Resources
Affiliations
Biographical Sketches
O Surnames
John M. ODELL
Captain John M. Odell, of Concord, son of James and Anna Odell, was born eight miles north of Asheboro, in Randolph county, N.C., on the 20th day of January, 1831. He was reared on a farm and resided at his native home till 21 years old. During his boyhood days he attended the neighborhood schools with the exception of a short time when he was a student at Middleton Academy, in Randolph county. From the age of 21 to 24 he taught school. He then clerked in the store of the Cedar Falls Manufacturing Company for one year. The company was then changed to the Cedar Falls Company, Mr. Odell taking an interest therein, but was still retained as clerk in the store of the new company till 1868, when he was elected agent for the same. In the fall of 1869 he resigned this position and moved to Concord, N.C., where he engaged in merchandising under the firm name of Odell, Curtis & Company, who did a very large and successful wholesale and retail business till 1874, when he sold all his interest in Concord, and removed to Greensboro, N.C., where he continued in the wholesale and retail general merchandise business, under the firm name of Odell & Company, for some years. He was one of the charter members of the National Bank of Greensboro, which was organized in 1876, when he was elected a Director in said Bank, which position he still retains. In 1877 he bought the McDonald Cotton Mills in Concord, N.C., which was incorporated in 1878 as the Odell Manufacturing Company, with J. M. Odell, President. His home, however, was still in Greensboro till 1880, when he again moved to Concord and devoted most of his attention to the business of said Company. In 1882, about one hundred thousand dollars was added to the capital stock of the Company; a new building 72X131 feet, three stories high, was built near the old mills and filled with the latest and most improved machinery. In 1886 the buildings were again enlarged, and today they are among the largest Plaid Mills in the South, manufacturing not only plaids but also seamless bags, towels and cottonades. Captain Odell is also President of the Durham Cotton Manufacturing Company, Durham, N.C., the J. M. Odell Manufacturing Company; Bynums, Chatham county, N.C., the Salisbury Cotton Mills, Salisbury, N.C., the Cannon Manufacturing Company, Concord, N.C., and also the Concord National Bank. On March 9th, 1854, he was happily married to Miss Rebecca C. Kirkman, of Randolph county, who still lives to enjoy with him the comforts and conveniences of their elegant mansion and grounds in Concord, N.C., together with such pleasures as their ample fortune can contribute to a Christian home. John M. Odell entered the Confederate service in 1861 and was elected Captain of Company M, 22d N.C. Infantry. Capt. Odell's has been a life of remarkable success; his accumulations have been steady and large. He has always been a model of morality and integrity and is today a fine type of the Southern Christian gentleman, having for many years been an officer in the M. E. Church, South. Though strict in all business transactions he is very liberal and his deeds of kindness and charity have been many and large. As an organizer and manager of employees he has scarcely a superior. Gentle, kind, urbane, yet firm in his discipline. No strikes, no friction, nothing has ever occurred to mar the peaceful and pleasant relations existing between employer and employees of the Odell Manufacturing Company. Captain Odell has three children, two sons and one daughter. His oldest son, W. R. Odell, is Secretary and Treasurer of the Odell Manufacturing Company. Source: Jerome Dowd, Sketches of Prominent Living North Carolinians (Raleigh, North Carolina: Edwards & Broughton, printers and binders, 1888), 293-295. Image source: Find A Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com : accessed
21 October 2019), memorial page for John Milton Odell (1831–1910), memorial no. 28882578, citing Oakwood Cemetery, Concord,
Cabarrus County,
North Carolina; maintained by B. Bowman (contributor 46915186), photo provided by Susan I. Grills. .
TOP OF PAGE EMAIL ME SEARCH SITE
- Copyright © 2020 by Donna Sims Conner. All rights reserved.
- Every effort has been made to ensure this data is accurate and complete. However, errors do occur and I welcome any corrections or suggestions.
- Search engine provided by FreeFind.