Stan;
Wonderful story. Although I did not have to travel far to get into cotton country the area I grew up in had virtually no cotton. Much of it was pasture land for raising beef cattle with the major cash crop being Burly Tobacco.
I well remember those hanging balance beam scales but had never heard that name either. I did a google search on it & seem the spelling is Stilliard & it was stated it was a "Corruption" of the term Steelyard (Portable scales). I have heard those balances called steelyards. I thought perhaps Stilliard was an early brand name, sorta like Crescent, but doesn't seem to be the case.

Miller/TN
I Didn't Say Everything I Said, Yogi Berra