People and Places There have been many fascinating people who lived in Granite Falls as well as interesting places to visit. Alas, time has taken its toll. This page will help us “meet” some people who are no longer with us and “visit” some places that no longer exist. On this visit, we are featuring a businesswoman who succeeded without being able to vote, and a piano plant that may be gone, but not forgotten. Just click on the photo or links.
Kohler and Campbell Although it went out of business years ago, there is long narrow building that runs parallel to the railroad tracks and Hwy 321A that will likely remain a landmark for years to come. It was once home to a piano factory that moved here to take advantage of nearby lumber and woodworking artisans. To learn more, click on the links and .pdf icon: http://bluebookofpianos.com Bruce Jobson of Snellville, Ga. sent the museum this history of Kohler-Campbell and the link to Blue Book of Pianos. (click on .pdf icon to open) http://caldwelljournal.com/kohler-campbell-piano-history We also have a booklet at the museum that Mark Jackson, editor of the Caldwell Journal, researched and wrote.
A Woman’s Place On May 1, 1899, the referendum to incorporate the Town of Granite Falls passed by a vote of 38 to 6 with 18 eligible persons not voting at all. All of the registered voters and all of the candidates for office were male because women could not vote or hold office until the ratification of the Nineteen Amendment on August 26, 1920. When women first organized to fight for the right to vote, many were virtually powerless and generally dependent upon men - their fathers, brothers, husbands, and/or sons - to support them. Many believed the old saying “a woman’s place is in the house.” Women’s rights have slowly developed over the years. Prior to 1868, when the State of North Carolina adopted a new constitution, women were not guaranteed the right to own property, work for their own wages, sue in court, make wills, and make contracts without the permission of their husbands. In 1893, the State Legislature granted women the right to cash checks and withdraw money without the permission of their husbands. The following laws were passed in the twentieth century: Equal Pay Act (1963), Civil Rights Act with Title VII (1964), Title IX of the Education Amendments (1972), Equal Credit Opportunity Act (1974), Civil Rights Restoration Acts of 1987 and 1988, Family and Medical Leave Act - FMLA (1993), and Violence Against Women Act (1994). A WOMAN’S PLACE in Granite Falls While women were marching, circulating petitions, lobbying, and giving speeches, there was one woman in Granite Falls, North Carolina who defied the odds and succeeded in business without the legal and political protections we now take for granted. Lula Russell Hickman was born November 9, 1878 to David Washington and Martha Miller Russell. In 1892, she moved from the Grace Chapel area with her family to downtown Granite Falls where her parents owned and operated a general store located where Mackie Furniture is now. In 1897, she married James Hickman, a local merchant. Just three years later (1900) with one child and one on the way, Mr. Hickman died unexpectedly leaving his widow to support herself and rear their two children. She became a skilled milliner and businesswoman. Around 1906, Mrs. Hickman received a hundred dollar bill in payment for her services, but she couldn’t find anyone in Granite Falls who could make change. She traveled by train to a bank in Hickory. Realizing they needed a bank in town, she joined with other merchants to establish the Bank of Granite. Mrs. Hickman was the only female founder, and the gentlemen allowed her to be the first depositor. This hardworking woman must have been financially shrewd. With money she had saved over the years, she and her son, Cecil, started a shirt factory in 1919 - a year before she could vote. When people bought shirts, they asked for other items. It was not long until the shirt factory became Hickman Hardware with three (3)locations (one in Granite Falls and two in Hickory). In addition to operating a successful business, Mrs. Hickman worked to make her town a better place to live. She was a member of the Garden Cub, Granite Falls Woman’s Club, and the Women’s Society of Christian Service. She taught a beginners Sunday School class for over 40 years at the First United Methodist Church. Affectionately known as “Miss Lula,” she took home blue ribbons from flower shows, worked with the Red Cross during war time, nursed the sick, and (before there was a funeral home) helped prepare the dead for burial. In 1960, the Granite Falls Woman’s Club named her “Woman of the Year.” In addition to keeping house and tending a garden, she helped to rear her great-granddaughter Jo Ann (JoJo) Brady. JoJo remembers her as being strict, not very talkative, and opposed to alcoholic beverages. They lived on North Main Street between Mackie Furniture Company and Bank of Granite (now First Horizon). The house was later sold and turned into a parking lot. Mrs. Hickman had previously lived in a smaller house next door that was torn down to make room for the bank. Sunday was a family occasion when Mrs. Hickman’s brother Ode Russell would drop by to eat lunch and watch television. JoJo noted that Mrs. Hickman was active until May 10, 1970 when she peacefully passed away in her sleep.