Cornell Mills

Last updated
Cornell Mills
Cornell Mill FR.jpg
USA Massachusetts location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Usa edcp location map.svg
Red pog.svg
LocationAlden St., Fall River, Massachusetts
Coordinates 41°41′3″N71°8′1″W / 41.68417°N 71.13361°W / 41.68417; -71.13361
Built1890 (1890)
MPS Fall River MRA
NRHP reference No. 83000657 [1]
Added to NRHPFebruary 16, 1983

Cornell Mills is an historic cotton textile mill on Alden Street in Fall River, Massachusetts. Built in 1890, it is a well-preserved example of late 19th-century industrial mill architecture in stone. The mill complex was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1983. [1] On February 26, 2016, a developer has bought the property with the intent to convert the mill into middle-class residential housing. [2]

Contents

Description and history

Young girls working at Cornell Mills in 1912 Cornell Mill. Smallest girl in group is Jennie Sylvia, 522 Alden St., a doffer in card room of Cornell Mill. I saw a girl, apparently as young, running a loom in weave room there. LOC nclc.02497.jpg
Young girls working at Cornell Mills in 1912

The Cornell Mills building stands in eastern Fall River, and is sandwiched between Alden Street to the east and the western interchange of Massachusetts Route 24 and Interstate 195 to the southwest, from which it is a prominent landmark. The main mill building is a three-story granite structure, fashioned out of rough-cut blocks with dressed corner quoining blocks, lintels, and sills. The window bays are regular in size, but are relieved architecturally by buttresses that group them into threes and sixes. It has a low-pitch gable roof with a wide cornice. The property's ancillary buildings include an engine house, garage, waste house, and storehouse. A freestanding brick chimney rises 160 feet (49 m), with corbelled brickwork at the top. [3]

The mill was organized in 1889 and built in 1890 from native Fall River granite. It had a capacity of 45,000 spindles at its peak in the 1910s, and produced printed cloth and other textiles. John D. Flint was the company's first president. The plant was closed in 1930. [4]

The structure was eventually leased out to the Elbe-Cesco bookbinding company in 1939 which continued to occupy parts of the mill until the property was sold to Starr Development Partners in 2016, where it will be converted into 101 middle-class residential rental units similar to what other historic mills have been converted into across the region. [2]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hayward Mill</span> United States historic place

The Hayward Mill is a historic mill complex at the junction of North and Cook Streets, on the Mumford River in Douglas, Massachusetts. The site, with an industrial history dating to the 18th century, is populated by a series of connected buildings dating to 1880 or later. The mill was the first financial successful textile operation in Douglas, and was operated until the 1960s. The mill complex was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1991. It has been converted to residential use.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prospect Hill Historic District (Willimantic, Connecticut)</span> Historic district in Connecticut, United States

The Prospect Hill Historic District encompasses a large residential area in the Willimantic section of Windham, Connecticut. Located north of the Main Street commercial district, it was developed between about 1865 and 1930, and is one of the state's largest historic districts, with more than 800 contributing buildings. It is roughly bounded by Valley, Jackson, Bolivia, Washburn, Windham, and High Streets, and contains one of the state's largest single concentrations of Victorian-era residential architecture. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2003.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mill conversion</span>

Mill Conversion or mill rehab is a form of adaptive reuse in which a historic mill or industrial factory building is restored or rehabilitated into another use, such as residential housing, retail shops, office, or a mix of these non-industrial elements (mixed-use).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Border City Mill No. 2</span> United States historic place

The Border City Mill No. 2 is a historic cotton textile mill at One Weaver Street in Fall River, Massachusetts. Built in 1873, it is the largest surviving element of the once-sprawling Border City Mill complex. It was designed by Josiah Brown, a prominent local designer of mills, and is one of the city's few brick mills. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1990. It was converted into residences in the 1980s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lower Highlands Historic District</span> Historic district in Massachusetts, United States

The Lower Highlands Historic District encompasses one of the oldest residential areas of Fall River, Massachusetts. The district is roughly bounded by Cherry, Main, Winter, and Bank Streets, and is located just east of the Downtown Fall River Historic District and directly south of the Highlands Historic District. This area was settled by 1810, has architecture tracing the city's growth as a major industrial center. The historic district was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Durfee Mills</span> United States historic place

Durfee Mills is an historic textile mill complex located at 359-479 Pleasant Street in Fall River, Massachusetts, USA. Developed between 1866 and 1904, it was during its period of development the city's largest and architecturally finest mill complex. Along with the adjacent Union Mills, it is occupied by numerous retail businesses and a restaurant, and is known as the Durfee-Union Mills. The complex was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sagamore Mills No. 1 and No. 3</span> United States historic place

Sagamore Mills No. 1 and No. 3 are two historic textile mills on Ace Street in Fall River, Massachusetts. Built in 1888 and 1908, they form part of one of the city's single largest textile operations of the late 19th century. Mills No. 1 and 3 were added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1983, with a separate listing for Mill No. 2, located nearby on North Main Street.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barnard Mills</span> United States historic place

