Twine Capital Of America

The 18^th and 19^th Century maritime economy in Connecticut brought prosperity to both shoreline towns and areas farther inland.  One Connecticut River town that greatly prospered was East Haddam and its village of Moodus. Moodus can actually be justifiably be nicknamed “the twine capital of America” because Moodus initiated the development of cotton twine and then later nylon twine.

In the 1820’s Ebenezer Nichols who was one of the founders of the industry developed a machine that was able to twist strands of cotton into a seine twine.  Which produced a hard laid cord used in the maritime industry.

The mills existed basically because of the maritime industry and the maritime industry created a great demand for cotton duct which was used as sail cloth manufactured in the mill. There was also a great need for cordage, rope, and twine, which was made in the mills.

Each of the 12 mills located along the banks of the Moodus River employed anywhere from 25 to 50 people depending on the size of the mill. The mill owners sold their twine to the fishermen or to other companies that would then take the twine and make it into most of the fish netting that was used in the United States.

In 1872 the Yankee gill net machine was invented revolutionizing the fish netting industry in Moodus.

The normal netting, the knots ran this way which were very, very bulky and with the Yankee gill net the knots ran this way so that they could get behind the gills much easier.  And not only that the machine could tie 3,000 knots per minute. There was no other machine on Earth that could duplicate that.

The machines were turned off on April 1^st, 1979. It was one of the last makers of gill netting in the United States.

Adapted From Connecticut and The Sea - by Kenneth A. Simon