Mill Record New Hartford

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Disclaimer: Content for these properties was compiled in 2014-2017 from a variety of sources and is subject to change. Updates are occasionally made under Property Information, however the Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation (dba Preservation Connecticut) makes no representation or warranty that the information is complete or up-to-date.

Complex Name (Common)
Greenwoods Co.
Complex Name (Historic)
  • Greenwoods Co.
Address or Location
37 Greenwoods Road, Pine Meadow, New Hartford
County
Litchfield
Historic Designation
Associated Mill Community
What can you do at this mill?
Historic Information

Companies Associated w/Complex

  • Greenwoods Co. 1849-c.1903
  • Hurley Manufacturing Co. 1961-present
  • L & M Manufacturing 1960s-
  • Landers Frary Clark 1919-1941
  • Mount Vernon Woodberry Cotton Duck Co. c.1903-1911
  • Ovation Instruments 1964-
  • T. M. Perry aka Greenwoods Corp 1960-
  • Touraine Co., division of Draycott Mills 1911-1919
  • Underwood Corp. 1943-1960

Use (Historic)

Largest Documented Workforce

525 (1880)

Historic Narrative

Greenwoods Co., manufacturers of cotton duck for sails, constructed the first brick mill building and dam at the site in 1848-49. By 1850, the site comprised a complex of fifteen structures, a canal from Greenwoods Pond and rail spur to the New Haven and Northampton line. A coal gasification plant was built along the river bank by 1897. Greenwoods Co. and Mount Vernon Woodberry Cotton Duck Co. manufactured cotton duck and belting, and in 1880 Greenwoods Co. employed 525 workers to run 12,000 spindles and 226 looms. The Touraine Co. made printed silks from 1911 to 1919. Landers Frary Clark occupied the complex from 1919 to 1941 and produced vacuum cleaners, electric mixers as well as the paper boxes for product shipping. Underwood Corp. made portable typewriters and adding machines at the factory from 1943 to 1960. Since 1960, T. M. Perry made aircraft parts, machine tools and Beaver tractors; Hurley Manufacturing Co., makes springs; L and M Manufacturing produced small metal parts; and Ovation Instruments produced guitars. As a result of the flood of 1936, the entire southern portion of the complex was demolished. By 1951, the rail spur and canal were also gone. Many of the more than 70 company built dwellings are gone, but a row of 10 houses is mostly intact.

Architectural Information

Number of Existing Buildings

n/a

Dates of Construction

1870, 1872

Architect

n/a

Builder

n/a

Building Type

Architectural Description

The extant mill buildings are all of brick and have near-flat roofs. Except for the stair tower the milIs bear no ornamentation, with unadorned cornices, stone sills and flat lintels of brick. It is likely that the earliest extant mill, 4-story and 170' x 50', was built in the early 1870s, and it is certain that the other large mill, 4-story and 161' x 60', was erected in 1872. These two buildings form an ell, and the 5-story mansard-roofed tower rises at their junction. On the top floor of the tower protruding brick borders frame arched openings. The floors of both mills are tied into exterior walls. The steam plant, 1-story and 85' x 46', was built in 1874 and the picker house, 1-story and 104' x 30', was added in 1878. (Roth)

Exterior Material(s)

Structural System(s)

Roof Form

Roof Material

n/a

Power Source

Condition

Excellent, Good

Condition Notes

n/a

Property Information

Specific Location

One 14.0 acre parcel at the north end of Greenwoods Road, on the east bank of the Farmington River.
Individually listed on the State Register of Historic Places.

Adjacent To

Exterior Visible from Public Road?

Yes

Parcel ID / Assessor Record Link

  • 36B-132-004 (for record, use link and type in address or parcel number) / Link →

Acreage

14.0

Use (Present)

Sources

Form Completed By

n/a

Date

n/a

Bibliography

  1. Sanborn Fire Insurance Atlases.
  2. Roth, Matthew, et al, Connecticut: An Inventory of Historic Engineering and Industrial Sites (Washington DC: SIA, 1981).
  3. State Register Nomination on file at office of SHPO, Hartford CT.
Representative View(s)Click on image to view full file


Photographer

n/a

Photography Date

n/a