Wikipedia

Mill town

(Redirected from Mill villages)
For places called Milltown, see Milltown. For the book, see Mill Town: Reckoning with What Remains.
"Mill village" redirects here. For other uses, see Mill Village.

A mill town, also known as factory town or mill village, is typically a settlement that developed around one or more mills or factories, often cotton mills or factories producing textiles.

Europe

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Italy

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Crespi d'Adda (Italy)

Poland

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Żyrardów – winter panorama of main square

Żyrardów

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The town grew out of a textile factory founded in 1833 by the sons of Feliks Lubienski, who owned the land where it was built. They brought in a specialist from France and his newly designed machines. He was French inventor, Philippe de Girard from Lourmarin. He became a director of the firm.[5] The factory town developed during the 19th century into a significant textile mill town in Poland. In honour of Girard, 'Ruda Guzowska' as the original estate was called, was renamed Żyrardów, a toponym derived of the polonised spelling of Girard's name.

Most of Żyrardów's monuments are located in the manufacturing area which dates from the 19th and early 20th centuries. It is widely believed that Żyrardów's textile settlement is the only entire urban industrial complex from the 19th-century to be preserved in Europe.

Russian Empire

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United Kingdom

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East Mill in Derbyshire, UK

In the United Kingdom, the term "mill town" usually refers to the 19th-century textile manufacturing towns of northern England and the Scottish Lowlands, particularly those in Lancashire (cotton) and Yorkshire (wool).

Some former mill towns have a symbol of the textile industry in their town badge. Some towns may have statues dedicated to textile workers (e.g. Colne[6]) or have a symbol in the badge of local schools (e.g. Ossett School).

County Towns
Cheshire mill towns

Congleton, Crewe, Macclesfield

Derbyshire mill towns

Glossop, Hadfield, New Mills

Greater Manchester mill towns

Ashton-under-Lyne, Bolton, Bury, Chadderton, Failsworth, Heywood, Hyde, Lees, Leigh, Manchester, Middleton, Oldham, Radcliffe, Ramsbottom, Reddish, Rochdale, Royton, Shaw and Crompton, Stalybridge, Stockport, Wigan

Lancashire mill towns

Accrington, Bacup, Barnoldswick, Blackburn, Burnley, Calder Vale, Chorley, Colne, Darwen, Nelson, Oakenclough, Padiham, Preston for others see table below.

Yorkshire mill towns

Batley, Bingley, Bradford, Brighouse, Cleckheaton, Dewsbury, Elland, Halifax, Hebden Bridge, Heckmondwike, Holmfirth, Huddersfield, Keighley, Morley, Mytholmroyd, Ossett, Pudsey, Shipley, Skipton, Sowerby Bridge, Todmorden, Yeadon

The list above includes some towns where textiles was not the predominant industry. For example, mining was a key industry in Wigan and Leigh in Greater Manchester, and in Ossett in Yorkshire.

Spindleage of some large mill towns in and around Greater Manchester[notes 1] between 1830 and 1962
Date 1883 1893 1903 1913 1923 1926 1933 1944 1953 1962
Accrington 590 438 467 660 191 718 469 287 152 92
Ashton 1,574 1,731 1,781 1,955 1898 1,144 644 633 182
Blackburn 1,671 1,398 1,321 1,280 1,224 1,071 672 451 309 103
Bolton 4,086 4,770 5,457 6,797 7,371 7,842 7,507 6,204 4,886 1,772
Burnley 1,126 734 667 563 538 507 240 182 144 14
Bury 875 899 833 955 1050 1000 745 630 524 268
Chorley 552 527 541 856 838 837 739 491 397 122
Farnworth 557 779 966 1,485 1,478 1,484 1,344 1,237 1,104 162
Glossop 1,106 1,158 968 882 821 839 524 204 154 10
Heywood 660 887 836 1,070 1,100 1,096 864 545 533 68
Hyde 590 499 533 741 793 696 475 366 337 58
Leigh 1,337 1,514 1,679 2,445 2,761 2,925 2,891 2,615 2,336 548
Manchester 2,445 2,353, 2,225 3,703 3,307 3,439 3,417 2,974 1,934 271
Middleton 498 494 645 1,278 1,268 1,252 1,041 1,193 923 161
Mossley 1,153 1,217 1,033 1,288 1,297 1,289 371 264 256 -
Oldham 9,311 11,159 12,230 16,909 17,231 17,669 13,732 8,948 7,621 2,478
Preston 2,146 1,883 2,074 2,161 1,997 1,965 1,592 1,146 1,024 278
Rochdale 1,627 1,835 2,422 3,645 3,749 3,793 3,539 2,459 1,936 983
Stalybridge 1,083 1,157 1,027 1,236 1,104 1,103 801 483 426 122
Stockport 1,601 1,742 1,568 2,266 2,382 1,924 1,427 1,141 154
Wigan 864 775 888 1,085 1,123 1,141 922 681 575 352
In thousands of spindles.[7]

