Connecticut Water Trails Association
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Connecticut Water Trails Association |
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Connecticut Water Trails Program History Of Connecticut's Water Trails History of Mills In Connecticut
About
Textile manufacturing is a major industry. It is based
in the conversion of three types of fiber into yarn, then fabric, then
textiles. These are then fabricated into clothes or other artifacts.
Cotton remains the most important natural fiber, so is treated in depth.
There are many variable processes available at the spinning and
fabric-forming stages coupled with the complexities of the finishing and
coloration processes to the production of a wide ranges of products.
There remains a large industry that uses hand techniques to achieve the
same results.
More Info On The Textile Industry
The
Textile Industry In Connecticut
Early History Of Textiles In Connecticut
The production of textiles in Connecticut first began
with individuals, women spinning thread and yarn, and creating homemade
garments. Some of the earliest textile factories in Connecticut were no
larger than a one-room shack, notably the Silk Mill in Mansfield. Even
on such a small scale, the government sought to encourage production of
raw silk in Mansfield by paying farmers to raise silkworms. By the
1830’s large factories began to spring up along Connecticut rivers and
mill towns developed around them, creating the textile industry as we
now know it.
Oldest Silk Mill in the U.S., Hanks Hill, Mansfield,
ca. 1920s
The history of the silk industry in Connecticut, which
was later developed and made famous by the Cheney brothers in
Manchester, had its humble beginnings in this one-room building in
Mansfield in 1810. In an industry on such a small scale the process of
silk manufacturing was not automated. Instead the people of Mansfield
grew their own silkworms and reeled and spun their own silk.
West View of the Hartford Co.’s Cotton Factories,
Glastonbury, 1836
This drawing by John Warner Barber depicts a cotton
mill in Glastonbury. It is interesting to note that in the majority of
Barber’s illustrations of towns the buildings he most often notes are
the churches, taverns and the factories. The importance of the factory
to a town often becomes visible when examining the way the town is
depicted in both writing and illustration.
View of Rockville from Fox Hill,
Rockville, 1851
Although this drawing is a wonderful depiction of an
early mill town, it is the inscription next to the picture that shows
the importance of a mill to the success of the town. Even though this is
a view of the entire town, all of the statistics relate to the mills.
This is an example of how central Rockville’s mills were to its
identity.
Distant View of Dunham Mills, Poquonock River, Windsor, 1878
As the textile industry grew and new technologies
and methods were developed, factory production began on an even larger
scale. Dunham Mill was supposedly the first worsted mill in the U.S.,
manufacturing wool and yarn. During the course of the 1800s and the
early 1900s, Connecticut became the home to a successful and diversified
textile economy.
The History of the Textile Industry
The history of the textile industry in America began
in 1790 when Samuel Slater, an Englishman, built the first cotton
spinning frame in America in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. The textile
industry quickly found a home in New England, which with its many rivers
and its relatively poor climate for agriculture seemed a perfect fit.
Connecticut was no exception. Many varieties of textiles and methods of
textile production were developed here in the 19th and early 20th
centuries. The mass production of textiles coincided with the shift from
an agrarian economy to a manufacturing economy. Conveniences such as
ready-to-wear clothing became necessities in the changing nation and
continued to fuel the growth of the textile industry. Eventually the
Great Depression, along with advances in the development of the steam
engine greatly diminished the financial success of textile
manufacturers. Many of the textile companies began to migrate south
where they were closer to raw materials, labor was cheaper, and they
were closer to coal supplies needed to operate the steam engines. The
textile industry in Connecticut still serves as a testament to the
innovation and hard work of all involved in its development, from the
mill owners to the average wage laborer.
Stages Of Textile Processing
Taking any raw material such as cotton, silk, or wool and transforming it into a woven, dyed or patterned garment requires many different steps. Although most of the photographs in this section specifically address the process involved in the production of silk, they still relate to the processes involved in creating the majority of textiles produced in Connecticut.
Weighing and Sorting - Raw Silk
Skeins, Cheney Brothers - Manchester, ca. 1910s
Originally Connecticut silk manufacturers raised their
own silkworms and harvested the raw silk. When the industry grew to a
large scale however this process was financially unsuccessful and
manufacturers started to import raw silk from other places. All textile
processing begins with some sort of raw material whether it is silk,
cotton, wool, or another fiber.
To manufacture cloth, the raw silk needed to be spun
into a fine thread. A process that had originally been done on a
spinning wheel became quicker when roving frames were developed. Other
textiles such as cotton and wool also needed to be spun into thread, and
then woven into cloth on large looms.
Power looms were developed in the mid-19th century.
They greatly reduced the time and number of workers needed to produce
woven materials. Most looms created a plain weave but others were
capable of weaving a variety of intricate patterns such as a jacquard
weave, herringbone and others.
Bleaching Vats, Cheney Brothers Manchester, ca. 1920
Most textiles including silk, wool, cotton and linen are often off-white
or unevenly colored when originally woven into cloth. After weaving, the
cloth first needed to be bleached to pure white so a pattern could be
added or so that the cloth would dye evenly.
Over time, different processes were used for
printing cloth. This process shown here was one of the latest to be
developed. It was done with the use of a roller press that would
transfer the pattern onto the fabric. Patterns could be added to most
types of finished cloth.
Diversity Of Textiles
In the second half of the 19th century Connecticut
developed all areas of its textile industry. Textiles as diverse as
linen, velvets, wool, cashmere, cotton, and varieties of yarn and thread
were all manufactured in its factories. Not only were there many kinds
of textiles, but the quality and intricacies of the weaves used varied
as well. This section offers you only a glimpse of the types of cloth
created in Connecticut.
Rossie Mill and Mystic Manufacturing Company Mystic,
between 1900-1913
In Mystic alone there were two large textile manufacturers. The Rossie Velvet Mill manufactured velvet while the Mystic Manufacturing Co. manufactured woolens and worsteds. The textile industry was so diverse and such a variety of products were in demand that it was possible for two large companies to thrive and grow without interfering with one another.
Old Spool Shop, Willimantic Linen Co., Main Street
Willimantic, ca. 1890
The Willimantic Linen Company was an example of a
manufacturer who changed their product according to the demand. When the
coarse linen goods that they manufactured became unprofitable they
converted their factory to the production of cotton thread. The factory
buildings themselves were very versatile and often were used for a
variety of businesses.
Cotton Hollow Mill, South Glastonbury Glastonbury, ca.
1880s
The Cotton Hollow Mill is one example of a textile
factory that was transformed from another type of mill. Originally it
was a gunpowder mill until it was converted to produce cotton sheeting
in 1814. This picture illustrates a classic small town mill with worker
housing surrounding it.
The Rise and Fall of
Connecticut’s Textile Industry
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Cotton
Hollow Mill