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1953 Herald News photo of the lower end of Pleasant Street (then still part of Route 6), looking west toward the top of Bogle Hill. I wonder why all of the cars seem to be facing the same direction. I don't think this was ever a one way street. I will have to ask my dad who has lived here, about midway up on the left side, since about when this photo was taken.
A rare early reinforced concrete industrial structure. Located off of Water Street in Fall River, Massachusetts. Built in 1908 by the Fall River Gas Company to contain a 36-ft diameter steel oil tank, used in the gas manufacture process. This conical concrete building was required for fire protection from the nearby railroad. It is currently proposed to be demolished by MassDOT for a highway project.
Next year, 2013 will mark 200 years of industrial development along the Quequechan River in Fall River. I am proposing a special event, or series of events to commemorate this. As a member of the Society for Industrial Archaeology - Southern New England Chapter, I would envision this event to be somewhat technically-based, and opened to the general public. There are a lot of possibilities for an occasion. There could be a series of lectures followed by a walking tour of the mills. If you are interested in helping me with this, please contact me to let me know.
Massachusetts 351 Update: April 14, 2012. 9 new towns added in the southern Berkshires: Southwick, Granville, Tolland, Sandisfield, New Marlborough, Sheffield, Mount Washington, Egremont and Alford.
1883 Fall River Atlas - View of the American Printing Company and the Fall River Iron Works. By the late 1880s the Iron Works complex was demolished for the expansion of the American Printing Company. The new mills produced the cotton cloth for the print works, along with dozens of other mills in Fall River, and became known as the "Iron Works Division" of the APC, a tribute to the importance of the Iron Works in the early history of Fall River. This site is now occupied by Boremco.
Back when cars could take a lickin' and keep on ticking. My grandmother Chevy was rear-ended by a dump truck back when the Harbor Mall was being constructed. Photo taken on Pleasant Street.
1954 Hurricane Booklet, Fall River Herald News; with photos of the widespread damage throughout the area. The roof of the King Philip Mill was torn off, along with nearby Saint Patrick's Church. Ships were washed ashore in Fairhaven and in Somerset.
1938 Hurricane Booklet, Fall River Herald News; "The Big One". Photos of the storm damage in Fall River and in the surrounding towns.
A February 1915 fire destroyed several blocks of downtown businesses in Fall River. This commerative booklet shows before and after shots of some of the buildings.
A cancelled $500 First Mortgage Bond for the King Philip Mills, Fall River, Massachusetts. From 1900. Issued by the BMC Durfee Safe Deposit and Trust Company. It was due March 1, 1930. That same year the company was acquired by Berkshire Fine Spinning Associates (a company that forms part of the origin of Berkshire-Hathaway).
An old bottle of King Philip India Pale Ale, Enterprise Brewing Company, Fall River, Massachusetts.
An antique ball of thread from the American Thread Company, Fall River, Massachusetts. The Kerr Mills became part of ATCO in 1899, and the Fall River plant closed in 1953. The entire complex was destroyed by a massive fire in January 1987. I remember seeing the flames just starting in the first mill on my way to school that morning, but missed the fire because I had to get to school. I picked up this entire original box of old crochet thread on ebay a few months back. Cool piece of local textile history.
Vintage Narragansett Beer cans, Cranston, Rhode Island. Narragansett Salutes the 12 Meter Yachts, Bi-Centennial 1976, Narragansett 96 Extra Light Beer
An antique wooden loom shuttle; Lowell Shuttle Company, Lowell, Massachusetts, Model 484.
One of my most prized possessions. I picked this up about nine years ago. It has lots of useful information about the textile industry, at about the peak of the industry in New England. Includes lists of mills by state and city. Lots of facts and figures and wonderful old ads.
