sentences:  Most sources agree that among the first three mills in operation in the County was the Stowesville Mill, founded by Jasper Stowe and Associates in the South Point Community south of Belmont.Gaston County still leads all other counties in the country both in the number of spindles in operation and in the number of bales of cotton consumed.According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (2.2%) is water.