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Born and raised in Hephzibah, Mrs. Nuite inherited the spring water business from her mother, who taught her to work hard without complaint. She works forty hours a week running the business and intends to continue to do so. Following her motto, “Early to bed and early to rise,” she believes that work has improved her health. She doesn’t sit down much and finds there is always something to be done. She says it is important to, “keep working and always remain interested in the happenings of the day.”
In 1907, Mrs. Nuite’s father, George Miller Clarke, purchased land in Hephzibah and built a thriving business bottling and selling water from the natural spring on the property to those who visited nearby Augusta. He also shipped the bottled water to Savannah, Charleston, and Aiken.
Windsor Spring is part of a rich landscape of natural springs in Richmond County, Georgia. The spring water around Augusta had become known for its positive health effects and in the early 1900s doctors recommended it to help certain ailments. President William Howard Taft took Windsor Spring Water on trips to Panama because it was his favorite spring water. When George Clark died in 1933, Mrs. Nuite’s mother, Fannie Perrin Clarke, continued to run the business.
Ella Clarke Nuite was born in Augusta, February 11, 1904, one of nine children. She attended University of Georgia, earning a bachelor’s degree in Home Economics in 1927. She taught home economics in Twin City, Ga., until 1930, but gave up teaching during the Great Depression because women were expected to give up their jobs to allow men to work. A year later she married Charles Wayne Nuite, also a graduate of the University of Georgia. She had four daughters, Frances, Barbara Ann, Carolyn, and Charlotte.
In 1948, then living in Wedgefield, South Carolina, Mrs. Nuite re-entered the workforce as the Tea Room Manager for Poinsett State Park. Between 1950 and 1960 she held a number of positions, including census taker, postmistress, and dietician and dining manager for a conference center.
In 1961, Mrs. Nuite’s mother passed away, leaving the family business to her. She returned to Hephzibah and the house she was raised in to take over management of the spring water company. Today, Mrs. Nuite handles the bookkeeping, answers the phone, and does retail business at the plant. She also oversees required testing of the water. She ran the business alone until she was 80 years old, when her grandson became involved.
In the1970s, Mrs. Nuite began purchasing property in disrepair. She renovated the houses and is currently the landlord of nine properties. She is a member of the Richmond County Property Owners Association and the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Her home, Seclusaval at Windsor Spring, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Family and community are keys to how Mrs. Nuite has lived her life. She donated property to Wildwood Christian Church and watched its construction and growth in membership. She has lived by the saying, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” Maybe that and the water from Windsor Spring is her secret to longevity.
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