Chester Co. Day; 10/07/1950
AMONG the fascinating facets of Chester County's history--the record of her paper industries, which started during the last two decades of the eighteenth century, has received but scant attention. By 1800 paper was being made in at least eight different locations in the county. The abundance of pure water and water power led to the establishment of 34 mills by 1834. A County map issued in 1847 shows paper mills at 25 different locations while the 1874 map shows 37 mills. A survey of paper mill sites between 1781 and the present time shows 58 places where paper of one sort or another has been made. These mills were widely scattered from the Schuylkill River on the northeast to the Octorara Creek on the southwest. At one period there were eight paper mills on Buck Run within a distance of five miles. Other mill sites were located on each branch of the Brandywine, Muddy Run, Elk, White Clay, Red Clay, Beaver, Marsh, Ridley and French Creeks.
The earliest mills were of a primitive type using handcraft methods. Gradually a transition took place to the highly mechanized methods now in use. The raw products used by the early mills were rags, linen, cotton while those of today are largely waste paper and old rope. A century ago at Spring City the American Wood Paper Company pioneered in using wood as a raw product. Following this several mills made wrapping paper containing a high percentage of straw. The early mills produced writing, wrapping and printing paper. The current mills are producing binder-board, paper towling, mimeograph, bond, colored crepe, filter and paper specialities.
Among the early names associated with our County's paper industry made be mentioned Bicking, Dorlan, Fulton, Garrett, Gibbons, Guie, Lysle, McHenry, Mode, Steele, and Webb. As today's antiquarian looks through old letters and manuscripts what a delight to find, in addition to the nominal content written in ink, a water mark which identifies the paper as being a local product! The mark I BICKING signifies John and/or Joseph Bicking. John operated a mill on Beaver Creek 1791-1826 whereas his brother Joseph's mill was on the Brandywine near Wagontown 1806--1831. J. WEBB identifies paper made south of Kennett Square 1800-1821. J F accompanied by the outline of a plow suggests paper made at the mill on Elk Creek run by Johan and Joseph Fulton between 1781 and 1834. MODE was the papermark used in paper made at Modena Paperville. Here the Mode Family produced paper between 1850 to 1881. J M G was on the mark used by James M. Gibbons whose mill on Buck Run operated from 1796 to 1810. J S was the imprint used in paper made by John and later James Steele. Their mill on the Octorara Creek was active between 1791 and 1820. The village of Steeleville was located nearby. Doubtless other water marks will come to light.
The manufacture of paper in Chester County is by no means past history. Today at nine locations the manufacture of paper products represents several million dollars of capital investment and gives employment to at least 1,000 people.
Downingtown sometimes designated as "Papertown" is the most important center. Here the S. Austin Bicking Company, the Downingtown Paper Company and the Davey Company operate extensive mills each of which were started in the 1880s. Nearby, up the Brandywine at Dorlans, Shyrock Brothers run a small mill which dates back to the early 1800s. Another small mill located on Beaver Creek is owned by the Eagle Paper Company. This mill was started by James Guie in 1833 and is less than a mile from the site of John Bicking's mill. At Modena, on the Brandywine south of Coatesville, the Beach and Arthur Paper Company now has a plant whose yearly production is about 10,000 tons. Four miles southwest of this location, on Buck Run, the General Paper Company has a mill producing large daily tonnages of high grade paper toweling. This mill which appears to have been started before 1800 was owned by Caspar Garrett for a few decades prior to 1900 at which time its product was wall paper. The Franklin Paper Mills in Franklin township south of West Grove were started in 1847. James Lysle began this mill which was operated by the Lysle family for just 100 years. In now produces a high grade filter paper.
Despite the hazards of fire, flood, and foreign competition Chester County's infant paper industry of 1800 has in 150 years, become an important segment of our contemporary economy.