“Initially we purchased a handful of the badges at a local flea market. Then a man from Mayodan, who scrounges the curb for anything he thinks he can sell, found two bags of badges. He sold them to the man who donated them to our historical collections.

“This project has truly been a labor of love. I really wanted to put names to the faces, so we scanned the badges in the best shape. Several older individuals who had worked at the mill helped us identify others, and then we left print copies of the badges in a 3-ring binder at the local library. What fun we had listening to their stories. Since then, a few people have discovered the site and identified more.

“Your guess that they were tossed in a bin at the mill could be correct…or…they may have been discarded and someone took them home and they ended up in a shed or basement….

“Much reminiscing as of late, due to the slow, methodical removal of the mill. Someone purchased the building and is selling the wood, brick, etc., to overseas buyers. Most people in the area had no idea the mill was sold and are unhappy that the landmark and reason for the town’s existence will be no more.”