclusively.  More than a thousand saw blades are in operation daily, cutting the beautiful marbles of this section, which we have already described.

The mill here was erected in 1885 and has been running every day since.  Its operation is devoted both to the sawing and polishing of marble.  Some of the finest marble decorations in the United States are the products of the Knoxville mill.  The marble finishings in the Central Trust Company building, Washington, D. C.; the Penn Mutual Life Ins. Co.'s building, Philadelphia, Pa.; the Rand-McNally building, the great Masonic Temple, and the new Union Passenger Depot, Chicago, were made and furnished by this mill.  The beautiful marble mantels made of the variegated Tennessee marble, now becoming so popular throughout the United States, are also the designs and products of the Messrs. Evans' mill at this point.  The sales of these artistic mantels number now more than two thousand annually, and the demand is steadily increasing.  This mill makes nearly every variety of marble finishings for furniture, and various other marble articles for home decoration.

The mill at Knoxville is under the supervision of Mr. J. E. Willard, one of the most thoroughly practical marble experts in this country.  He has under him a force of about, 350 men.  Mr. Willard has shown himself to be one of the most progressive citizens that Knoxville has ever received from abroad.

Messrs. W. H. Evans & Son also own extensive mills at Baltimore, Md., and Chicago, Ill., that at the latter place being devoted to finishing purposes entirely.

The Messrs. Evans control the majority of the marble quarrying property in this immediate section, the supply, as we have before stated, being practically inexhaustible.

Scott Brothers & Co.  One of the leading industries of this City is the celebrated flouring mill of Messrs. Scott Brothers & Co., Nos. 518 and 520 Central Avenue.  This mill was established in 1858 by Mr. F. A. R. Scott, one of the present owners.  For many years it was known throughout this part of the South as the "Trio Mills," and under this name it became famous for the fine grade of flour it produced.

The entire mill was remodeled in 1884, the older style of mill machinery giving place to the most improved modern machinery.  At the same time the capacity of the mill was increased to one hundred barrels of flour per day.  For thirteen years the mill was conducted by Messrs. Scott, Dempster & Co., but two years ago the entire ownership passed into the hands of Scott Brothers & Co. by Mr. Dempster retiring.  The present owners are Messrs. James A. Scott, David D. Scott, and F. A. R. Scott, the original builder of the mill, all of whom are well and favorably known throughout the South.

The chief productions of this mill are the famous full roller process brands of flour, Magnolia "Silver Leaf," "Choice," "Famous," and "Good Luck," of which Messrs. Scott Bros. & Co. are the only manufacturers and sole proprietors.  One of the specialties of this mill is water ground corn meal, which is very popular with the trade.  Messrs. Scott Bros. & Co. are also manufacturers of feed stuffs, and deal largely in grain.

Mr. F. A. R. Scott is president of the Central Savings Bank, and secretary of the Knoxville Leather Company, both of this city.

The products of Messrs. Scott Bros. & Co.'s mill are sold extensively throughout East Tennessee and the surrounding States.

Knoxville Iron Co.  This Company is one of the oldest established manufacturing plants in Knoxville, having been run constantly and successfully since a few years after the civil war.  A view of the Company's mills may be seen in the illustrations.

The Knoxville Iron Company are producers of nearly every species of bar iron, T rails, round iron, &c., &c.  The officers of the Company are Otis A. Brown, president; E. J. Sanford, vice-president; Thos. I. Stephenson, secretary; O. A. Brown, treasurer.

The Knoxville Iron Company are among the most extensive miners and shippers of coal from their own mines at Coal Creek, supplying a very large part of the demand from the mines of East Tennessee.

Lieber Brothers.  The manufacture of shirts, pajamas, night shirts, underwear, collars, and cuffs, is successfully carried on in this city by Messrs. Lieber Brothers, No. 421 Gay Street, South.  They employ a large number of hands and produce annually many thousand dollars of goods.  Their custom-made shirts are very popular, their orders coming from many different States.

The firm of Lieber Bros. has been established here for several years past, each succeeding year resulting in a greatly increased demand for their goods.

Geo. S. Crane.  The artificial limb and truss factory of Mr. Geo. S. Crane, No. 708 Gay Street, South, is one of the few such establishments in this line in the United States.

Mr. Crane also manufactures all kinds of appliances for club feet, bow legs, spinal curvatures, &c., and extension instruments for hip and other joint diseases.  The productions of his factory are of the finest workmanship, and Mr. Crane solicits correspondence with any one needing specially made appliances in his line.

The text and HTML code of this page is copyright ©2003 to Billie R. McNamara.  All rights reserved.  Please direct all questions and comments to Ms. McNamara.  Background graphic image was borrowed from Fred Smoot. Used by permission.

This page was last updated December 11, 2003.
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