1952 - Hatheway Floral Company - Etowah NC Heritage

HATHEWAY FLORAL COMPANY
1952 - 1976

Etowah Greenhouses
100 McKinney Road

Today, property of Johnson Building Supply

THE GREENHOUSES

Driving southbound through Etowah, looking across from the Dutch Cupboard & El Bronco restaurants, and just beyond a vacant parcel, are what remains of the four greenhouses that were the heart of a once thriving horticultural business.

Today, the greenhouses are on the property of Johnson Building Supply.

First greenhouse built in 1952. Additional greenhouses added later.
According to State of North Carolina records, Hatheway Floral Company incorporated the business in 1959.

Curtis R. Hatheway Jr. (1925 - )
Roseann Leckie Hatheway (1925 - 2001)

Married 1951 in Franklin, Ohio
Business Owners

The following account is from Patricia Duncan Saunders, Jacksonville FL, the wife of William (Bill) Thomas Saunders, who was the Greenhouses Operations Manager from 1968 - 1976.

1968 Snowy Winter - The Hatheway home next to the greenhouses. Photo courtesy of Pat Duncan Saunders.

Mr. and Mrs. Curtis R. Hatheway Jr. of Hendersonville NC (originally of Ohio), incorporated a commercial horticultural business in 1959 located on McKinney Road growing varieties of cut flowers.

In 1968, my husband Bill Saunders became general manager of the greenhouses for Curt and Roseann Hatheway. The business closed in 1976. Today the remnants of the former Hatheway Floral Company greenhouses may be seen from Hwy 64 next to Johnson Building Supply.

The Hatheway family lived at their Etowah home located next door to the greenhouses until they moved to Laurel Park.
My late husband William (Bill) Thomas Saunders (1936 - 2010) grew up in Etowah. During high school Bill was a part-time employee [at the greenhouses] after school hours in order to have extra spending money. He quickly became very familiar with the greenhouses' operation. In 1954 on the day after his Etowah High School graduation, Bill became employed at the Ecusta manufacturing plant in Pisgah Forest.

Fourteen years later, in 1968 Bill became general manager of the Etowah Greenhouses. We moved our family from Penrose to the company-owned house located next door to the greenhouses. The spacious 4-BR 2-BA company-owned home with large back sunroom and a nice big front porch provided a lovely place for our family of five. We were graciously welcomed by the Etowah community and Etowah Baptist Church. There are many good memories of our living at the Hatheway property and later as homeowners in the same community.

Managing the Greenhouses
The greenhouses' operation required around-the-clock attention and supervision by the manager. Each type of flower had a certain growing season with different procedures.  Each growing season required special soil mixture customized for all flower types with certain treatments in individual greenhouses. Then special plantings took place.

There were techniques to hold back and extend growths and ways to make flowers bloom longer.  Important were temperature control, heating, cooling by large fans, special lighting, sunshine, the right humidity, watering (sprinklers), and complete darkness at times.

Vents had to be opened and closed at precise times. Heated greenhouses created a year-round growing season. The flowers in each separate greenhouse were protected from harsh winter outdoor conditions. Snow and ice accumulation causing damage on greenhouses' fiberglass roofs had to be prevented.

About the Flowers
Many varieties of cut flowers were grown there including roses, carnations, snapdragons, chrysanthemums, etc. [gladiolas too ?]

Flowers were protected requiring tarp-like drop-cloths being switched out at appropriate times. Flowers were inspected for insects and treated if necessary. With tender care, flowers were manually cut at a certain stage and precise length for each type. After cutting, the flowers were placed in containers of water in a cooler and removed as orders demanded.

With orders, the long-stemmed flowers were gently packed in protected boxes and delivered to local florists in Hendersonville and Brevard. Others were boxed with ice and delivered to a local bus terminal for shipment. Preparations and deliveries at special holiday seasons were busy and hectic for all employees especially at Mother's Day weekend celebrations - the biggest floral event of the year.

What Happened to the Business?
With the desirable economy and booming floral market, the Etowah operation became a very prosperous business. The local Etowah community benefited with family income from employment at the greenhouses. Candidates were always selected from local community members.

At some point while allowing the Etowah greenhouses to continue operating, Hatheway Floral Company chose to invest in another floral business in Costa Rica, a country in Central America, which literally means "Rich Coast." It was a place heavily dependent on agriculture. Its rapidly developing economy was very attractive for prospective US businesses with the lower costs for labor, etc.

After a period of time, apparently the Costa Rica operation became more profitable with its environmental sustainability for the Hatheway Floral Company. The owners made a business decision to close the Etowah greenhouses' operation late 1976.

Later the Hatheway Floral Company purchased Collins Florist, downtown Hendersonville.

Mr. and Mrs. Hatheway were very gracious and kind to their Etowah greenhouses' manager and his family.

"The Glad Era"
from the book "Kermit Edney Remembers,"
by Kermit Edney, p.186, p. 188, 1979

"It may surprise you to know that back in the 1940s and 1950s you could drive through the Mills River Valley and see hundreds of acres of gladioli in full bloom, right out in the open field."

"The early to mid-'50s was a time that folks could drive out through the Mills River Valley and see a blooming spectacle that would have equaled tulip growth in Holland. Up to 350 acres of glads were farmed each year by the twelve growers."

Curtis Rose Hatheway Jr, early 1940s college photo

Only the frame structure remains on this pair of greenhouses.

A current view of the other pair of greenhouses with fiberglass siding.

Bill Saunders, Greenhouses Manager, standing at the control center. Operation control was originally done manually until automation was established for certain purposes. This photo appeared in a publication from Wadsworth Control Systems, “Controlling Horticultural Environments,” date unknown. Photo courtesy of Pat Duncan Saunders.

An interesting discovery . . .

The incorporation records from the State of North Carolina list the business address as "100 McKinna Road."

This documentation supports what native residents report. The McKinna family of early Etowah is the namesake for today's mis-named "McKinney Road."

Advertisement from the 1954 annual, "The Chief," Etowah High School

Please share photos of the Hatheway Floral Company business, and Curtis and Roseanne Hatheway. Your contributions are appreciated. Thank you