Fall River Iron Works

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.

1954 Hurricane Booklet

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

1938 Hurricane Booklet, Fall River Herald News; "The Big One". Photos of the storm damage in Fall River and in the surrounding towns.

1915 Fire Booklet

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.

King Philip Mills

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).

1917 Official American Textile Directory.

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.

Fall River Government Center

Fall River Government Center
Dedication Ceremony brochure,
July 25, 1976

Old Colony and Fall River Railroad Company

Old Colony and Fall River Railroad Company.
Stock certificate signed on September 20, 1854 by Alexander Holmes, company president. The Old Colony and Fall River Railroad was formed as a meger between the Old Colony Railroad and the Fall River Railroad, and provided rail service from Boston to either Plymouth or Fall River. The railroad would expand greatly in the late 1800s, first to Newport, Rhode Island, later to Cape Cod, and also to Central Massachusetts and New Bedford also. This stock certificate was for six shares bought by Mr. Elijah Hale of Rockbottom, Massachusetts (which later became the village of Gleasondale, in what now is the Town of Stow).

Barnaby Zephyrs

"Do not choose your wash fabrics for 1910 until you have seen... Barnaby's fabric of quality." Sample of fine Scotch Gingham. The Barnaby Manufacturing Company was established in Fall River in 1892 on Quequechan Street. Later, until the late 1970s the site was used by Frito-Lay. In the 1980s it became the Quality Outlets which included factory outlet stores for Levi's, Dockers and a very good book store I used to go to often to get cheap books. Most recently it was occupied by Mill Stores and Cardi Furniture. The factory was demolished in 2010 for a shopping center that has not yet been built.