Textile and furniture towns create research problems that look “urban” on a rural map. Addresses change even when families stay in the same village.

• Note mill name + village on every census and directory entry.
• Prioritize mill-adjacent churches and burial grounds.
• Use newspapers for strikes, accidents, and obituaries naming kin.
• Still abstract land/probate for kin who owned farms outside the village.

Hubs: Gaston · Alamance · Guilford · Cabarrus. Guide: church records.