Cornerstones of Chattahoochee Manufacturing Company in Langdale, Alabama, and Alabama and Georgia Manufacturing Company in River View, Alabama, were laid on August 1, 1866. The mills used Chattahoochee River water power to operate spindles and looms. Planters and businessmen of Chambers County, Alabama, and West Point, Georgia, invested the capital for these ventures, providing a new way of life to a war-stricken people. In 1880, West Point Manufacturing Company was organized from the Chattahoochee mill. The business genius, enterprise, and vision of LaFayette Lanier, 1845-1910, president from 1896 to 1910, were largely responsible for the industrial and civic development of The Valley.