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Thomas T. Hillman


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Thomas T. Hillman was born near Clarksville, Montgomery County, Tennessee, at the old Marable Homestead, February 2, 1844.

His ancestral history is an interesting one, and almost coeval on this continent with the settlement of America, but its chief interest comes from the intimate connection of the name of Hillman with the subject of iron-making, particularly in the South.

Glancing back to the earliest time of which there is any authentic record of the Hillman family, we find that the father and mother, from whom came all the members of this family, were Hollanders, and first came to America about five generations ago, or more than a century from the present date. This couple landed in Philadelphia, and, among the most interesting things connected with their life in the then primitive Philadelphia, was the purchase by Mr. Hillman of a tract of land consisting of twenty acres now in the very heart of the city. It is bounded by Chestnut, Walnut, and Seventh Streets, and by the Delaware River. Among other notable buildings standing at present on this property are the Continental Hotel and the United States Bank. In consequence of the return of Mr. Hillman to his native land, and death there, this land was sold for taxes, but subject to redemption any time within the following ninty-nine years. A son of Daniel Hillman went to Philadelphia in 1840 or ’41, and with two of his brothers, George and Charles, employed counsel to investigate the matter, but it was found that one hundred and two years had expired since the tax sale had taken place, or just three years more than the limit allowed for the redemption of the land.

Mr. Hillman was engaged in the dairy business during all of his lifetime in America. He was recalled to Holland by the death of a son and daughter, and some months after his return died. His wife continued in the dairy business up to the time of her death.

Three sons, James, Daniel H., and George, survived this union, and each of them reared families.

James and Daniel H. for some years carried on the wagon and blacksmith business at Trenton, New Jersey. Daniel H., in copartnership with a party by the name of J. L. James, built a forge for the manufacture of iron near Valley Forge, New Jersey, in 1814, but it was soon afterward washed away by a big freshet on the stream where it was situated, when Mr. James took a precipitate departure, leaving all the debts to be paid by his partner. In New Jersey, in those days, the law inflicted imprisonment for debt. Daniel H. owned, near Barnegat Bay, a farm, store, schooner, and ship. These he surrendered to satisfy the indebtedness of the firm, and went to New York. This was in the year 1816. He left his wife and children in New York and went to Chillicothe, Ohio, then the capital of the State. He built a forge on Paint Creek for the manufacture of hammered iron. In the following year, 1817, his family, consisting of wife, four sons and one daughter, joined him in his new home. The names of his children were Daniel, the oldest, who was born in Trenton, New Jersey, February, 1807; Jane, James, George W., and Charles E. The mother of these children was Grace Huston.

There being no railroads then in the United States, his family traversed this great distance in wagons.

Daniel H. Hillman ran this forge for two years, and then moved to Bath County, Kentucky, in 1822, and built and operated a number of forges up to the year 1827, when Mrs. Hillman died. The last place at which he worked was near Greenupsburg, Kentucky, for Leven S. andT. T. Shreeves.

During the stay of Daniel H. at this place we have the first mention of his son Daniel (the father of the subject of this sketch), in connection with the important industry which the former had so faithfully fostered. Young Hillman assisted his father in securing coal and in the shipment of iron to Cincinnati, Ohio, by flatboats. He was then in his nineteenth year and went to the steam furnace of L. S. andT. T. Shreeves, in Greenup County, Kentucky, and managed the coaling ground. He stayed with them two or three years, and was promoted to be bookkeeper and manager.

His father, on the death of Mrs. Hillman, broke up housekeeping and went to Hanging Rock, Ohio, where he managed the Pine Grove Steam Furnace. He remained there some little time and then returned to Greenup County, Kentucky. In 1830 he went to New Orleans, and thence to Mobile, Alabama, in company with Dr. J. Goodrich and Casting Goodrich, and subsequently to Tuscaloosa County, Alabama.

The following letter from Mr. Hillman to his son George affords an interesting insight into the condition of things as they stood at that early date in the mineral region of Alabama :

Valley Forge, Bibb County, Alabama,

Daniel Hillman.

This letter was written from the scene of Mr. Hillman’s work, as we find in the postscript directions to address the reply to his letter to Bucksville, Tuscaloosa County, Alabama.

