From the Society for Industrial Archeology Newsletter. Vol. 38, No. 4,
page 18. Fall 2009

"The Pamplin Pipe Factory is located 10 miles east of Appomattox, Va.
Tobacco-pipe making was likely underway at Pamplin by the 1740s,
shortly after the first settlers arrived, and it developed into a
cottage industry. The pipes were formed primarily by local women from
the nearby deposits of red clay, fired in backyard wood burning ovens,
and packed for shipment in barrels and crates lined with pine needles
or sawdust. Pamplin's cottage industry paved the way for the
establishment of a factory sometime before 1880 by E.H. Merrill, an
Akron, Ohio, company that was the leading producer of tobacco pipes in
America.  The Merrills invented a pipe-making machine, and it is
believed that eight to ten of these machines were utilized at Pamplin.
 The site is threatened by possible commercial development, but the
Archaeological Conservancy has an option to buy the site for $77,500
and is soliciting contributions.  Info: The Archaeological
Conservancy, Attn: Pamplin Pipe Factory, 5301 Central Ave. NE, Ste.
902, Albuquerque, NM 87108."


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Smoke Pfeiffer

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