Cotton’s Return is a Royal Story Wilson Serves as the Delta Cotton Empire a A traditional town tucked away in the north side of the Arkansas Delta is much like many other small towns across our state – one highway runs all the way through, a small school sits in the center and the largest industry is agriculture. But unlike other small towns, Wilson, population 900, is completely surrounded by cotton fields with the cotton gin serving as the beating heart of the community. The town of Wilson was known as a hub of a diversified agricultural system and eventually the seat of a major cotton empire. The Wilson Cotton Gin, an important center of industry and activity in the town, has continued to gin cotton for the past 125 years. For many years, the Wilson Family owned and operated the entire town, as well as the surrounding rich farmland. Life revolved around agriculture and by the twentieth century, Lee Wilson & Company was actual ginning process to shipping. “All these small towns have to have “The town, like our cotton production, is just growing.” –Kevin Johns one of the most significant cotton plantations in the country. In 2010, Gaylon Lawrence purchased the Wilson gin as part of GM Lawrence holdings. Even then, he knew there was something special about Wilson. To maintain tradition, he kept the original name, Lee Wilson and Company. The gin now employs around 40 people who are involved from the a few things, and jobs are one of them,” said Barry Braden, general manager of the gin. “The stronger the gin the more stable jobs you have. A cotton gin or something like a gin is necessary in a small town.” The traditional gin has modernized and allows the facility to process about 1,200 bales a day, which equates to 160,000 bales in a season. The cotton for these bales comes from northeast Arkansas farmers, and the farmers are an important aspect of the gin. “We appreciate the investment our farmers have made in growing cotton,” said Braden. “They in turn appreciate the steps we’ve taken to bring more value to their cotton. We’re willing to invest in areas that are beneficial to the growers.” Today, around 60 growers gin their cotton at Wilson. Kevin Johns, a local resident and cotton grower, said cotton is a personal passion that he likes to concentrate the majority of his time on. “It’s like growing anything -- you plant it, watch it grow and harvest it,” said Johns. “Cotton is my crop of choice. There isn’t anything I dislike about it from seed to harvest.” Johns said growing cotton is a challenge, but Wilson is a great place for a cotton farm.
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