Derwent Valley Mills is a World Heritage Site along the River Derwent in Derbyshire, England, designated in December 2001. It is administered by the Derwent Valley Mills Partnership. The modern factory, or 'mill', system was born here in the 18th century to accommodate the new technology for spinning cotton developed by Richard Arkwright. With advancements in technology, it became possible to produce cotton continuously. The system was adopted throughout the valley, and later spread so that by 1788 there were over 200 Arkwright-type mills in Britain. Arkwright's inventions and system of organising labour was exported to Europe and the United States.
Coventry is a town in Kent County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 35,688 at the 2020 census and is part of the Pawtuxet River Valley.
West Warwick is a town in Kent County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 31,012 at the 2020 census.
Samuel Slater was an early English-American industrialist known as the "Father of the American Industrial Revolution" and the "Father of the American Factory System". In the UK, he was called "Slater the Traitor" and "Sam the Slate" because he brought British textile technology to the United States, modifying it for American use. He stole the textile factory machinery designs as an apprentice to a pioneer in the British industry before migrating to the United States at the age of 21. He designed the first textile mills in the U.S. and later went into business for himself, developing a family business with his sons. He eventually owned thirteen spinning mills and had developed tenant farms and company towns around his textile mills, such as Slatersville, Rhode Island.
Wakefield is a village in the town of South Kingstown, Rhode Island, United States, and the commercial center of South Kingstown. Together with the village of Peace Dale, it is treated by the U.S. Census as a component of the census-designated place identified as Wakefield-Peacedale, Rhode Island. West Kingston, another South Kingstown village, was the traditional county seat of Washington County. Since 1991, the Washington County Courthouse has been in Wakefield. The Sheriff's Office which handles corrections is also in Wakefield.
The Slater Mill is a historic textile mill complex on the banks of the Blackstone River in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, modeled after cotton spinning mills first established in England. It is the first water-powered cotton spinning mill in North America to utilize the Arkwright system of cotton spinning as developed by Richard Arkwright.
James DeWolf was a slave trader, a privateer during the War of 1812, and a state and national politician. He served as a state legislator for a total of nearly 25 years, and in the 1820s as a United States senator from Rhode Island for much of a term. Along with the slave trade, DeWolf invested in sugar and coffee plantations in Cuba and became the wealthiest man in his state. By the end of his life, he was said to be the second-richest person in the entire United States. During his lifetime, his name was usually written "James D'Wolf".
Slatersville is a village on the Branch River in the town of North Smithfield, Rhode Island, United States. It includes the Slatersville Historic District, a historic district listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The historic district has been included as part of the Blackstone River Valley National Historical Park. The North Smithfield Public Library is located in Slatersville.
Ironstone is an historic village,, in the township of Uxbridge, Massachusetts, United States. It derived its name from plentiful bog iron found here which helped Uxbridge to become a center for three iron forges in the town's earliest settlement. South Uxbridge has historic sites, picturesque weddings, hospitality, industrial and distribution centers, and the new Uxbridge High School. This community borders North Smithfield, and Burrillville, Rhode Island, and Millville, Massachusetts. South Uxbridge receives municipal services from Uxbridge, for fire, police, EMS, School district, public works, and other services. There is a South Uxbridge fire station of the Uxbridge fire department. Worcester's Judicial District includes Uxbridge District Court. Ironstone appears on the Blackstone U.S. Geological Survey Map. Worcester County is in the Eastern time zone and observes DST.
The Arkwright Bridge is an abandoned historic bridge formerly carrying Hill Street over the Pawtuxet River in the Arkwright mill village in central Rhode Island. The river forms the border between Cranston and Coventry.
The Hanora Mills are a historic textile mill complex the center of Woonsocket, Rhode Island.
The Hope Village Historic District is a historic rural mill settlement within Hope Village in Scituate, Rhode Island. Hope Village is located on a bend in the North Pawtuxet River in the southeastern corner of Scituate. Industrial activity has occurred in Hope Village since the mid-eighteenth century. Surviving industrial and residential buildings in the Historic District date back to the early 19th century. The village center sits at junction of Main Street and North Road. Hope Village radiates out from the center with houses on several smaller side streets in a compact configuration. Currently there is little commercial or industrial activity in Hope Village and none in the Historic District. The present stone mill building on the south side of Hope Village was built in 1844 by Brown & Ives of Providence, expanded in 1871 and modified in 1910. Approximately one quarter of the village's current housing stock was built as mill worker housing by various owners of Hope Mill.
The Crompton Mill Historic District is a historic district encompassing a mill complex at 20 Remington Street, 53 and 65 Manchester Street in West Warwick, Rhode Island. The mill complex consists of a collection of mainly brick buildings, bounded by the Pawtuxet River and Pulaski, Remington, and Manchester Streets in the village of Crompton. The mill complex formerly extended across the river, but the complex on the west bank was destroyed by fire in 1992. The oldest elements of the complex are the dam site and some of the raceways that provided water power to the mills. The present dam was built in 1908, replacing an 1882 structure. The raceways were built in 1807, around the time of the first mill buildings. The stone Mill No. 1, built 1807, is believed to be the oldest stone mill building in the state. Most of the complex's buildings were built in the late 19th and early 20th centuries by the Providence Manufacturing Company and its successors. The mill was used for textile processing until 1946, when the Crompton Corporation ended production.
The city of Woonsocket in the U.S. state of Rhode Island was established as a union of six mill villages along the Blackstone River. These villages are described in more detail below.
The Stillwater Mill was a former textile factory located in Smithfield, Rhode Island.
Anthony is a village along Route 117 within the town of Coventry, Rhode Island near the villages of Washington and Quidnick on the southwestern banks of the Pawtuxet River. The village comprises "Anthony, Arnold, Boston, Mapledale, Meeting, Taft, Washington and Laurel Avenue."
Harris is a village near the town of Coventry, Rhode Island on the north branch of the Pawtuxet River near West Warwick.
Tiogue is a village in Coventry, Rhode Island near the village of Washington.
Blackrock is a village in Kent County, Rhode Island, United States, located in the town of Coventry between the villages of Anthony and Arkwright.
C. R. Makepeace & Company, established in 1889, was a nationally active firm of mill architects based in Providence, Rhode Island. It was dissolved in 1944.
