In 1843, Elias Dorsey Hightower, then 35 years old, built a cotton gin in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains beside an waterfall. During this time cotton was becoming the mainstay of the south's economy. Hightower then built a three-storey mill at the site, using it to grind wheat and corn for flour and cornmeal. The surrounding land was used to raise sheep by professional Welsh herders, who occupied the 2nd and 3rd floors of the mill.