THE RICH HERITAGE OF
DUKE TOWER CONDOMINIUMS

The site of Duke Tower played a significant role in the South's entry into textiles during the Gay Nineties. The land was originally acquired in 1870 by Brodie L. Duke and the deed was recorded on a simple hand-written fragment of paper in 1892. The following year Brodie Duke built Pearl Mill, a large structure that stood here for over eighty years.

Pearl Mill produced wide white muslins and sheeting of the very finest quality. Business prospered under the leadership of William A. Erwin who began managing the mill in 1899. In 1919 it was purchased by Mr. Erwin and a group of investors. Erwin was an astute businessman, and a genius in cotton mill management as well as a great humanitarian.

Following the death of William Erwin in 1932 the mill was purchased and modernized by Erwin Mills. The mill, renamed Erwin Mill No. 6, became part of their sprawling seven-mill chain in piedmont North Carolina.

Erwin Mills became a division of Burlington Industries in 1962 with production continuing at the old Pearl Mill location until 1968. The mill lay idle and empty for several years and its stately Tower appeared doomed in the name of progress.

Portions of the original architecture were retained in the design and construction of Duke Tower Condominiums. Antique brick from the factory walls were used for all brickwork, and the towering smokestack is surrounded with a patio at the base. The old Tower which once housed a shrieking steam whistle, and water tank for fires, has been preserved in the central courtyard ... to become a permanent landmark and a nostalgic link with history.

 

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