LANETT — A well-known landmark in Lanett has reached its centennial year. The Lafayette Lanier Monument was dedicated in June 1925. The mid-June unveiling of the 12-foot-tall shaft of Georgia marble drew a large crowd in what was then the Lanett Mill Park. A news story of the well-attended program appeared in The Chattahoochee Valley-Times on June 17th, fifteen years from the day Mr. Lanier had died in 1910.

The impressive monument was moved from its original location in the early 1960s when the mill park was converted into parking lots for the nearby Lanett Mill and the Lanett Bleachery & Dye Works. The mill and dye works are now gone, but the Lafayette Lanier Monument still stands just off a very busy stretch of Highway 29.

On the front side of the monument is a brass plate with a profile image of Mr. Lanier. Underneath, the following inscription is engraved into the monument: “Erected by the citizens of River View, Fairfax, Langdale, Shawmut, Lanett and West Point to the memory of Lafayette Lanier, born June 21, 1845, died June 17, 1910, whose genius and vision were largely responsible for the industrial and civic development of the Chattahoochee Valley.”

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“Opposite Lanett Mill in the park stands the imposing shaft of pink Georgia marble, the same being the means by which the good people of the Chattahoochee Valley would perpetuate the lasting memory of the late Mr. Lafayette Lanier Sr.” reads the 1925 news article. “This beautiful shaft was completed some weeks ago by the Presbrey-Leland Company of New York, and on Tuesday evening at six o’clock several thousand people from the six towns of the Chattahoochee Valley gathered about the shaft for the impressive unveiling ceremonies.”

Mr. R.W. Jennings, superintendent of Lanett Mill, served as the program emcee and introduced each person who spoke. Then as now, the monument stands inside an inner circle that’s approximately 20 feet across. During the dedication ceremonies. a group of young local school girls, each carrying a beautiful bouquet of flowers, stood on the monument circle, which is encased in a pink marble border.

Rev. H.M. Gray said an opening prayer. and a representative of each of the textile towns of River View, Langdale. Lanett, Shawmut and Fairfax and the mill office town of West Point spoke of what Mr. Lanier had meant to their town and to the entire area. According to the news account, Mr. Jennings delivered an inspiring account of what Mr. Lanier had done for the Chattahoochee Valley region. Miss Estelle Batson followed by reciting Sidney Lanier’s famed poem “Song of the Chattahoochee.”

A popular columnist for The Chattahoochee Valley Times, E.R. “Dad” Cook, delivered “a masterpiece of eloquence with feeling and sentiment, conveying a wonderful picture of the life and work of Mr. Lanier on behalf of the Chattahoochee Valley.”

Two young granddaughters of Mr. Lanier, Misses Lucy and Alice Lanier, were given the honor of the unveiling. They drew the cords removing the covering and placing the 12-foot-tall monument to clear view from all sides. There was much applause and cheering by the large crowd in attendance as the flower-bearing school girls heaped their bouquets at the base of the monument. Miss Gertrude Crowder then came forward to present an especially beautiful bouquet to a very special guest in attendance, Mr. Lanier’s widow.

Others to speak on dedication day included Judge N.D. Denson and Mr. Lanier’s eldest son, George H. Lanier. According to The CV-T, Judge Denson spoke in a deep, earnest voice that kept everyone at rapt attention and “Mr. George,” as he was known to many generations of Valleyans, expressed thanks on behalf of the Lanier family to the people of each mill town.

The program ended with a reception at which people from throughout the Chattahoochee Valley paid their respects to members of Mr. Lanier’s family.

Lafayette Lanier was born in 1845 and, in his teenage years, fought for the Confederacy during the Civil War. During the hard economic times of Reconstruction, he and his brother Ward Crockett Lanier got into the banking business. This gave them the opportunity to study the economic conditions of the Deep South and got them to thinking about what could be done to improve the living conditions of Southern people. They saw a bright future in textile manufacturing. They acquired more than 75 percent of the stock of the Chattahoochee Manufacturing Company in what’s now Langdale and agreed for W.C. Lanier to handle the banking side and for Lafayette Lanier the manufacturing side. In 1880, they formed the West Point Manufacturing Company with offices in West Point and mills in Langdale and River View. Lanett Mill was added in 1894, Shawmut in 1908 and Fairfax in 1915.

The name Lanett came about by adding the “Lan” for Lanier and “ett” for Theodore Bennett of the Boston-based N. Boynton & Company sales agency that sold West Point products all over the country. The name Lanett Mill dates to the early 1890s. The nearby town changed its name from Bluffton to Lanett in 1895 to identify with the new industry that was bringing so many people to live, work and raise families in the area.