In 1847 the 6 Noble brothers of Rome, Georgia ordered a lathe to be delivered to their Rome foundry to be used to make steamboat engines, furnaces, locomotives and, ultimately, Confederate cannons. Cast in Pennsylvania, the immense lathe was transported by ship to Mobile, Alabama. After a journey up the Alabama, then Coosa, Rivers, a series of water falls on the Coosa west of the city of Rome forced the company to unpack and dismantle the lathe, which they finished transporting by cart to their foundry located at First and Broad Street, now the site of Southeastern Mills.
Over the 13 years before the war the Noble Brothers expanded the operation, clear-cutting many acres of land to feed their fires. Logging roads built to transport the wood to town can still be found throughout the mountains in the area.
With the advent of war in 1861 production at the foundry changed. Cannon production increased as did other war related materials. In 1862, in nearby Cedar Bluff, the brothers built a water powered cold blast furnace. Before Sherman's army attempted to destroy the lathe in 1864, production of cannon had been halted by the Confederate government, pending investigation of charges regarding the improper manufacture of weapons at the facility.
The Noble Brothers then began the manufacture of cannons for the Confederate Government at their Foundry and Machine Works, and a rifle factory was built near the Land Company's bridge on second Avenue, but was destroyed by fire before any of the rifles were finished.
2.9-inch (10-pounder) Parrott Rifle. This iron cannon was rifled and fired an elongated shell made specifically for the gun. Designed before the war by Captain Robert Parker Parrott, this gun was longer than a Napoleon, sleeker in design, and distinguishable by a thick band of iron wrapped around the breech. The Parrott design went through several improvements during the war and was changed in 1863 to a larger 3-inch bore and matching Parrott shell. The 3-inch Parrott was standardized the following year and most 2.9-inch guns were withdrawn from service. Parrott Rifles were manufactured by the West Point Arsenal in Cold Spring, New York and also made in 20 and 32-pounder sizes. The 10-pounder Parrotts used during the Gettysburg Campaign had an effective range of over 2,000 yards. The 5th New York Battery was composed of six 20-pounder Parrotts.
Confederate copies of the Parrott Rifle were produced by the Noble Brothers Foundry and the Macon Arsenal in Georgia. Parrott Rifles in 10 and 20-pounder sizes were sprinkled throughout some southern batteries.
Of added interest, Confederate
President Jefferson Davis said "... the 6 Noble brothers are exempt from the fighting as we have plenty of men to fight but few that can make cannons."
One of the major objects of Col. Abel D. Streight's aborted raid, the Noble Brothers Foundry served the southern cause as a machine shop and cannonworks during the Civil War.
Although Union troops burned the Noble Iron Works in November, 1864, this massive piece of machinery, seen on the left in the shade of the above picture, survived the destructive hands of 'Uncle Billy's' boys. Resting on Civic Center Hill in downtown Rome, the lathe continues to bear marks on the huge, 10-foot high face from sledgehammers used by Federal forces in their desperate attempt to destroy the lathe. Initially steamed-powered, the lathe was eventually powered by electricity and used by Brewer and Taylor Foundry and Machine Shop.
Although Sherman destroyed almost all the city's manufacturing capabilities, the lathe remained unscathed and continued to be productive until the 1960's