David Nevins Jr. (July 30, 1839 in

Boston, Massachusetts Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

– August 24, 1898 in

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

) was a wealthy Yankee

merchant A merchant is a person who trades in goods produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Merchants have been known for as long as humans have engaged in trade and commerce. Merchants and merchant networks operated i ...

in the city of

Methuen, Massachusetts Methuen () is a 23-square-mile (60 km2) city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 53,059 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Methuen lies along the northwestern edge of Essex County, just east of Midd ...

during the industrial boom of the late 19th century.
Official Website of the City of Methuen''Genealogical and Personal Memoirs Relating to the Families of Boston and Eastern Massachusetts''
by

William Richard Cutter William Richard Cutter (August 17, 1847 – June 6, 1918) was an American historian, librarian, genealogist, and writer. Life Born in Woburn, Massachusetts, on August 17, 1847, he was the son of Dr. Benjamin Cutter and Mary Whittemore Cutter. ...

, published by Lewis historical publishing company, 1908

Life

Nevins was the son of David Nevins Sr. who was born in

Salem, New Hampshire Salem is a town in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 30,089 at the 2020 census and an estimated 30,647 in 2022. Salem is a northern suburb of Boston located on Interstate 93. As the first town along I-93 north ...

on December 12, 1809 to John Nevins and Achsah Nevins née Swan Nevins. David Jr.'s mother was Eliza Nevins née Eliza Coffin, the daughter of a wealthy merchant from the island of

Nantucket Nantucket () is an island in the state of Massachusetts in the United States, about south of the Cape Cod peninsula. Together with the small islands of Tuckernuck Island, Tuckernuck and Muskeget Island, Muskeget, it constitutes the Town and Co ...

named Jared Coffin. David Sr., who built his personal wealth through importing and

manufacturing Manufacturing is the creation or production of goods with the help of equipment, labor, machines, tools, and chemical or biological processing or formulation. It is the essence of the secondary sector of the economy. The term may refer ...

textiles Textile is an Hyponymy and hypernymy, umbrella term that includes various Fiber, fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, Staple (textiles)#Filament fiber, filaments, Thread (yarn), threads, and different types of #Fabric, fabric. ...

, gained notoriety as the co-owner of

Pemberton Mill The Pemberton Mill was a large textiles factory in Lawrence, Massachusetts, Lawrence, Massachusetts, originally built in 1853. On January 10, 1860, at around 4:30 p.m., a section of the building suddenly collapsed, trapping several hundred w ...

, the collapse of which in 1860 "is likely the worst

industrial accident A work accident, workplace accident, occupational accident, or accident at work is a "discrete occurrence in the course of work" leading to physical or mental occupational injury. According to the International Labour Organization (ILO), more th ...

in Massachusetts history"
Pemberton Mill Collapse, 1860 and "one of the worst industrial calamities in

American history The history of the present-day United States began in roughly 15,000 BC with the arrival of Peopling of the Americas, the first people in the Americas. In the late 15th century, European colonization of the Americas, European colonization beg ...

".
''Disaster in Lawrence: The Fall of the Pemberton Mill'' by Alvin F. Oickle
New York Times January 21, 1860 David Jr. was educated in Boston and in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. Upon completing his education, he joined his father's business and took on ever-increasing responsibilities as his father aged. For a time he managed the City Exchange Banking Company, a

financial institution A financial institution, sometimes called a banking institution, is a business entity that provides service as an intermediary for different types of financial monetary transactions. Broadly speaking, there are three major types of financial ins ...

with offices in Boston that was eventually merged with the Nevins' other businesses. The "Methuen Duck Cloth" the Nevins manufactured was world-renowned as a material for sail cloth and tents for the tropics.
Methuen Millionaires: Nevins
Methuen History: Bridges from the Past After David Sr.'s death in 1881, the family's wealth was such that his

widow A widow (female) or widower (male) is a person whose spouse has Death, died and has usually not remarried. The male form, "widower", is first attested in the 14th century, by the 19th century supplanting "widow" with reference to men. The adjecti ...

Eliza, his eldest son David Nevins, and his younger son

Henry Coffin Nevins Henry Coffin Nevins (January 10, 1843 – June 25, 1892) was an industrialist from an established New England family in the city of Methuen, Massachusetts.

were able to erect the Nevins Memorial Library in his honor. David Sr. and Eliza are buried on the library grounds beneath a memorial "Angel of Life" sculptured by George Moretti. Nevins, partnered with younger brother Henry, expanded the manufacturing and importing businesses they had inherited. He built

textile mills 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 good ...

and owned India Bagging Company and Bengal Bagging Company in

Salem, Massachusetts Salem ( ) is a historic coastal city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, located on the North Shore (Massachusetts), North Shore of Greater Boston. Continuous settlement by Europeans began in 1626 with English colonists. Salem was one ...

, continued importing goods from

Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...

