In the early 1870′s, John Brand, who bought tobacco, began establishing packing and processing houses where they could sort and grade the tobacco, then pack it in separate cases 3′ x 3′ x 3′ so the cigar manufacturers could buy just the right type of leaf they wanted. More and more tobacco was being raised and as the year 1900 approached, the golden era of leaf tobacco began. By then about 2,000 acres in Chemung County were under cultivation in tobacco and fields of 40 or 50 acres were not uncommon. As the tobacco acreage increased, the need for more packing and processing plants also increased. By 1900 there were ten plants in Elmira and at one time there were four plants in Big Flats. The American Cigar Co. built a plant in 1906 where the Agway Fertilizer plant is today. Lowe and Welles had a plant across from Black’s Feed Mill on Hammond St. Later they built on Main St. The building is now known as the Big Flats Business Center. Wallace Markle and his father, Frank, had a plant at the end of Miller St., on the south side of the Erie Railroad. Later Joseph Hardiman, who managed the American Cigar Co. for sometime, built a plant between the railroads just a short distance east of Canal St.