Past blog entries have covered several of Holyoke's paper mills along the Second Level Canal between Appleton and Bridge Streets. Notable mills that will soon be added to this stretch of land along the Connecticut River include Norman Paper, Valley Paper, Albion Paper, Hampden Glazes Paper, and today's topic: the George C. Gill Paper Company. As an aside, I consider George C. Gill as one of Holyoke's great industrialists and entrepreneurs.
George C. Gill was born in Hinsdale, Massachusetts, on February 10, 1858. His parents, Bartholomew and Mary (Dwyer) Gill, both emigrated from Ireland to the United States. His father worked for the Boston & Albany Railroad.
Young George spent his early years on the family farm, caring for the animals, trading in milk, and working the land. He knew William Cullen Bryant, the great poet and editor of the New York Evening Post, who lived nearby in Cummington, Massachusetts. George Gill drove his horse and buggy. Later in life, Mr. Bryant, then living in New York City, needed transportation from Albany for his weekend visits and called upon George Gill to provide the service.
In his late teens, George Gill moved to Huntington, Mass., where he worked as a bookkeeper for the Chester Paper Company. After work, he spent many nights walking through the mill to immerse himself in the manufacturing operation.
In 1882, at age 24, he arrived in Holyoke and took a job with Moses Newton at the Chemical Paper Co., a company in financial straits at the time. With his knowledge and experience in the paper field, George Gill guided the company to profitability. He was self-confident, and once, while dining at the Holyoke House with William G. Dwight of the Holyoke Transcript and Dr. Frank Holyoke, he said he did not come to Holyoke to learn the paper business because he already knew it.
By 1888, he was earning $18,000 annually at Chemical Paper, a very large salary at the time. This is estimated to be about $638,000 annually in 2026 dollars, accounting for inflation. He also owned shares in the Chemical Paper Company.
Against this backdrop, the narrative moves to 1891. The 10-year-old Winona Paper Company (Blog published Aug 9, 2026) was heavily in debt, much of it from significantly underbidding competitors for government contracts. Several prominent businesspeople were surprised Winona lasted as long as it did, given the massive sums poured into its building projects. Several creditors banded together and forced the business into bankruptcy. The company offered to pay a portion of its debts by issuing $300,000 in 10% bonds. Additional creditors added to the $600k-$800k already owed, making the situation financially untenable.
Moses Newton and George Gill purchased the business and real estate at public auction for $234,000, which paid off loans to Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Co. and the Holyoke Water Power Co. The mill operated as Chemical Paper Co. No. 2. The Newtons had built the mill in 1880.
At age 34, George Gill now owned the controlling interest in his own papermill. The company received its corporate charter in late April 1892, and on May 1, 1892, the mill was renamed George C. Gill Paper Company.
Mr. Gill turned the company's financial fortunes around. In the year ending 1893, the company posted a profit of nearly $35,000.
In 1894, Lynch Brothers did the brickwork for a new 130' by 48' stockhouse. Frank Rivers performed the woodwork on the project. In 1934, the George C. Gill Paper Company did more business than any other paper mill in the city.
The company's success was remarkable given the paper industry's financial depression from 1893-1896. He gathered his employees and told them that if they accepted a 10% pay cut, he would keep them in their positions. As the story goes, employees kept working while many of their contemporaries were laid off. The pay cut allowed Mr. Gill to lower his paper prices and compete successfully in the industry.
In December 1894, architect George Elsworth designed plans for a 130' by 50' addition, of which 50' by 50' would be 3 stories plus a basement. The remainder of the new building would be 1 story. The following year, the company built an engine room for a 1,000-horsepower engine. In 1895, the company also built another large 3-story addition to accommodate its finishing room.
In a stock exchange in February 1895, Mr. Gill sold his shares in Chemical Paper No. 1 to the Newtons. The Newtons sold their shares in the Chemical No. 2 plant to George Gill, giving him control of the company.
The company continued to succeed, reporting a profit of $80,000 in 1896.
In 1898, the company built a new mill office, described as one of the finest in Massachusetts.
In 1899, Dean & Shibley, financiers and brokers from Providence, Rhode Island, devised a plan to merge almost 47 paper mills under one trust. 35 mills were located in the Connecticut River Valley. The goal was to control 70-75 percent of U.S. paper output. Many companies suffered from overproduction and had to store unsold inventory or sell at distress prices. The trust also hoped to control market pricing and cut costs by consolidating administrative work.
Many Holyoke mills accepted the invitation to join the trust, with major exceptions being the George C. Gill Paper Co. and Franklin Paper Company.
George Gill asked an outrageously high price of $1.5 million for the mill complex, machinery and equipment, and business. Unwilling to budge, the trust planned to exert pressure on Mr. Gill to lower his asking price. The strategy was to have Mass. Mutual, who held a mortgage on the mill, demand payment of $100,000 of the remaining $200,000 mortgage to pressure the sale. The mortgagee also was financially backing the trust's mill acquisitions.
The lender made the demand, and Mr. Gill knew he wouldn't get a loan from a local bank, as financial institutions would favor future business dealings with the behemoth trust. Mr. Gill approached the Ware Savings Bank, presented his financial statements, and provided a tour of his up-to-date factory. Impressed, the bank lent the full $200,000 to pay off the entire debt. With the pressure removed, Mr. Gill received his full asking price within thirty days and paid off the Ware Savings Bank loan. He had outwitted the paper trust.
Mr. Gill received stocks, bonds, and the title of Vice-President with the American Writing Paper Trust (AWP). He also insisted that the business keep the name of George C. Gill division of AWP. By July 1899, the newly formed company owned 15 Holyoke paper mills. At the last minute, James Newton sold the Wauregan Paper Mill to the trust, bringing the total to 16.
George C. Gill resigned from AWP effective August 1, 1900. Apparently, differences in AWP's direction and management led to his resignation.
Epilogue: George Gill later became a director, then President, of the Holyoke National Bank, a position he held until 1925. He continued his business interests with the Holyoke Heater Company and the Holyoke Foundry for 20 years and retired at age 87. He also helped found the Erving Paper Co. in Erving, MA, and the Mississquoi Paper Co. in Sheldon Springs, VT. He died in 1955 at age 97.
The journey of the George C. Gill, division of American Writing Paper Co., continues in the next chapter.
Citations:
Newspapers.com (paid subscription): Citations: Holyoke (Massachusetts) Transcript & Transcript-Telegram; publication dates and pages are shown.
Ancestry.com (paid subscription): Genealogy Records and Price & Lee, Holyoke, Massachusetts, City Directories
Holyoke-Chicopee: A Perspective, Ella Merkel DiCarlo, Publisher, Holyoke (Massachusetts) Transcript-Telegram, 1982
Holyoke, Massachusetts, A Case History of the Industrial Revolution in America, Constance McLaughlin Green, Yale University Press, 1939
Massachusetts Cultural Research Information System, Secretary of State's Office, Boston, Massachusetts
History of Massachusetts Histories, Orra L. Stone, 1930
No comments:
Post a Comment