The Habersham Iron Works and Manufacturing Co. was incorporated in late 1837 on the site of the Habersham Cotton Mills, when this section of the state was Indian country. Jarvis Van Buren, a cousin of President Martin Van Buren and a pioneer eastern railroad man, arrived in 1838 to operate the plant for stockholders who included John C. Calhoun. In a region far from railroads, necessary machines and supplies must have come by mule or ox wagon from Augusta. The iron mill operated for a few years, closed, and reopened during the War Between the States when guns and cannon were urgently needed for the Confederacy.