Society for Industrial Archeology · New England Chapters
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Society for Industrial Archeology · New England Chapters EDITORIAL VOLUME 7 NUMBER 1 1987 There are two upcoming meetings first time that an annual SIA conference that should be of interest to Chapter has been held .!,Wice In the same city, EDITORIAL members. The first Is a joint Southern and Troy is close enough that most of and Northern New England Chapters our New England Chapter members should PRESIDENTS' REPORTS meeting to be held In Shelburne Falls, be able to attend. If you need SNEC 2 Massachusetts, on May 9. (See "Shelburne registration forms, please contact NNEC 2 Falls ~o be Site of Joint Spring Duncan Hay, c/o New York State Museum, Meeting" by Peter Stott.} Two hydro Historical Services, 3097 CEC, Albany, CURRENT RESEARCH IN NEW ENGLAND electric tours are planned, and the NY 12230. Or, if you have questions Massachusetts 3 Shelburne Historical Society will be about the paper sessions, to be held at Rhode Island 4 hosting the meeting. Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute on May Vermont 5 The second Is the 16th Annual 30, then please contact me directly at Conference of the Society for Industrial RPI (518 266-8503). MEETINGS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS 6 Archeology, to be held in Troy, New David Starbuck York, from May 28-31. This will be the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute RECENT PUBLICATIONS 9 .-IELP WANTED 9 ARTICLES Haverhill Shoe Factory Strike of 1895 10 Hot-Metal Surviving at Yankee T ypesetters 13 CONTRIBUTORS TO THIS ISSUE Richard Greenwood, Dennis Howe, Martha Lance, Vic Rolando, David Simmons, William Smith, Peter Stott, Jerry Wolfe, Bertha Woodman Editor David Starbuck Southern Chapter Officers Richard Greenwood, President Peter Stott, Program Coordinator Anne Booth, Secretary / Treasurer Northern Chapter Officers . Dennis Howe, President Walter Ryan, First Vice President Stewart Read, Second Vice President Vic Rolando, Secretary/ Treasurer The Newsletter is jointly Yankee Typesetters' owner, John Stone sponsored by the Scuthern and Northern demonstrates some detail of the New England Chapters of the Society operation of a Linotype machine for Industrial Archeology. This issue to SIA members during a NNEC tour. was typeset and printed by The Printed See article on page 13. Photo by Word, Inc. of Concord, New Hampshire. Dennis Howe. article, "Chapters Plan New England -------------------------------------------------------------Winter Conference on I ndustrial -/ Archeology".} This symposium is a good way for a maturing chapter such as ours to reach a more general audience with our lA message. PRESIDENT'S REPORT, SNEC PRESIDENT'S REPORT, NNEC The special tour of Yankee Typesetters, Inc., in February was also a The Southern New England Chapter The large attendance at the Fall success and has resulted in a fine has gone on the offensive in the past Meeting and Tour In Claremont was article by Jerry Wolfe in this several months in its efforts to bolster gratifying. We thank Walt Ryan for Newsletter. This tour-article is some membership rolls and spread the !A planning and arranging the fine meeting thing I would like to point out as a gospel. In addition to the circulation and tour of Claremont's mill area along model of how we should handle future of the new membership brochure, which is the Sugar River, and we thank the staff tours as much as possible. Recording being greatly assisted by a promotional of New Hampshire Vocational-Technical what we have observed and researched mailing courtesy of Mike Folsom and the College for the use of their facilities. should always be the goal of a process Charles River Museum of Industry, the At that meeting we revised our By tour. This way, the word "archeology" Chapter has launched a 1987 Winter laws, changing the makeup of our in our name keeps the meaning intended. Spring Events Program. The program, executive board and adding a new Archeology is a process of observing and the brainchild of Program Coordinator officer. Congratulations to our new recording. A fter all, we are not a Peter Stott, offers NNEC and SNEC First Vice President, Walt Ryan; to our Society of tourists. members the chance to visit some old and new Second Vice President Stewart Read; Please try to attend the SIA Annual new IA sites in the region on a monthly and to Vic Rolando who was reelected to Conference i n Troy, NY, on May 28-31. It basis. Beginning in January, Peter has another term as Secretary/ Treasurer. will be well worth your time and not orchestrated tours of: MATH's Machinery Also at that meeting we took very expensive. Hall; Yankee Typesetters' "hot type" significant action by establishing a Dennis Howe shop in Concord, NH; and East Boston and committee to work with the SNEC to plan Deer Island Sewage Pumping Stations. a symposium on New England Industrial Other scheduled