What You Need To Know
Revolution Mill was built in the late 1890s by the Cone brothers
It was the largest flannel mill of the south and supplied many items to soldiers
The mill has been renovated into apartments, events spaces, breweries, office spaces, restaurants and an art gallery
Revolution is looking to expand on its 45-acre property
GREENSBORO, N.C. — Revolution Mill has experienced many working and living communities inside its walls for over 100 years.
The Revolution Mill was one of the mills owned by the infamous Cone brothers, Moses and Ceasar Cone. The duo were one of the textiles giants in the south, specifically North Carolina.
Revolution opened its doors in the late 1890s as the largest flannel mill of the south with at one point 1,000 mills running for 16 hours a day, according to the Revolution Mill website.
Looms continued to run, making flannels and items for soldiers at the mill until its closure in 1982, when it became vacant for a few years.
The mill passed hands and began transforming into office and event spaces until it was purchased by private company Self-Help in 2012. Self-Help began a $100,000,000 renovation on Revolution Mill, according to the mill’s website.
Nick Piornack has a passion for preservation after working on restoration projects in downtown Greensboro. He began working on his largest project yet, Revolution Mill.
“What I love is when people come visit, and I do tours quite a bit to show folks what's happened that have either been here before or had been here years ago and saw it as an old warehouse of the factory," said Piornack, the general manager and owner rep for Revolution Mill.
Revolution Mill has passed in its thumping of machinery for the hustle and bustle of restaurants, breweries, event spaces, art galleries, business headquarters, store fronts and apartments.
“Their eyes and their excitement. And they can't believe that, you know, we have 142 companies and 183 apartments and restaurants and all these things here that, you know, their memory is at the old and loud and manufacturing, and now it's all reborn again,” Piornack said.
All of the newly built rooms inside of the mill used to be part of the working floor, full of machines and workers.
“It’s completely restored of all the original floors are still in place, the the maple floors,” beamed Piornack. With original brick and some authentic window panes still standing inside the mill.
Along with original fire doors, fans to remove lint off of so called “lint heads” within the factory and the original beam structures where the looms would cut into the pillars used in the aesthetic design of the mill are revealing its history to new visitors.