PIEDMONT PULP AND PAPER
COMPANY
Contributed by Buddy
Duckworth
When the Luke mill was first founded in 1888 as the Piedmont Pulp and Paper Company it was on the Property of Colonel Henry G. Davis. The property was considered an "Island" in the middle of the Potomac River with waters around it.
The small Pulp Mill started operations in 1889 and in 1891 installed two Paper Machines and operated under the name of "West Virginia Pulp and Paper Company". The formation of this Company was at Davis West Virginia 1892.
Prior to 1896, with the Construction of the
Plant and Building that were needed to facilitate business and
access, also to have some housing need the Mill. The North side
of the Potomac Island was closed off and the whole of the West
Virginia Pulp and Paper Company was then in the State of
Maryland. Maryland always had claim to the high water mark on the
South side of the River.