The little piece below is just one of many mentioned in the Schley county papers of this era about the tremendous switch from the farmers planting cotton to fruit trees and an effort to establish a canning factory in Ellaville to help bolster the economy and prevent loss of fruit due to spoilage. It would seem that fruit, peaches, plums and blackberries brought a much better return to the farmer, but as the fruit all ripened at the same time and there were no methods of preservation on a large scale, much of it went to waste. This would seem to indicate that perhaps Butler had such a facility for canning and drying? I was wondering if anyone knew for sure and if there were any details as to where it may have been located and if it was successful. Also, Ft. Valley is mentioned many times in early 1895 as the leader in peach production for the area. My Dad picked peaches there as a boy during the depression trying to help feed the family. I wonder if they had a cannery. The Schley County News Thursday, June 13th 1895 The Butler Fruit and Land Company have made arrangements for canning and drying the large quantities of fruits now ripening. The enterprise will put in circulation a large amount of money and prove profitable business for our neighbors.