M. Earl Lee has fond memories of growing up in a cotton mill village, and he shares them in a new book: “The Gayle.”
Subtitled “A Personal Account of Living on a Cotton Mill Village in Upstate South Carolina,” Lee takes readers on a journey back to the years surrounding World War II, a time when cotton mills and their villages were thriving. Lee grew up in the shadow of The Gayle, one of three cotton mills in Chester County.
“This was a special place, and good people lived there,” he said. Lee considers having grown up in a mill village as “a badge of honor, something of which I am proud, something that has positively impacted my life.
“Most of the houses looked alike. Everyone worked for the same company. Everyone knew their neighbor because we visited each other, and we shared life together.
“It was such a unique way of life, and its history needs to be preserved.”
“The Gayle” can be purchased by personal check directly from the author. Write to M. Earl Lee, 19772 Forest Park Circle, Foley, Ala., 36535-3932.
