Mill Record Stonington

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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)
Lorraine Mfg. Co.
Complex Name (Historic)
  • Lorraine Mfg. Co.
Address or Location
82 Mechanic Street, Pawcatuck, Stonington
County
New London
Historic Designation
Associated Mill Community
Historic Information

Companies Associated w/Complex

  • Boston WIre Stitcher Co. c.1946
  • Crefeld Mills Corp. 1886-ca. 1896
  • Lorraine Manufacturers ca. 1896-ca. 1939
  • Moss Mfg. Co. 1878-1886
  • United Aircraft Corp., Hamilton Propeller Div. 1940-1944
  • Yardney Electric Corp. 1970-2013

Use (Historic)

Largest Documented Workforce

100-199 (1936)

Historic Narrative

The site of the former Lorraine Manufacturing Company was originally developed as the site of a woolen mill during the mid-19th century. Known locally as the “Steam Mill,” this was owned and operated by Horatio N. Campbell, Thomas W. Segar, Samuel B. Segar, and Joshua Thompson, all of whom were residents of Westerly, Rhode Island. The company’s superintendent was John B. Steadman, Jr., who was a resident of Pawcatuck, Connecticut. Horatio N. Campbell appears to have held majority control of the business during the late-1860s as local maps identify the mill as being operated by either Campbell and Co. or Campbell and Babcock. Campbell operated the plant into the 1870s, whereupon it was acquired by Jessie L. Moss, who expanded the facility, transitioned from the manufacture of woolen to cotton goods, and changed its name to the Moss Manufacturing Company. Moss retained full control of the plant until 1878 when he borrowed money from brothers W.F. and F.C. Sayles of Lincoln, Rhode Island, in order to fund expansion of the mill. The Sayles brothers already possessed large industrial holdings in Rhode Island and they increased their control of the Moss Manufacturing Company through a series of mortgage transactions during the early 1880s. By the mid-1880s they held majority ownership of the firm and in 1886 the name of the company was changed to the Crefeld Mills Corporation. The Crefeld Mills were managed by the Sayles brothers, as well as by a group of investors including Charles O. Read and W. Maxwell Greene. In 1886 the company’s board of directors made the decision to retool the plant in order to revert to the production of woolen goods. The Crefeld Mills Corporation continued to operate as its own entity until approximately 1896 or 1897 when it was absorbed by the Lorraine Manufacturing Company, another textile processing venture controlled by the Sayles Brothers. The Lorraine Manufacturing Company occupied the mills into the 1920s and substantially expanded the plant in 1920 after being granted a 10-year tax-exempt status from the Town of Stonington. In 1927, however, the Sayles brothers opened up a new bleachery in North Carolina and production at their Pawcatuck mill was subsequently decreased. The plant continued to employ between 100 and 200 workers through the mid-1930s, yet by 1939 it is no longer listed in Connecticut industrial directories. The Mechanic Street plant stood silent until 1940, at which point it was leased to the Hamilton Propeller Division of the United Aircraft Corporation for the manufacture of propellers and training of personnel. Hamilton Propeller eventually employed over 1000 workers at the plant, which it occupied until 1944. The 1946 Sanborn atlas indicates that a stapler manufacturer, Boston Wire Stitcher Co., was to be the new occupant of the facility. In 1970 the property was acquired by the Yardney Electric Corporation, a manufacturer of rechargeable silver-zinc and magnesium silver chloride batteries. Yardney occupied the plant until 2013 when all of its operations were moved to East Greenwich, Rhode Island. see NR nomination for Mechanic Street Historic District which includes the Lorraine complex: https://npgallery.nps.gov/pdfhost/docs/nrhp/text/88000653.pdf and photos: https://npgallery.nps.gov/pdfhost/docs/nrhp/photos/88000653.pdf

Architectural Information

Number of Existing Buildings

Roughly eight (8) primary blocks.

Dates of Construction

ca. 1878, ca. 1920, ca. 1940.

Architect

n/a

Builder

n/a

Building Type

Architectural Description

The former Lorraine Manufacturing Company plant is a sprawling complex comprised of approximately eight primary adjoining and detached buildings located on the east side of Mechanic Street opposite its intersection with Palmer Street and along the west bank of the Pawcatuck River. The earliest portions of the plant date to ca. 1878 as several buildings formerly found on the site and operated by Campbell and Company during the 1860s and the Moss Manufacturing Company during the 1870s were demolished between 1934 and 1965. The oldest standing building is the three-story, 54’ x 206’ red brick manufacturing block located at the southwest corner of the property, this erected by the Moss Manufacturing Company ca. 1878. The building is of standard brick pier construction and has segmental-arched window openings with stone sills, a mix of ten-over-twenty and ten-over-fifteen double-hung wood sash, corbelled brick cornice, and a low-pitch front-facing gable roof. A three-story stairtower is located at the center of the building’s south elevation and a four-story stairtower is located at the east end of the building’s north side. A one-story, 90’ x 272’ red brick block with low-pitch gable roof and a broad clerestory monitor abuts the north elevation of the main manufacturing block and connects it to a one-story, 334’ x 146’ red brick manufacturing building. The latter was erected ca. 1920 and is dominated by 13 sawtooth monitors spanning its roof along an east-west axis. Another prominent manufacturing block abuts the east elevation of the sawtooth-roofed structure. This was likewise built ca. 1920 and is of brick pier construction. The building is characterized by large window openings with brick sills and lintels and multi-pane metal sash and has a plain cornice and flat roof. Further notable buildings associated with the plant include a detached two-story red brick mechanical building located at the southeast corner of the property, a detached two-story red brick building located directly east of the four-story manufacturing block, and a one-story concrete block and brick manufacturing block abutting the northern elevation of the sawtooth building. The two brick buildings were constructed ca. 1920, while the concrete block and brick structure was built between 1934 and 1965.

Exterior Material(s)

Structural System(s)

Roof Form

Roof Material

Power Source

Condition

Fair

Condition Notes

The factory is in overall fair condition. Although some of the original windows have been replaced or infilled, the majority of the plant appears structurally sound and reasonably well maintained.

Property Information

Specific Location

One 8.97-acre parcel (82 Mechanic Street) on the east side of Mechanic Street opposite its intersection with Palmer Street and along the west bank of the Quinebaug River.

Located in Mechanic Street Historic District (1988).
http://npgallery.nps.gov/nrhp/GetAsset?assetID=00a7af30-511d-4865-b1ed-d81703da63d9

Adjacent To

n/a

Exterior Visible from Public Road?

Yes

Parcel ID / Assessor Record Link

Acreage

8.97

Use (Present)

Sources

Form Completed By

Lucas Karmazinas

Date

4/30/2015

Bibliography

  1. List of Connecticut Manufacturers, 1922, 1924, 1930, 1932.
  2. Directory of Connecticut State Manufacturers, 1936, 1939.
  3. Industrial Directory of Connecticut, 1947.
  4. Register of War Production Facilities in Connecticut, 1951.
  5. Map of New London County, W.E. Baker, 1854.
  6. Atlas of New London County, Beers, Ellis & Soule, 1868.
  7. Birdseye View of Westerly, Rhode Island, Bailey and Hazen, 1877.
  8. Birdseye View of Westerly, Rhode Island, Hughes and Bailey, 1911.
  9. Hartford Courant, 1940.
  10. Griswold – A History; Phillips, Daniel L.
  11. Griswold in the 20th Century; Cyr, Ted & Erwin Goldstein, 1999.
Representative View(s)Click on image to view full file



Photographer

Lucas Karmazinas

Photography Date

4/30/2015