Laboratory Mill given new life through restoration
It took six and a half long years for Cyndi and John Dellinger to bring the Laboratory Mill back from certain collapse due to water and other damage. It was quite by chance that they even discovered the mill, located on Southfork Road in Lincolnton. While on a walk on the Rail Trail, instead of walking back on the trail, they returned via the road and saw the “for sale” sign on the mill.
“I told John we ought to get that,” Cyndi Dellinger said. “He loves history but he told me I was out of my mind.”
Now that it’s fully restored and open for business, the Dellingers have received numerous awards and accolades for both the wedding venue and for preservation of the historic property. Most recently, they received the 2017 L. Vincent Lowe, Jr. Business Award from Preservation North Carolina, the highest preservation award given to a state business for promoting protection of North Carolina’s architectural resources.
The Laboratory Mill has a rich history. It was the Lincoln Cotton Factory, also known as the Lincolnton Factory, from 1819–1863. It served as a Confederate laboratory during the Civil War. After the war, it returned to textile operations until it closed in 1994.
(Lincoln Times-News, 10/25/17)