Barnard Mills is an historic textile mill at 641-657 Quarry Street in Fall River, Massachusetts. Developed beginning in 1874, it was the first mill to use ring spinners instead of mule spinners, and was a major local employer until its closure in 1939. The complex has been redeveloped as a commercial retail space called Tower Mill. The mill was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Crescent Mill</span> United States historic place

Crescent Mill, later Merchant Mill No. 3, is a historic cotton textile mill located at 54 Front Street in Fall River, Massachusetts. Built in 1872 during an industrial construction boom, it is one of the city's finest examples of Italianate mill architecture. The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1983. It is now used for other light industrial purposes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flint Mills</span> United States historic place

Flint Mills is a historic textile mill complex located on Alden Street in Fall River, Massachusetts, near the banks of the Quequechan River. The company was founded in 1872 and named in honor of John D. Flint, who served as its first president. The original 1872 mill burned in 1882, and was rebuilt in 1883. The complex was later expanded with a second mill and large addition in 1909. The site also contains a detached granite mill office building. The section of Fall River surrounding the mill became known as "Flint Village". The site was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">King Philip Mills</span> United States historic place

King Philip Mills is an historic cotton mill complex located at 372 Kilburn Street in Fall River, Massachusetts. Developed between 1871 and 1892, it was historically one of the city's largest mills, and its building inventory is still largely complete. The complex was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wampanoag Mills</span> United States historic place

Wampanoag Mills is a historic textile mill complex located at 420 Quequechan Street in Fall River, Massachusetts. Built beginning in 1871, it is a large and well-preserved example of granite textile mill construction. The site was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Corky Row Historic District</span> Historic district in Massachusetts, United States

Corky Row Historic District is a historic district located in Fall River, Massachusetts bounded by Plymouth Avenue, Interstate-195 and Second Street. The district contains many early multi-family mill tenement houses, along with the Davol Mills, the Tecumseh Mill No. 1 and several commercial properties.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rockdale Common Housing District</span> Historic district in Massachusetts, United States

The Rockdale Common Housing District is a historic district at 4–20 McBride, 46–58 Plantation, and 37–42 Taft Sts. in Northbridge, Massachusetts, United States. The district is composed of a collection of tenement houses built from c. 1880 to 1920. They were built by members of the Whitin family, who owned most of the textile production capacity in Northbridge. The district was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Berkshire Mill No. 1</span> United States historic place

The Berkshire Mill No. 1 is a historic mill complex on Hoosac Street in the center of Adams, Massachusetts. Built in 1895 by the locally prominent Plunkett family, it is an important surviving reminder of the town's industrial textile past. Now converted into mixed residential and commercial use, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Springfield Street Historic District</span> Historic district in Massachusetts, United States

The Springfield Street Historic District is a predominantly residential historic district south of the downtown area of Chicopee, Massachusetts. It encompasses a significant number of Queen Anne style houses built in the second half of the 19th century by wealthy residents of Chicopee, as well as housing for skilled workers at the nearby textile mills. It is centered where Springfield Street and Fairview Avenue meet. The district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1991.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Federal Street District</span> Historic district in Massachusetts, United States

The Federal Street District is a residential and civic historic district in Salem, Massachusetts, United States. It is an expansion of an earlier listing of the Essex County Court Buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976. In addition to the former county court buildings included in the earlier listing, the district expansion in 1983 encompasses the entire block of Federal Street between Washington and North Streets. It includes buildings from 32 to 65 Federal Street, as well as the Tabernacle Church at 50 Washington Street.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wood Worsted Mill</span> United States historic place

The Wood Worsted Mill is located at South Union St. and Merrimack Street, on the south bank of the Merrimack River, in Lawrence, Massachusetts. The mill building was constructed between 1906 and 1909 for the American Woolen Company, and was dubbed by some locals as the "eighth wonder of the world" due to its size. It is a six-story brick building that is 1,300 feet (400 m) long and 125 feet (38 m) high, and encompasses some 17 miles (27 km) of aisles. Its purpose when built was to perform the complete textile manufacturing cycle of worsted woolens, from raw material to finished fabric, under a single roof.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Normand House</span> Historic house in Vermont, United States

The Normand House is a historic residential property at 163-65 Intervale Avenue in Burlington, Vermont. Built in 1869 as a single-family and enlarged into three units in 1890, it is a well-preserved example of period worker housing. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2008.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bigelow-Hartford Carpet Mills Historic District</span> Historic district in Connecticut, United States

The Bigelow-Hartford Carpet Mills Historic District encompasses a company-built factory and residential area in the Thompsonville area of Enfield, Connecticut. In addition to the former factory buildings of the Bigelow-Hartford Carpet Mills, it includes more than 150 housing units built by the company between about 1830 and 1920. It is roughly bounded on the north by Lafayette Street and Alden Avenue, the east by Hartford Avenue and Lincoln Street, the south by High Street, and the west by River Street. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1994.

References

  1. 1 2 "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. April 15, 2008.
  2. 1 2 O'Connor, Kevin P. "Developer details plans for market-rate housing at Alden Street mill". The Herald News, Fall River, MA. Retrieved 2017-06-19.
  3. "MACRIS inventory record and NRHP nomination form for Cornell Mills". Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Retrieved 2015-05-27.
  4. Phillips History of Fall River