Institution

Built in 1883, this cotton gin was owned and operated by David Goodlett near the town of Ozan, six miles to the north, and stayed in business for almost 80 years. Besides ginning cotton, the engines were used to power sorghum and grist mills plus pea and corn shellers. It was later donated by the family to Historic Washington State Park, who moved the building in the 1980s to a location where another gin served the town of Washington next to the railroad tracks. This building is open to self-guided tours.

Sorghum mill in the rear of the Goodlett Cotton Gin.

Website

Goodlett Cotton Gin - Arkansas State Parks

Historic Washington State Park - Encyclopedia of Arkansas 

Goodlett Cotton Gin -- Encyclopedia of Arkansas 

Goodlett Cotton Gin -- National Register of Historic Places

More Info

Video

Next to the loading dock on the back of the cotton gin is the sorghum mill. Cane sorghum was placed into the mill so all the natural juices could be extracted. It was then boiled down until ready for the dinner table. Many times, the miller would receive a portion of the finished product for his efforts. The rectangular sorghum tank where the extract was kept sits just inside the boiler room.

Sorghum Mill

Director

David Madison Goodlett, born in Tippah County, Mississippi, 1840, came to Hempstead County, Arkansas, in 1859 to work on a farm six miles (10km) northwest of Washington. During the Civil War, he joined an Arkansas company and served as captain for all four years. Upon returning home he married and purchased the very farm he worked on, which covered 1,400 acres.Goodlett had this gin constructed in 1883. Originally using one hand-fed gin stand with a mule-driven screw press, which required tramping of the lint by foot, Goodlett averaged two bales of cotton a day. Goodlett also operated grist and sorghum mills out of this gin: corn was ground on weekends while sorghum was produced after the cotton harvest ended. After upgrades that included an Atlas steam engine in 1898 and two 70-saw gin stands during the 1930s, this gin in its best year produced 1,070 bales of cotton, 3,200 gallons (12,000L) of sorghum, and 700 gallons (2,700L) of ribbon cane sugar, plus what was called, “the best meal in Southwest Arkansas.”Robert and Sloman Goodlett, grandsons of David, eventually took over the gin’s operations and managed it until it closed in 1966. In 1975, the Goodlett family donated the building to the state park, who relocated it piece-by-piece to Washington in the spring of 1982.

Built in 1883, this cotton gin was owned and operated by David Goodlett near the town of Ozan, located 8 miles north of Washington. The cotton gin provided services to the area for almost 80 years. It was later donated by the family to Historic Washington State Park, who moved the building to this location in 1982. The building is available as a self-guided tour.

Goodlett Cotton Gin (1883)

Next to the loading dock on the back of the cotton gin is the sorghum mill. Cane sorghum was placed into the mill so all the natural juices could be extracted. It was then boiled down until ready for the dinner table. Many times, the miller would receive a portion of the finished product for his efforts. The rectangular sorghum tank where the extract was kept sits just inside the boiler room.

Cotton ginning was not the only operation that occurred in gins. Taking advantage of the power source, gins would have machinery such as mills and shellers operating off the very same jack shaft driving the gin stands. Individual steam-powered mills did exist in some places, but for gins such as Goodlett's, it was best to provide multiple services alongside cotton ginning to the local agricultural community.

The corn sheller uses rotating wheels with teeth to separate kernels from the cob, either to be able to sell themselves or to be fed into the grist mill.The grist mill turns kernels of corn into meal by crushing them between two stones. Historically any mill exclusively employed in grinding grain consumed by the inhabitants of the neighborhood, is called a ‘grist’ or ‘custom’ mill; and a portion of the grist is allowed to the miller, in payment for his services. The Goodlett's operated in the same fashion.The pea sheller works like the corn sheller in a similar fashion, separating peas from the pods.

Cotton ginning was not the only operation that occurred in gins. Taking advantage of the power source, gins would have machinery such as mills and shellers operating off the very same jack shaft driving the gin stands. Individual steam-powered mills did exist in some places, but for gins such as Goodlett's, it was best to provide multiple services alongside cotton ginning to the local agricultural community.

Grist Mill, Corn Sheller, and Pea Sheller

Though his original hand-fed gins no longer exist, the equipment you see today represents the growth and changes of 80 years.

