The mill's sound management broke down after the retirement of William C. Sibley in 1896. Sales fell below capacity in 1911. An attempt to recruit immigrant labor from the north failed, as most of these workers left after only a few days. In 1914 the mill was criticised for lack of reinvestment in new machinery. The mill's status in the community declined as the city tried to reposition its image from "the Lowell of the South" to "the Garden City of the South" in order to attract northern winter tourists (HAER, 10).