The Slater Mill is a historic water-powered

textile mill Textile Manufacturing or Textile Engineering is a major industry. It is largely based on the conversion of fibre into yarn, then yarn into fabric. These are then dyed or printed, fabricated into cloth which is then converted into useful goods ...

complex on the banks of the

Blackstone River The Blackstone River is a river in the U.S. states of Massachusetts and Rhode Island. It flows approximately 48 mi (80 km) and drains a watershed of approximately 540 sq. mi (1,400 km2). Its long history of industrial use has left ...

Pawtucket, Rhode Island Pawtucket is a city in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 75,604 at the 2020 census, making the city the fourth-largest in the state. Pawtucket borders Providence and East Providence to the south, Central Fal ...

, 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.

Samuel Slater Samuel Slater (June 9, 1768 – April 21, 1835) was an early English-American industrialist known as the "Father of the American Industrial Revolution" (a phrase coined by Andrew Jackson) and the "Father of the American Factory System". In the ...

, the mill's founder, apprenticed as a young man in Belper, England, with industrialist

Jedediah Strutt Jedediah Strutt (1726 – 7 May 1797) or Jedidiah Strutt – as he spelled it – was a hosier and cotton spinner from Belper, England. Strutt and his brother-in-law William Woollat developed an attachment to the stocking frame that allowed the ...

. Shortly after immigrating to the United States, Slater was hired by

Moses Brown Moses Brown (September 23, 1738 – September 6, 1836) was an American abolitionist and industrialist from New England, who funded the design and construction of some of the first factory houses for spinning machines during the American industr ...

Providence, Rhode Island Providence is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. One of the oldest cities in New England, it was founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, a Reformed Baptist theologian and religious exile from the Massachusetts ...

, to produce a working set of machines necessary to spin cotton yarn using water power. Construction of the machines was completed in 1793, as well as a dam, waterway, waterwheel, and mill. Manufacturing was based on Richard Arkwright's cotton spinning system, which included carding, drawing, and spinning machines. Slater initially hired children and families to work in his mill, establishing a pattern that was replicated throughout the

Blackstone Valley The Blackstone Valley or Blackstone River Valley is a region of Massachusetts and Rhode Island. It was a major factor in the American Industrial Revolution. It makes up part of the Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor and Nationa ...

and known as the " Rhode Island System". It was later eclipsed by

Francis Cabot Lowell Francis Cabot Lowell (April 7, 1775 – August 10, 1817) was an American businessman for whom the city of Lowell, Massachusetts, is named. He was instrumental in bringing the Industrial Revolution to the United States. Early life Francis Cabot ...

's Waltham System. The mill and surrounding area were the site of early labor resistance, including the first factory strike in the United States, which was led by young women workers in 1824. Slater Mill was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

and designated a National Historic Landmark on November 13, 1966, the first property to be listed on the register.Blanche Higgins Schroer (September 15, 1975) , National Park Service and In December 2014, the mill was added to the newly formed

Blackstone River Valley National Historical Park Blackstone River Valley National Historical Park is a National Park Service unit in the states of Rhode Island and Massachusetts. The park was created for the purpose of preserving, protecting, and interpreting the industrial heritage of the Blac ...

Architectural history

The original portion of the Slater Mill built in 1793 was six bays long and two stories tall. Several additions were made beginning in 1801, and a second added in 1835. Between 1869 and 1872, a large addition was made to the north end of the mill. Cotton spinning continued until 1895, after which the mill was used for various industrial purposes until 1923. The building had suffered numerous fires in the past, and two fires occurred in 1912 which precipitated awareness of the building and the need for its preservation.

From mill to museum

In 1921, the non-profit Old Slater Mill Association was founded with the purpose of saving the historic Mill. Efforts to restore the mill began in 1923; modern additions to the structure were removed, restoring the mill to its 1835 appearance. In 1955, it opened as a museum. Restoration of the nearby Wilkinson Mill (built 1810–1811) was completed in 1978 as part of the Slater Mill site. The Slater Mill site now serves as a museum, educational center, and music venue, which "celebrates innovation and the entrepreneurial spirit by engaging audiences in relevant cultural, historic, and artistic endeavors". It includes five acres of land on both sides of the Blackstone River, a dam on the river, two historic mills (the Slater Mill and Wilkinson Mill), and the Sylvanus Brown House (a house built in 1758 but moved to the site in the 1960s). The Slater Mill and other key buildings that are part of the Old Slater Mill Historic District were acquired by the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propert ...

in 2021. File:Slater Mill, Pawtucket, Rhode Island.jpg, Slater Mill (1793) File:Slater Mill - a Spinning Mule.jpg, A

spinning mule The spinning mule is a machine used to spin cotton and other fibres. They were used extensively from the late 18th to the early 20th century in the mills of Lancashire and elsewhere. Mules were worked in pairs by a minder, with the help of tw ...

in Slater Mill File:Wilkinson Mill, Pawtucket, Rhode Island.jpg, Wilkinson Mill (1810–11) File:Sylv Brown House Pawt.jpg, Sylvanus Brown House File:Slater Mill Historic Site, Pawtucket, Rhode Island.jpg, View of the site File:Slater Mill - Wilkinson Machine Shop.jpg, The Wilkinson Machine Shop

References

External links

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''Providence Journal'' video of Slater Mill Historic Site''Providence Journal'' video of the Blackstone RiverPawtucket Arts Festival
{{Authority control 1793 establishments in Rhode Island Buildings and structures in Pawtucket, Rhode Island Cotton mills in the United States Historic American Buildings Survey in Rhode Island Historic American Engineering Record in Rhode Island History of the textile industry Industrial archaeological sites in the United States Industrial buildings and structures on the National Register of Historic Places in Rhode Island Industrial buildings completed in 1793 Industrial Revolution Industry museums in Rhode Island Mill museums in the United States Museums established in 1955 Museums in Providence County, Rhode Island National Historic Landmarks in Rhode Island National Register of Historic Places in Pawtucket, Rhode Island Textile machinery manufacturers Textile museums in Rhode Island Tourist attractions in Pawtucket, Rhode Island 1955 establishments in Rhode Island Blackstone River Valley National Historical Park

Architectural history

From mill to museum

See also

References

External links