Cliffside
The mill town - industrial communities scattered throughout North Carolina's foothills and Piedmont. Small to large textile mills developed communities and towns to support the factory. In return, the factory was the community's and its residents' lifeblood. These towns flourished throughout the state in the early 20th century. However, beginning in the mid-20th century, many of these communities would slowly fade away as the textile industry modernized and consolidated. Map of Cliffside in 1942 - along with the Downtown and the Cliffside Mill - much of the homes that were part of the company town are no longer standing. Cliffside, located in Southern Rutherford County along the Second Broad River, is one of those textile communities that flourished and eventually declined with the industry. Cliffside was founded by Raleigh Rutherford Haynes - an industrialist that had already developed mills in nearby Henrietta, Caroleen, and Forest City. The Cliffside Mill began ope