Mr. Hillman formed, some time after this, a copartnership with Colonel McGehee, of Montgomery, and had he lived he intended to build the furnace referred to. He died in 1832. To him belongs the honor and fame of first making wrought or hammered iron in Alabama.

His relation to the mineral region of Alabama is best expressed in the eloquent words of Miss Mary Gordon Duffee: "After a very careful comparison of different notes, I am led to believe that the first iron ever made in the present wonderland of the South was at a locality on Roupe’s Creek, some two miles east of the well-known Elisha McMath place, and near the corners of four counties, viz: Tuscaloosa, Jefferson, Shelby, and Bibb." The same gifted writer further says: "Mr. Hillman was a very talented man in his profession, and he may be justly styled the founder of the iron manufacture and trade of Alabama ; for, although Mr. McGehee furnished the means to build the first forge, it was the genius and unwearied skill and energy of Mr. Hillman that made it a success, discovered the possibilities of the mineral region, and demonstrated their importance and value to the demands of commerce."

Mr. Daniel Hillman, father of the subject of this sketch, as already seen, had three brothers and one sister. From the time he was in the employ of the Shreeves as already noticed, he developed very rapidly the capacity for successful iron-making.

Some time after his mother’s death, which occurred in 1827, he formed a copartnership with William Wood, who owned a forge and furnace on the Little Sandy River, in Kentucky.

In the fall of 1831, or spring of 1832, he went to Nashville, Tennessee, and formed a copartnership with A. W. Van Leer and John Sullivan. The former gentleman owned the Cumberland Furnace in Dixon County, Tennessee, which was built by Montgomery Bell in 1817 or 1818, and was the first furnace made in the State to make hammered iron from pig iron. This firm built the Fairchance Furnace on Big Richland Creek, about twelve miles from Reynoldsburg, the county seat of Humphreys County, Tennessee. This furnace was in blast from the fall of 1832 to January, 1835. The market for their product was St. Louis, Missouri.

After this Daniel Hillman formed a copartnership with A. W. Van Leer in the profits of Cumberland Furnace, which he managed, and the latter, after allowing the former his share of the profits, made more money than he had made before entering into this arrangement. This result could have been achieved in no other way than by skillful management.

He was next associated with Dr. T. T. Watson, and they together put up the Fulton Furnace, in Kentucky.

In November, 1845, the firm of Watson & Hillman, in connection with B. M. Runyan, C. E. Hillman, and A. W. Van Leer, under the firm name of Hillman, Van Leer & Co., purchased the Tennessee Rolling Mills, in Nashville, which had been built in 1834 by E. D. Hicks, Robert Baxter, and Henry Ewing. Daniel Hillman and T. T. Watson owned a three-fourths interest, the remaining portion being owned by A. W. Van Leer. The mill was taken down and moved one hundred and fifty miles below Nashville, on the Cumberland River, to Lyon County, Kentucky, where it was rebuilt. Mr. Hillman performed the important part of taking down the heavy machinery and floating it down the river on rafts made of the timber. Near this mill were four furnaces — Empire, Center, Fulton, and Trigg. The three first were on the opposite side of the river from the mill. It was here that Mr. Hillman’s genius as an iron manufacturer produced those admirable results that have made his name famous, and constituted him a standard authority in this grest industry.

The erection of the mills was commenced in March, 1846, and the first bar of iron was rolled out in December of the same year. From this time forth the mill made a reputation that spread throughout the length and breadth of the country. The quality of rolled iron it made was of the highest excellence, and especially was this the case with the boiler plate. The company kept a large standing reward for any authentic instance brought to their notice where it proved defective. That the mill enjoyed wonderful prosperity is quite natural. Mr. Hillman was in charge of these mills up to 1847, and also gave his attention to the furnaces, and upon Dr. Watson’s death in that year purchased his interest in the two furnaces they had owned together, the Fulton and Empire.

From this time up to the breaking out of the war the mill and furnaces had a uniformly successful career.

In 1854 the three brothers, Daniel, George, and C. E. Hillman, became owners by purchase of the entire mill property. The firm was then known as Hillman Brothers. In 1864 or 1865 Daniel Hillman bought George W. Hillman’s one-fourth interest in the mill for 0,000 cash.

As a convincing proof of the success of the business, we have but to mention the fact that from October, 1855, to 1862, the profits of the business were ,300,000.

Mr. Hillman, besides owning the mill and furnace property, also owned many thousands of acres of mineral lands and several hundred negroes.

