business strength | introduction
“Tar Heel native James Buchanan “Buck” Duke made a fortune in tobacco and textiles and when he joined the Entrepreneurs are considered the Charlotte region’s economic development catalysts. One entrepreneur that I’m particularly familiar with helped shape the region as it is today. At the turn of the 20th century, this region languished in the rural, postCivil War economic doldrums – an agrarian rut so deep that no one could see a clear way out. No one, that is, except Buck Duke. Tar Heel native James Buchanan “Buck” Duke made a fortune in tobacco and textiles and when he joined the team of Dr. Gill Wylie and William States Lee, he embarked on a journey of unprecedented change. He saw the power of the Catawba River, the production cotton fields and the application of electricity for textile factories. The Catawba River – rising in the mountains of North Carolina and flowing down through the Piedmont into South Carolina – offered a low cost source of energy. In 1904 the Catawba Hydro Station began producing electricity to its initial customer, the Victoria Cotton Mills. Duke Power Company was born. It was only the beginning. Buck Duke’s bold plan did not focus on a single factory, city limits, county lines or state borders. He looked at a region connected by its river highway and its natural resources. He saw an integrated system of large power generating systems with transmission lines to serve the needs of the region. He also saw the need for an electric railroad to move people and materials. In 1925, New England had 80 percent of the cotton textile industry. By 1954, most of it had moved to
team of Dr. Gill Wylie and William States Lee, he embarked on a journey of unprecedented change.” ~RUTH SHAW
the Carolinas. We had abundant, inexpensive electricity; access to raw materials; and people eager for work
2004 CHARLOTTE REGIONAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT GUIDE
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