The Norfleet Cotton Press, which is also called the Tarboro Cotton Press or the Edgecombe County Cotton Press is a wooden press that was built in the mid 18th century in Edgecombe County, North Carolina. It was later moved to Tarboro in 1938 and placed on the National Register of Historic Places on February 18, 1971.
The original owner of the press was Isaac Norfleet at a plantation approximately 2.5 miles southwest of Tarboro. It was originally a cider and wine press and was converted to a cotton press in 1860 due to the abundance of cotton being grown in the surrounding area. This press is constructed of yellow pine and has a large screw that is used to compress the cotton into a wooden form to produce the bale. The supporting frame has four upright posts with braces. Mules or oxen were hitched to two large booms or "buzzard wings" and used to rotate the large screw.
The overall height of the press is 22 feet. Photos of the press at it's original location
The original owner of the press was Isaac Norfleet at a plantation approximately 2.5 miles southwest of Tarboro. It was originally a cider and wine press and was converted to a cotton press in 1860 due to the abundance of cotton being grown in the surrounding area. This press is constructed of yellow pine and has a large screw that is used to compress the cotton into a wooden form to produce the bale. The supporting frame has four upright posts with braces. Mules or oxen were hitched to two large booms or "buzzard wings" and used to rotate the large screw.
The overall height of the press is 22 feet. Photos of the press at it's original location
show a rectangular open shed with a steep hip roof. The top of the press is shown extending through this roof and covered by a smaller, rectangular hip roof that would rotate with the screw.
In 1938, the press was moved to the Town Commons on Albemarle Street in Tarboro, NC, but the shed was destroyed. A
small octagonal hip roof was built over the press and in 1976, restoration of the project was completed. The octagonal roofwas removed and a pavilion resembling the original shed was built to protect it from the elements.
In 1938, the press was moved to the Town Commons on Albemarle Street in Tarboro, NC, but the shed was destroyed. A
small octagonal hip roof was built over the press and in 1976, restoration of the project was completed. The octagonal roofwas removed and a pavilion resembling the original shed was built to protect it from the elements.