Mr. Hillman was married in April, 1839, to Miss Ann, daughter of Hon. John H. Marable, of Montgomery County, Tennessee, who represented his district for several terms in the United States Congress. There were four children in the family. John H., Thomas T. , Ann Fredonia, and Grace C. , all are still living. J. H. Hillman is a resident of Pittsburg, and is engaged in the iron business. Ann married Dr. E. N. Franklin, and resides in Gallatin, Tennessee. The remaining sister, Grace, is Mrs. Scales, of Nashville, Tennessee. Mrs. Hillman died in April, 1861.

Mr. Hillman was married the second time to Miss Mary, daughter of the Hon. Meredith P. Gentry, of Williamson County, Tennessee. To this second marriage five children were born — Daniel, Meredith P., Gentry, James H., and Carter, who died in infancy. All the former are now living at Trigg Furnace, Trigg County, Kentucky. Mrs. Hillman is still living.

Mr. Hillman died January 3, 1884, at his home in Tennessee. No man ever dying within the bounds of the Southern country did more to inspire the Southern heart with the fervent desire to do homage to his name. He was the pioneer of an industry that has awakened the entire South from a lethargic sleep, and is fast carrying her to the realization of that destiny, where she will stand among the foremost sections of the American Union as an iron and steel producing country. He visited this part of Alabama in 1872, and while riding one day on top of Red Mountain, in company with Major Thomas Peters, near Redding Mines, dismounted from his horse, and made use of the expression: "Here is the spot most favored for iron-making in the world. " It has since become prophetic, and we have only to think of the wonderful development around us to be convinced of the truthfulness of the assertion.

Returning to Mr. Hillman, we find that while he was yet in his infancy he was taken by his mother to Fulton Furnace, in Kentucky, whither they were preceded by his father. Here the first years of his infancy were spent. His father then moved to the Empire Furnace, only a short distance from the former, while Thomas was still an infant. This change of residence was owing to the death of Dr. Watson, who had up to this time controlled the Empire Furnace. Here he stayed with his parents until he was seven years old, and received the primitive training afforded by the country schools. About the time he had attained his seventh year he was thrown from a horse. From this accident he was an invalid for six years. For some time after this occurrence he was taught by his mother, and his father then took him to his office and trained him in the ways of business, which well fitted him for his future success. From his fifteenth to his sixteenth year he was at Bendusia Academy, in Edgefield, near Nashville, Tennessee, under Professor Nathaniel Cross, a noted educator. His whole school life was two years. About this time the war came on, and he went home, and his father gave him charge of the Empire, Center, and Fulton Furnaces, but the Center Furnace was the only one in operation. The three furnaces. Empire, Fulton, and Center, were frequently on different sides of the line twice a week.

After the close of the war, when he had attained his twenty-first year, his father gave him a fifty-thousand-dollar interest in the business, his special work being to manage the furnaces. Under his supervision their product was greater than ever. He remained here from 1866 to 1878, inclusive. How important to him were these years of devotion to a splendid industry!

In the beginning of 1879 he purchased the stock of iron and heavy hardware from Daniel Hillman & Sons, of Nashville, Tennessee, and sold out July 29, 1879.

Prior to this he had visited Birmingham and had formed a copartnership with Mr. H. F. DeBardeleben, under the firm name of Hillman & DeBardeleben, for the purpose of erecting a furnace. Alice Furnace, No.1, was commenced September 29, 1879, and went into blast November 23, 1880.

Inthe latter part of 1880 the Hillman Coal and Iron Company, composed of Colonel Samuel Tate, Daniel Hillman, M. B. Prichard, and Colonel Thomas Peters, was consolidated with the Birmingham Coal and Iron Company, composed of the same gentlemen, with the addition of Charles Hillman. The Alice Furnace Company was formed of all the above-mentioned companies.

The capital stock of the new concern was two hundred and fifty thousand dollars, one hundred and fifty thousand dollars being represented by Hillman and DeBardeleben, the remainder by the other members of the company. The directors were Samuel Tate, Charles Hillman, Thomas Peters, H. F. DeBardeleben, and T. T. Hillman. The officers wereT. T. Hillman, President; F. L. VVadsworth, Secretary and Treasurer.