trips include the Chain Archeology. (Please see Peter Stott's Forge at the Charlestown Navy Yard and Wilkinson Machine Shop at Slater Mill Historic Site. In addition to his work getting this program off and running, Peter has also been busy laying groundwork with NNEC members for a proposed annual New England IA symposium. SNEC's fall meeting was held at the Dedham Community House and the Barrows Mill on Mother Brook (1984 Spring Tour}. Notable events in the business meeting included the establishment of a SNEC lifetime membership category and a vote of thanks to Fred Roe, our resigning treasurer, and Herb Darbee, our secretary emeritus. The tour of the Burrows Mill led by Mike Folsom included a hands-on investigation of the mill's power plant, which the Charles River Museum of Industry plans to preserve in situ, and a review of Bergemeyer Associates' plans to rehabilitate the complex as condominiums. The architects' proposal includes the reconstruction of the original gable roof and monitor which were destroyed by fire in 1911. For its spring meeting, SNEC is once again joining forces with NNEC, this time for a tour of Shelburne Falls, MA. Highlights will include visits to two Deerfield River hydroelectric A Jaquard loom of the Claremont plants, the 1912 plant #4 at Shelburne Woven Label Company is inspected by an Falls and the 1974 Bear Swamp Pumped SIA member during the tour following the Storage facility in Rowe, MA. NNEC's fall meeting. The tour also included a review of the redevelopment Rick Greenwood of the city's old industrial center, and Barrington, Rl a process tour of CMC Paper Company . ..__/ 2 economy. When fire struck the mill complex, it housed eleven smaller companies providing 800 jobs. In 1983 FALL RIVER FIRE: the buildings were listed on the 1888 KERR THREAD MILL National Register as part of the Fall River Multiple Resource Area. DESTROYED The fire is believed to have started in the basement of Mill No. 3, CURRENT RESEARCH On January 12, a devastating fire at the west edge of the complex, and IN NEW ENGLAND destroyed the eight-building Kerr Thread within three hours the three principal Mills, one of more than two dozen mill buildings had been reduced to significant textile mill complexes in flaming shells. Some brick walls still Fall River. The fire was the second standing when the fire was put out have major mill fire to strike the Spindle since been demolished. City in this decade. In November 1981 Peter Stott the Richard Borden Mill (1871) was also Newton Highlands, MA destroyed by fire. Massachusetts The Kerr Thread Company, establisher! in 1888 for the manufacture of fine cotton yarns, was founded by the RARE LATTICE TRUSS Scotsmen, Robert C. and John P. Kerr. BRIDGE DUE FOR The original five-story brick Mill #1 was e rected in 1890 with a capacity of REPLACEMENT QUINEBAUG MILL 24,000 spindles for the manufacture of "Kerr's six cord spool cotton and fine The Florida Bridge, the earliest SURVEY RESEARCH yarns." In 1897 the company became part known example of the R.F. Hawkins Bridge of the American Thread Company. Company, spanning the Deerfield River The Research Department at Old Additional mills were constructed in the between the Massachusetts hill towns of Sturbridge Village is conducting an 1890s and 1907. With the completion of Florida and Charlemont, is to be archeological and historical survey of a bleachery and finishing mill in 1916 replaced· later this year by a new bridge low technology, water-powered mills in and 1921, respectively, the Kerr Mills on a new downstream a lignment. The I 31 - the Quinebaug River Valley located in expanded into finished cotton c loth. foot lattice through truss has recently central Massachusetts. The survey is The company survived the depression and been identified by the Massachusetts one component of a large research by 1944 produced 3.5 million yards of Dept. of Public Works as the earliest project, partially funded by NEH, c loth annually. The mills remained in known example of its type. According to entitled "Tradition and Transformation: operation until the early 1950s. After Stephen J. Roper (SlA), DPW Historic Rural Economic Life in Central New the mills c lose d, the building continued Bridge Specialist, the bridge is one of England 1790-1850." Research focuses on as an integral part of Fall River's six known la ttice truss bridges in the c hanges over time in agriculturally- based water-powered industries, the effect of emerging large-scale industry on non-commercial mills, the technological traditions and innovations evident in milling techniques, and the analysis of economic and social. networks generated by milling activities. Approximately 250 sites have been identified in the watershed area through cartographic and preliminary documentation research and will be further investigated and documented. Field survey, hydrological assessments and some measured drawing of selected sites will also be undertaken.