On his tour of northern England in 1849, Scottish publisher Angus Reach said:

In general, these towns wear a monotonous sameness of aspect, physical and moral ... In fact, the social condition of the different town populations is almost as much alike as the material appearance of the tall chimneys under which they live. Here and there the height of the latter may differ by a few rounds of brick, but in all essential respects, a description of one is a description of all.[8]

— Angus Reach, Morning Chronicle, 1849

North America

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United States

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New England and Northeast

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Peabody, Massachusetts A. C. Lawrence Leather Co. a factory town c. 1910.[9][10]
 
The Androscoggin River at Berlin, New Hampshire

Beginning with Samuel Slater and technological information smuggled out of England by Francis Cabot Lowell, large mills were established in New England in the early to mid-19th century. Mill towns, sometimes planned, built and owned as a company town, grew in the shadow of the industries. The region became a manufacturing powerhouse along rivers like the Housatonic, Quinebaug, Shetucket, Blackstone, Merrimack, Nashua, Cocheco, Saco, Androscoggin, Kennebec or Winooski.

In the 20th century, alternatives to water power were developed, and it became more profitable for companies to manufacture textiles in southern states where cotton was grown and winters did not require significant heating costs. Finally, the Great Depression acted as a catalyst that sent several struggling New England firms into bankruptcy.

State Towns
Connecticut mill towns

Ansonia, Bridgeport, Bristol, Collinsville, Danbury, Derby, East Windsor, Enfield, Glastonbury, Hartford, Killingly, Madison, Manchester, Meriden, Middletown, Milford, Naugatuck, New Britain, New Haven, New London, Norwich, Putnam, Sandy Hook, Seymour, Shelton, Torrington, Vernon, Waterbury, Willimantic, Winchester, Windham, Windsor Locks

Maine mill towns

Anson, Auburn, Augusta, Baileyville, Biddeford, Brunswick, Chisholm, Corinna, Lewiston, Lincoln, Lisbon Falls, Livermore Falls, Millinocket, Milo, Newport, Old Town, Orono, Pittsfield, Portland, Rumford, Saco, Sanford, Skowhegan, Waterville, Westbrook, Wilton

Massachusetts mill towns
See also: List of mill towns in Massachusetts

Adams, Amesbury, Athol, Attleboro, Boston, Chicopee, Clinton, Dalton, Dedham, Fall River, Fitchburg, Framingham, Gardner, Grafton, Greenfield, Haverhill, Holyoke, Hopesdale, Hudson, Lawrence, Lowell, Ludlow, Lynn, Maynard, Medford, Merrimac, Methuen, Milford, Millbury, Monson, New Bedford, North Adams, North Andover, Northbridge, Orange, Palmer, Peabody, Pittsfield, Rowley, Russell, Southbridge, Springfield, Taunton, Uxbridge, Waltham, Ware, Webster, Westborough, Winchendon, Worcester

New Hampshire mill towns

Belmont, Berlin, Claremont, Concord, Dover, East Rochester, Franklin, Gonic, Gorham, Greenville, Groveton, Harrisville, Jaffrey, Keene, Laconia, Lancaster, Lebanon, Lincoln, Manchester, Milford, Milton, Nashua, Newmarket, Newport, Penacook, Pittsfield, Rochester, Rollinsford, Somersworth, Suncook, Tilton, Troy, Wilton

New Jersey mill towns

Allaire, Allentown, Bernards, Boonton, Butler, Camden, Chester, Clinton, Cranbury, Cranford, Dover, Eatontown, Elizabeth, Freehold, Griggstown, Helmetta, Hillsborough, Imlaystown, Jamesburg, Kearny, Kingston, Little Falls, Manville, Medford, Millhurst, Milltown, Millville, New Brunswick, Newark, Orange, Paterson, Perth Amboy, Plainfield, Prallsville, Rahway, Raritan, Roselle Park, Smithville, South Brunswick, Stillwater, Tinton Falls, Trenton, Walnford, Wharton, Woodbridge

New York mill towns

Albany, Amsterdam, Aurora-on-Cayuga, Beacon, Belmont, Bloomvale, Buffalo, Clinton, Corning, Gardiner, Ithaca, Kingston, Little Falls, Marlboro, Mechanicville, Middletown, Montgomery, New Berlin, New York Mills, Newburgh, Newcomb, Niles, Philmont, Poughkeepsie, Rochester, Rome, Roslyn, Saddle Rock, Schenectady, Schuylerville, Sleepy Hollow, Stony Brook, Sunset Park, Syracuse, Troy, Utica, Victory, Water Mill