In 1898 Goodlett installed his first boiler and steam engine which ran two 60-saw gins and a Continental drop press. A wooden Continental distributor and lint flue plus a drag-type, wooden box conveyor distributor were added by 1911. During the 1930s, two 70-saw gin stands and two rebuilt feeders were installed, and the boiler replaced. The system seen here was designed by the Munger Company of Texas and is known as a Continental Munger Plant.After the cotton was weighed in the Scale House, it was literally sucked up into the ginning system by a suction pipe using air generated by a fan (A). Before being fed into the saws, it was put through an extractor-cleaner (or vacuum dropper) which broke it up and aided in drying the bolls (B). The conveyor distributor (C) carried the cotton to the feeders (D) which spread the cotton bolls evenly over the width of the gin stand. The large 70-saw gin stands (E), consisting of a series of circular saws with fine teeth, revolved causing the lint or fiber to separate from the seed. The seeds dropped to a conveyor belt; starting in the 1930s, they were carried to the seed cleaner (F) where they were sterilized with heat to protect against pink bollworms. The seeds were then dropped into the original conveyor that carried them to the Seed House for storage.The clean cotton fibers were lifted by an air stream at the back of each stand through a large flue (G) to the condenser (H) which formed the cotton into batts or layers. Gravity fed the batting into the press boxes.

The invention of the cotton gin revolutionized the cotton industry by making tremendous amounts of cotton fiber available to the world. Much of that fiber came from gins such as this one. Goodlett kept pace with the demand by constantly improving his equipment. Though his original hand-fed gins no longer exist, the equipment you see today represents the growth and changes of 80 years.

Munger Ginning System

Cotton lint was compressed into a bale for transport to market. The Munger Ginning System utilized a double box press (A) which sat on a revolving turntable. Batting was fed from the compressor into one box while the batting in the other box was being compressed into bales. Jute (burlap) bagging material plus metal bands were wrapped around the bale to secure it. After one box was filled and a bale completed in the other, the turntable revolved and the process began again. Cotton bales averaged 500 pounds in weight. Bales were loaded by a pulley/crane system from the second story dock onto awaiting wagons (and later trucks) for shipment to various markets.The majority of agricultural production in Southwest Arkansas consisted of cotton growing until after World War II. Thus, Goodlett had an ample cotton supply for his ginning operation. Cotton bales were taken to market in Little Rock, Texarkana, and even Hope. Railroads were used to transport the cotton to factories or ports of shipping. But, the coming of synthetic fibers and the rising costs of cotton production in the 1950s caused the decline of the cotton market in Arkansas. In the 1960s, the Goodlett family shut down the gin stands, and in the late 1970s it was donated to the state park and later relocated to this location piece-by-piece.

Once the cotton fibers were separated from the cotton seeds by the gin stands, they would be packed into tightly-packed bales for transport, carried out the small back door onto a loading dock, where they would be loaded onto horse-drawn wagons, flatbed rail cars or boxcars, or even trucks in later years.

Railroad Map of Hempstead County, c. 1890

Cotton Distribution from the Goodlett Cotton Gin

Munger Ginning System and Cotton Distribution

The Goodlett Cotton Gin has two outbuildings: the Scale House and the Seed House. The Scale House is where producers would have their crops weighed before starting the ginning/milling processes. The Seed House, off to the side and connected by a conveyor, is where separated cotton seeds were stored.

The Scale House, located in front of the main building, also played an important part in the ginning process. Farmers drove their cotton-laden wagons onto the scale house platform to be weighed. After being unloaded, the wagon was weighed again to determine the cotton’s true weight. When working properly, the scales are accurate to within less than 5 pounds.The Seed House, located to the side and connected by a seed conveyor, was used to store seed extracted from the cotton fiber. From there, the seed was transported to a mill for conversion to vegetable oil or livestock meal.

The Goodlett Cotton Gin has two outbuildings: the Scale House and the Seed House. The Scale House is where producers would have their crops weighed before starting the ginning/milling processes. The Seed House, off to the side and connected by a conveyor, is where separated cotton seeds were stored.

Scale House and Seed House

The cotton gin has been a familiar sight throughout the South since its invention by Eli Whitney in 1793. Before that time, cotton fiber was separated from the seed by hand—a long, tedious process. The cotton gin, and the addition of steam in the 1880s as a power source, created a powerful impact on the cotton industry.

The downstairs area of the Goodlett Cotton Gin houses the power source for the gins, grist mill, and sorghum mill. The large boiler (A) burned coal/wood to heat water which created the steam for the Atlas engine (B). The engine, which cost only $250 when new, worked so well it required only one major overhaul in 1952. Power was transmitted through a connection of jack shafts, pulleys, and belts (C). Each individual machine or fan was driven by a belt connected to the central jack shaft (D).

The cotton gin has been a familiar sight throughout the South since its invention by Eli Whitney in 1793. Before that time, cotton fiber was separated from the seed by hand—a long, tedious process. The cotton gin, and the addition of steam in the 1880s as a power source, created a powerful impact on the cotton industry.

Diagram of the Goodlett Cotton Gin's power source

Goodlett Cotton Gin (1883)

Sorghum Mill

Introduction

Images

Backstory and Context

Sources

Additional Information