Mill Record Brooklyn

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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)
Quinebaug Mills
Complex Name (Historic)
  • Quinebaug Mills
Address or Location
50 Tiffany Street, Brooklyn
County
Windham
Historic Designation
Associated Mill Community
Historic Information

Companies Associated w/Complex

  • Quinebaug Co. 1850-

Use (Historic)

Largest Documented Workforce

n/a

Historic Narrative

Cotton manufacture in Brooklyn began in 1820 when Comfort Tiffany built a mill on the west bank of the Quinebaug River, directly across from Danielson. A partnership of Rhode Island men, notably Moses and Amos D. Lockwood of Slatersville, bought the property in 1848. Incorporated as the Quinebaug Co., this firm built a stone mill for cotton production in 1850-54, which burned in 1961. Still standing, however, are the brick tenement houses built in the early 1850s west of the mill. Known as Upper Village, ...most of the 1860 workforce of 166 females and 144 males lived in these houses; on average, seven people occupied each family-unit of housing. In 1881-82 Quinebaug Co. built a new weave shed; behind the weave shed is a brick gasholder house. New tenements built south of Upper Village housed the expanded workforce, which numbered some 800 people when the weave shed began operating. The name of the new housing complex--Quebec Village-- indicated the heritage of most of the residents. On Main St. at the north end of Upper Village stands the Quinebaug Store, built in the 1880s to replace Tiffany's 1820s store. A pilot project in the reuse of historic mill housing restored Quebec Village in the 1970s. A plastics manufacturer now occupies the weave shed. (Roth)

Architectural Information

Number of Existing Buildings

Two (2) blocks.

Dates of Construction

1881-1882

Architect

n/a

Builder

n/a

Building Type

n/a

Architectural Description

The Upper Village 1 1/2-story and 2 1/2-story dwellings include ten 2-family houses and one each for four, six and ten families. Most have gable roofs with shed-roofed dormers. Sills and lintels are granite. The 1881-82 weave shed has two stories with near-flat roof; this rubble-walled 450' x 102' mill held 1,514 looms for weaving sheetings. Its large windows, about 8' x 5', have stone sills and segmental-arch brick lintels. Behind the weave shed is a brick gasholder house with peaked roof and stone-block foundations. New tenements built south of Upper Village --Quebec Village-- consists of five 8-family rows arranged around a central square. They were modeled on the row houses of Upper Village, with some changes. Gabled dormers light the upper floors in Quebec Village, and windows are segmentally arched in brick instead of flat with granite lintels. On Main St. at the north end of Upper Village stands the Quinebaug Store, built in the 1880s. (Roth)

Exterior Material(s)

Structural System(s)

n/a

Roof Form

Roof Material

n/a

Power Source

n/a

Condition

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Condition Notes

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Property Information

Specific Location

east side of Tiffany Street, west side of Quinebaug River, south of rte 6

Located in the Quinebaug Mill/Quebec Square Historic District (1985).
http://npgallery.nps.gov/nrhp/GetAsset?assetID=cefde6e2-fd51-4c9c-918c-19531e91a722

Adjacent To

Exterior Visible from Public Road?

Yes

Parcel ID / Assessor Record Link

Acreage

15.2

Use (Present)

Sources

Form Completed By

n/a

Date

n/a

Bibliography

  1. Roth, Matthew, et al, Connecticut: An Inventory of Historic Engineering and Industrial Sites (Washington DC: SIA, 1981).
  2. Clouette, Bruce and Matthew Roth. 1985. Quinebaug Mill - Quebec Square Historic District National Register Nomination No. 85001921. National Park Service.
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Photographer

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Photography Date

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