The Whittier Cotton Mills, based in Lowell, Massachusetts, opened a 10,000-spindle mill on the banks of the Chattahoochee River, northwest of Atlanta, in 1896. The mill, with the surrounding company housing, incorporated as a village that included a post office and Southern Railway frontage. The company built a company store, barber shop, and a schoolhouse; and provided medical services and day care. Later the mill built a baseball field and golf course for employee use. Between 1896 and 1926 members of the Whittier family managed the mill. Helen A. Whittier (1846-?) served as the first president of the company, and Sid Whittier, Paul Fletcher, and Walter Rufus Boyd served in administrative positions for the mill. In 1926, the Silver Lake Company contracted to manage the Whittier Mills. Silver Lake expanded the mill with a 65,000 square foot annex to the main building, referred to as "plant #5." They also built an additional 120 housing units. As part of the expansion plans, Silver Lake emphasized the production of cotton fire hose casing, in addition to the cotton braid and yarn manufactured in the old plant. At its height, the mill employed as many as 600 men and women. Whittier Cotton Mills ceased operation on May 15, 1971.