For the first year No. i furnace made an average of fifty-three tons per day, and ran three years, eight months, and nineteen days. Since adding a Whitewell fire-brick stove the daily capacity has been ninety tons per day.

Furnace No. 2 was commenced in January, 1882, and was put in blast in July, 1883. At first it did not work so well as No. 1. It had to be relined after one year, but since then it has run well and given satisfactory results. It is one of the largest furnaces in the South. There are four others, two at South Pittsburg and two at Dayton, Tennessee, as large. To this furnace belongs the credit of making the largest daily run of any single furnace in the South, which was one hundred and fifty tons. This result was achieved in the summer of 1886. The output is now between one hundred and twenty-five and one hundred and fifty tons. Both these furnaces have made reputations, both in quality and quantity of iron. As time goes on the operation of these furnaces becomes more and more successful.

In May, 1884, the Alice Furnace Company was consolidated with the Pratt Coal and Iron Company, but the name Alice Furnace Company was retained until the beginning of 1887, and at that time the Pratt Coal and Iron Company was consolidated with the Tennessee Coal, Iron and Railroad Company, under the latter corporate name. In this company the officers were Enoch Ensley, President; T. T. Hillman, Vice-President; A. M. Shook, General Manager ; Nathaniel Baxter, Chairman of the Executive Committee ; James Bowron, Treasurer, and C. Flisher, Secretary.

At a meeting of the stockholders of the company, held in Nashville, Tennessee, April 4, 1887, the following directors were elected: N. Baxter, Jr., of Nashville; T. T. Hillman, of Birmingham; Enoch Ensley and Napoleon Hill, of Memphis; A. S. Colyar, W. M. Duncan, S. J. Keith, T. M. Steger, John P. Williams, A. M. Shook, and D. C. Scales, of Nashville; J. H. Inman, J. D. Probst, and T. W. Evans, of New York, and Samuel Tate, Jr., of Memphis. These directors immediately organized by the election of the following officers : N. Baxter, Jr., President; T. T. Hillman, Vice-President; A. M. Shook, General Manager, and James Bowron, Secretary and Treasurer.

An idea of the importance of this consolidation may be gained from a brief statement of the possessions of the two.

The Pratt Coal and Iron Company represented the Linn Iron Works, the Alice Furnace Company, the Pratt Coal and Iron Company proper, with about seventy thousand to eighty thousand acres of mineral lands. The Tennessee Coal, Iron and Railroad Company, on the other hand, represents possessions of almost equal importance. The Pratt Coal and Iron Company is at present putting up four furnaces, the largest in the South. These are to be put in operation in the near future.

It is needless to speak of the order of ability necessary in the management of enterprises of the magnitude of those just mentioned. Mr. Hillman’s prominent connection with them is the sure test of his worth.

Mr. Hillman was married July 25, 1867, to Miss Emily, daughter of the Hon. Meredith P. Gentry, of Williamson County, Tennessee. This marriage occurred at the Clover Bottom Farm, near the Hermitage, the home of General Andrew Jackson.

Mr. Gentry was, in his day, the most brilliant light in the political firmament of Tennessee. He first appeared in politics in 1835, when he was elected to the State Legislature of Tennessee for two successive terms, and then sent to Congress from his district for a number of terms. He won distinction for the eminent ability he displayed. He won a name that was national, and that will be handed down to the remotest posterity as among the proudest records of Tennessee’s history.

Mr. and Mrs. Hillman are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, and the former is also a Knight Templar.

It seldom happens that such a continued succession of names of the same family is identified with the same business or profession, and yet we find that from Daniel H. Hillman, who ran a forge in New Jersey, in 1814, to the present time, the name is closely associated with the iron industry; to Daniel H. Hillman, who died at Burksville with great plans in view for this mineral region, and the pioneer of its iron manufacture ; to Daniel Hillman, his son, who heralded her fame abroad, and was an earnest defender of her claims to recognition ; and especially to T. T. Hillman will Alabama ever pay the homage of true gratitude for their and his unswerving efforts to develop her mineral wealth.

- from Jefferson County and Birmingham Alabama: History and Biographical, edited by John Witherspoon Dubose and published in 1887 by Teeple & Smith / Caldwell Printing Works, Birmingham, Alabama

10-06-00 New York


Image by Andrea Vascellari
Me and Kerstin E. Nordin (Executive Director – Finnish American Chamber of Commerce)

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