Fertilizers

William L. Bradleys interest in the chemical fertilizer business can be traced, when he opened a fertilizer factory in Boston, Massachusetts. Little was known about chemical fertilizers at that time, and Bradley became known as an innovator in the field. The newly formed Bradley Fertilizer Company rapidly expanded, establishing additional manufacturing works in Carteret, Cleveland, Baltimore, and Charleston. Business offices were also established in Rochester, NY and Augusta Ga. Bradleys main interest in the Charleston area was connected to the vast amounts of phosphate rock that were discovered in the river beds and surrounding areas.
He acted quickly after the initial discoveries, becoming a partner in the Marine and River Phosphate Mining and Manufacturing Company. This corporation, was granted the exclusive right by the state of South Carolina to mine all the phosphate rock from its navigable rivers and streams. Bradley was also heavily involved in the mining of phosphates from land deposits. he bought the old Bulow Plantation and some adjacent land on Rantowles Creek, near the town of Stono on Johns Island. Bulow Mines had recovered tons of phosphate rock and was employing workers. The rock was not processed on site, but was shipped by rail or by barge to Bradleys fertilizer factories.