Rhode Island mill towns

Bristol, Burrillville, Central Falls, Coventry, Cumberland, Lincoln, Pawtucket, Providence, Slatersville, Valley Falls, West Warwick, Westerly, Woonsocket

Vermont mill towns

Bellows Falls, Bethel, Brattleboro, Bridgewater, Burlington, Ludlow, Newport, Springfield, Vergennes, Winooski

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    Assawaga Mill, Dayville, CT, in 1909
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    American Thread Co. Mill, Willimantic, CT, c. 1910
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    Hollingsworth & Whitney Paper Mill, Waterville, ME, c. 1920
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    Cumberland Mills, Westbrook, ME, c. 1902
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    Mill Street, Attleboro, MA, in 1908
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    Arlington Mills, Lawrence, MA, in 1907
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    Merrimack Falls, Lawrence, MA, c. 1905
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    Amoskeag Mills, Manchester, NH, c. 1912
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    Jackson Mills, Nashua, NH, in 1907
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    Alice Mills, Woonsocket, RI, in 1911
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    Colchester Mills, Winooski, VT, in 1907

Midwest

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State Towns
Wisconsin mill towns

Biron (Biron Mill)

South

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State Towns
Alabama mill towns

Fairfax (Fairfax Mill and Fair View Mill), Lanett (Lanett Mill), Langdale (Langdale Mill), Sylacauga (Avondale Mill), Opelika (Opelika Mill), River View (Riverdale Mill), Shawmut (Shawmut Mill), Valley (Carter/Lanier Mill)

Arkansas mill towns

Amity, Beirne, Calion, Crossett, Delight, Dierks, Glenwood, Jones Mill, Malvern, Mountain Pine

Georgia mill towns

Bibb City, Cabbagetown, Chicopee, Hogansville, New Holland, New Manchester

Maryland mill towns

Ellicott City, Jerusalem, Oella, Owings Mills, Savage

North Carolina mill towns

Alamance, Altamahaw, Bellemont, Burlington, Bynum, Canton, Caroleen, Carolina, Carrboro, Cliffside, Coleridge, Concord, Cooleemee, Cramerton, Drexel, Eden, Edgemont (East Durham), Enka, Falls, Franklinville, Glen Raven, Glencoe, Hanes, Haw River, Henrietta, High Falls, High Shoals, Hildebran, Hope Mills, Kannapolis, Long Shoals, Mayodan, McAdenville, Mooresville, Mount Holly, Oakdale, Ramseur, Rhodhiss, Riegelwood, Roanoke Rapids, Sawmills, Saxapahaw, Spencer Mountain, Swepsonville, West Durham, West Hillsborough

South Carolina mill towns

Cateechee, Central, Cherokee Falls, Columbia (Olympia and Granby Mills), Fort Mill, Graniteville, Great Falls, Inman, Joanna, La France, Lockhart, Lyman, Newry, Pacolet Mills, Pelzer, Piedmont, Slater, Startex, Ware Shoals, Watts Mills, Whitmire

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    Model Mill Settlement, Chadwick Mills, Charlotte, N.C. Published c. 1905–1915
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    White Oak Cotton Mills, Greensboro, N.C. c. 1914
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    Aerial view of Ware Shoals Mill

Sawmill towns

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State Towns
Illinois Carrier Mills, Harrisburg
Oregon Roseburg
Washington Longview
Wisconsin Eau Claire

South America

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Colombia

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See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ Sourced from a book entitled Cotton Mills of Greater Manchester, although not all of these towns are within Greater Manchester.

References

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  1. ^ "Crespi D'Adda UNESCO – Sito ufficiale" (in Italian). Retrieved 5 February 2019.
  2. ^ "Associazione Amici della Scuola del Villaggio Leumann" (in Italian). Retrieved 5 February 2019.
  3. ^ "Abitare a Saronno tra '800 e '900" (PDF) (in Italian). Retrieved 5 February 2019.
  4. ^ "Villaggio operaio della Filatura" (in Italian). Retrieved 5 February 2019.
  5. ^ Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Girard, Philippe Henri de". Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
  6. ^ "Steel statue tribute of mill girl". BBC. 24 July 2018.
  7. ^ Williams, Mike; Farnie (1992). Cotton Mills of Greater Manchester. Carnegie Publishing. ISBN 0-9487898-9-1.
  8. ^ Powell, Rob (1986). In the Wake of King Cotton. Rochdale Art Gallery. p. 12.
  9. ^ WRITER, ALAN BURKE STAFF. "Leather goes to War at Peabody's Leather Museum".
  10. ^ "Peabody Institute Library : Online Collections". peabodylibrary.pastperfectonline.com.
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