Burton Farmers Gin
Burton, Washington County, Texas
Marker Inscription
In December 1913 a group of local farmers met to organize the Burton Farmers Gin Association. This two-story corrugated metal-clad gin building was constructed in 1914. The gin's machinery was steam-powered until 1925, when an oil engine was installed. The only cotton gin in town after 1948, it continued operations through 1974. The Burton Farmers Gin is one of the few remaining complete gin and mill complexes in the United States.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
A group of local farmers organized the Burton Farmers Gin Association in December 1913 and raised this two-story metal-clad gin building the next year. Its machinery ran on steam until an oil engine took over in 1925, and as the last gin in town after 1948 it kept ginning cotton until 1974. Today it survives as one of the few complete gin-and-mill complexes left in the United States.
Why it matters
Cotton ginning was the economic engine of the rural South, and Burton's rare intact complex preserves the industrial heart of a farming community.
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Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
Burton State Bank
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