Son of John Wyatt and Kate Steele Cole. On Feb. 14, 1900, he married Elizabeth Love Little of Little Rock, Ark. He was a member of First Methodist Church of Rockingham.
His ancestors were pioneer textile men, his great-great grandfather, Walter Francis Leak, was one of the charter signers and promoters in forming the Richmond Mill, chartered in December 1833 and put into operation in early 1837. In 1892 W.B. Cole was elected bookkeeper for the Great Falls mill. In 1897, he attended Lowell School, and while there was recruited by J.W. Cannon to work as superintendent of the Concord mill. He left there in 1899 and became superintendent of Steele's mill, where he stayed until 1907. He and R.L. Steele, Jr., chartered a new mill, the Hannah Pickett Mfg. Co., in 1906. It was named in memory of his Grandmother, Hannah Pickett Leak Steele. The Leak mill was started in 1923, in which W.B. Cole was a stockholder. His Hannah Pickett mill bought the Leak mill in 1929, and was renamed Hannah Pickett No. 2. This made his Hannah Pickett mills have 101,468 spindles and 2,848 loom. The mills were not unionized. On August 22, 1932, a strike was started at the two Hannah Pickett mills and the adjoining Entwistle mill, but it was busted after 58 days, with the employees going back to work October 19, 1932. Hannah Pickett No. 1 was sold in 1944 to Safie. He retained Hannah Pickett No. 2, until December 1945, when it was sold to the Karl Robbins chain. With the sell of his mills he retired from active business, until 1950 with the incorporation of the Sandhurst Mills. It began operation in early 1951, but in late March, 1951, the Coles sold their interest to R.H. Guest.
(Information obtained from obituary published in the Rockingham Post-Dispatch, published June 17, 1954)
His ancestors were pioneer textile men, his great-great grandfather, Walter Francis Leak, was one of the charter signers and promoters in forming the Richmond Mill, chartered in December 1833 and put into operation in early 1837. In 1892 W.B. Cole was elected bookkeeper for the Great Falls mill. In 1897, he attended Lowell School, and while there was recruited by J.W. Cannon to work as superintendent of the Concord mill. He left there in 1899 and became superintendent of Steele's mill, where he stayed until 1907. He and R.L. Steele, Jr., chartered a new mill, the Hannah Pickett Mfg. Co., in 1906. It was named in memory of his Grandmother, Hannah Pickett Leak Steele. The Leak mill was started in 1923, in which W.B. Cole was a stockholder. His Hannah Pickett mill bought the Leak mill in 1929, and was renamed Hannah Pickett No. 2. This made his Hannah Pickett mills have 101,468 spindles and 2,848 loom. The mills were not unionized. On August 22, 1932, a strike was started at the two Hannah Pickett mills and the adjoining Entwistle mill, but it was busted after 58 days, with the employees going back to work October 19, 1932. Hannah Pickett No. 1 was sold in 1944 to Safie. He retained Hannah Pickett No. 2, until December 1945, when it was sold to the Karl Robbins chain. With the sell of his mills he retired from active business, until 1950 with the incorporation of the Sandhurst Mills. It began operation in early 1951, but in late March, 1951, the Coles sold their interest to R.H. Guest.
(Information obtained from obituary published in the Rockingham Post-Dispatch, published June 17, 1954)
Son of John Wyatt and Kate Steele Cole. On Feb. 14, 1900, he married Elizabeth Love Little of Little Rock, Ark. He was a member of First Methodist Church of Rockingham.
His ancestors were pioneer textile men, his great-great grandfather, Walter Francis Leak, was one of the charter signers and promoters in forming the Richmond Mill, chartered in December 1833 and put into operation in early 1837. In 1892 W.B. Cole was elected bookkeeper for the Great Falls mill. In 1897, he attended Lowell School, and while there was recruited by J.W. Cannon to work as superintendent of the Concord mill. He left there in 1899 and became superintendent of Steele's mill, where he stayed until 1907. He and R.L. Steele, Jr., chartered a new mill, the Hannah Pickett Mfg. Co., in 1906. It was named in memory of his Grandmother, Hannah Pickett Leak Steele. The Leak mill was started in 1923, in which W.B. Cole was a stockholder. His Hannah Pickett mill bought the Leak mill in 1929, and was renamed Hannah Pickett No. 2. This made his Hannah Pickett mills have 101,468 spindles and 2,848 loom. The mills were not unionized. On August 22, 1932, a strike was started at the two Hannah Pickett mills and the adjoining Entwistle mill, but it was busted after 58 days, with the employees going back to work October 19, 1932. Hannah Pickett No. 1 was sold in 1944 to Safie. He retained Hannah Pickett No. 2, until December 1945, when it was sold to the Karl Robbins chain. With the sell of his mills he retired from active business, until 1950 with the incorporation of the Sandhurst Mills. It began operation in early 1951, but in late March, 1951, the Coles sold their interest to R.H. Guest.
(Information obtained from obituary published in the Rockingham Post-Dispatch, published June 17, 1954)
His ancestors were pioneer textile men, his great-great grandfather, Walter Francis Leak, was one of the charter signers and promoters in forming the Richmond Mill, chartered in December 1833 and put into operation in early 1837. In 1892 W.B. Cole was elected bookkeeper for the Great Falls mill. In 1897, he attended Lowell School, and while there was recruited by J.W. Cannon to work as superintendent of the Concord mill. He left there in 1899 and became superintendent of Steele's mill, where he stayed until 1907. He and R.L. Steele, Jr., chartered a new mill, the Hannah Pickett Mfg. Co., in 1906. It was named in memory of his Grandmother, Hannah Pickett Leak Steele. The Leak mill was started in 1923, in which W.B. Cole was a stockholder. His Hannah Pickett mill bought the Leak mill in 1929, and was renamed Hannah Pickett No. 2. This made his Hannah Pickett mills have 101,468 spindles and 2,848 loom. The mills were not unionized. On August 22, 1932, a strike was started at the two Hannah Pickett mills and the adjoining Entwistle mill, but it was busted after 58 days, with the employees going back to work October 19, 1932. Hannah Pickett No. 1 was sold in 1944 to Safie. He retained Hannah Pickett No. 2, until December 1945, when it was sold to the Karl Robbins chain. With the sell of his mills he retired from active business, until 1950 with the incorporation of the Sandhurst Mills. It began operation in early 1951, but in late March, 1951, the Coles sold their interest to R.H. Guest.
(Information obtained from obituary published in the Rockingham Post-Dispatch, published June 17, 1954)
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