Booming Businesses
The Forsyth County we know today is full of small and large businesses of many types. Large businesses tobacco firms like P.H. Hanes Tobacco now call this city home, but long before our area caught their attention, Salem's growth came from local entrepreneurs and hardwork.
Some of the companies were established long before the Civil War, and were critical producers during the conflict. One of the largest companies, F&H Fries Manufacturing Company, made fabric for Confederate uniforms and clothing for slaves that could withstand even the harshest of conditions. The Nissen Wagon Company increased their productivity to build dependable wagons used to transport good and weapons.
After the War, the economic downturn that resulted from the Confederate debt left its mark on Salem’s businesses, but the community has been able to recover and prosper in just a few short years. Successful businessmen Henry Fries and Edward below worked to bring the railroad, and recently a host of tobacco manufacturers, warehouses, and a range of small businesses have created countless job opportunities in Forsyth.
The great men that started Salem’s earliest companies effectively made the town into a Southern industrial giant during the Civil War and were able to create a lasting legacy of industrial growth for the city as we know it today. Though many businesses have come and gone, their memory can often be seen and felt around our city.
Playing in this section is a cotton loom from the Boott Textile Mill Museum in Lowell, MA