, and helped give the city of Methuen "much of its unique identity."

Legacy

David and his wife Harriet F. Nevins (

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

Harriet F. Blackburn) had no children, but after his death she used his fortune to leave a legacy for the public that includes Nevins Farm and Equine Center in Methuen as well as Blackburn Hall and a

stone In geology, rock (or stone) is any naturally occurring solid mass or aggregate of minerals or mineraloid matter. It is categorized by the minerals included, its Chemical compound, chemical composition, and the way in which it is formed. Rocks ...

fountain A fountain, from the Latin "fons" ( genitive "fontis"), meaning source or spring, is a decorative reservoir used for discharging water. It is also a structure that jets water into the air for a decorative or dramatic effect. Fountains were o ...

Walpole, Massachusetts Walpole is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. Walpole Town, as the Census refers to it, is located approximately south of downtown Boston, Massachusetts, and north of Providence, Rhode Island. The population of Walpole was ...

. As a memorial dedicated to her husband in the

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

of the local

Congregationalist Church Congregationalism (also Congregational Churches or Congregationalist Churches) is a Reformed Christian (Calvinist) tradition of Protestant Christianity in which churches practice congregational government. Each congregation independently a ...

she dedicated "The Resurrection", a stained glass window designed by

John LaFarge John La Farge (March 31, 1835 – November 14, 1910) was an American artist whose career spanned illustration, murals, interior design, painting, and popular books on his Asian travels and other art-related topics. La Farge made stained glass ...

and "said to be his masterpiece." David Nevins'

surname In many societies, a surname, family name, or last name is the mostly hereditary portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family. It is typically combined with a given name to form the full name of a person, although several give ...

(as well as that of fellow "Methuen city fathers" Edward F. Searles and Charles H. Tenney) appears in the name of the "Searles Tenney Nevins Historic District" established by the City of Methuen in 1992 to preserve the "distinctive architecture and rich character of one of Massachusetts' most unique neighborhoods". According to the City of Methuen:

Today, the trio’s collective vision can be seen in
mills Mills is the plural form of mill, but may also refer to: As a name * Mills (surname), a common family name of English or Gaelic origin * Mills (given name) *Mills, a fictional British secret agent in a trilogy by writer Manning O'Brine Places U ...
,
housing Housing refers to a property containing one or more Shelter (building), shelter as a living space. Housing spaces are inhabited either by individuals or a collective group of people. Housing is also referred to as a human need and right to ...
,
school A school is the educational institution (and, in the case of in-person learning, the Educational architecture, building) designed to provide learning environments for the teaching of students, usually under the direction of teachers. Most co ...
s,
mansion A mansion is a large dwelling house. The word itself derives through Old French from the Latin word ''mansio'' "dwelling", an abstract noun derived from the verb ''manere'' "to dwell". The English word ''manse'' originally defined a property l ...
s, churches,
monument A monument is a type of structure that was explicitly created to commemorate a person or event, or which has become relevant to a social group as a part of their remembrance of historic times or cultural heritage, due to its artistic, historical ...
s,
playground A playground, playpark, or play area is a place designed to provide an environment for children that facilitates play, typically outdoors. While a playground is usually designed for children, some are designed for other age groups, or people wi ...
s, the
library A library is a collection of Book, books, and possibly other Document, materials and Media (communication), media, that is accessible for use by its members and members of allied institutions. Libraries provide physical (hard copies) or electron ...
, and the architectural fantasies that resulted from their artistic rivalry. The historic district boundaries were established to include properties and buildings constructed or used by the Searles, Tenney and Nevins families and the people who worked for them.

According to a description by the

Essex National Heritage Area The Essex National Heritage Area is a National Heritage Area composed of all of Essex County, Massachusetts. It is overseen by the Essex National Heritage Commission (ENHC), a non-profit organization based in Salem, Massachusetts. The commission ...

, the district:

reflects the major influences that shaped Methuen's architecture and economy. The
Spicket River The Spicket River is a river located in New Hampshire and Massachusetts in the United States. It is a left tributary of the Merrimack River, part of the Gulf of Maine watershed. It is sometimes spelled "Spickett". The Spicket River begins at t ...
provided water power for the local industry housed in large brick mills along the river. Corresponding commercial growth resulted in Gaunt Square, which has been the commercial center of Methuen since the mid-19th century. In addition to economic forces, three individuals, David Nevins, Charles H. Tenney and Edward F. Searles, left an architectural legacy which defines the district's character today. Essex National Heritage

A short distance from above-mentioned Nevins Memorial Library is the Henry C. Nevins Home for Aged and Incurables, an old age home established in 1906 and named for his brother. According to one author, "The public spirit and generosity of the Nevins family seems to have no bounds in the town in which they made their home".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nevins, David Jr. 1839 births 1898 deaths Businesspeople from Boston 19th-century American businesspeople