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)
Stillmanville Woolen Mill DEMO’d 4/2019
Complex Name (Historic)
  • Stillmanville Woolen Mill
Address or Location
75 Stillman Avenue, Pawcatuck, Stonington
County
New London
Historic Designation
Associated Mill Community
Historic Information

Companies Associated w/Complex

  • F.R. White & Co. ca. 1875-ca. 1880
  • Stillmanville Woolen Mill 1848-ca. 1875
  • Westerly Woolen Co. ca. 1880-1912

Use (Historic)

Largest Documented Workforce

450 (1908, includes portions o

Historic Narrative

SHPO made a preliminary determination of NR eligibility in the fall of 2018. The site of the former Stillmanville Woolen Mill was the location of a saw and oil mill during the early 1800s. These were acquired by an Englishman, John Schofield, who added a woolen mill before Oremus M. Stillman purchased the property in 1831. A skilled businessman and a talented inventor, Stillman both expanded the woolen mill as well as established a small industrial village in its vicinity. Stillman replaced the original mill with the present brick plant in 1848, and went on to establish a number of other industrial ventures throughout the area during the 1850s and 1860s. Stillman retained control of the woolen mill into the mid-1870s, whereupon it was acquired by F.R. White and Company, another woolen goods manufacturer, which maintained an extensive plant opposite the Stillmanville mill on the east bank of the Pawcatuck River in Westerly, Rhode Island. This arrangement lasted for several years, however, after the death of its president, Fenner R. White, in 1880, F.R. White and Company was acquired by brothers Warren O. and Louis W. Arnold and the firm’s name was changed to the Westerly Woolen Company. The Arnold brothers made substantial improvements to their facilities on both sides of the river, this including constructing a three-story brick addition to the former Stillmanville Woolen Mill that was demolished during the mid-2010s. By 1881, the Westerly Woolen Company plant numbered two-dozen buildings and employed 450 hands. The Westerly Woolen Company continued to operate into the early 1910s, however, the plant and all of its machinery was liquidated at auction in 1912. The mill was eventually repurposed as a foundry during the middle of 20th century, with the plant on the Connecticut side of the river owned by the Connecticut Investment Casting Corporation (c.1965-c.1997), and that on the Rhode Island side occupied by the Westerly Casting Company.

Architectural Information

Number of Existing Buildings

One (1) freestanding building.

Dates of Construction

1848

Architect

n/a

Builder

n/a

Building Type

Architectural Description

The former Stillmanville Woolen Mill consists of a three-and-a-half-story red brick building located at the southeast corner of the intersection of Stillman Avenue and Arch Street. The factory stands along the west bank of the Pawcatuck River and abuts the ruins of a stone dam that formerly provided power to the plant. The mill measures 102’ x 50’ and there is a four-story, 16’ x 18’ stair tower roughly centered on its east elevation. The plant is of brick pier construction, 14 bays wide and 4 bays deep, and with a pedimented, side-gabled roof. Denticulated brick beltcourses delineate each of the floors and arched brick corbelling graces the cornices. The building’s rectangular window openings have stone sills and lintels and the majority of the six-over-six double-hung wood sash have been replaced or the window openings infilled. Seven dormers with pedimented gable roofs are evenly spaced across the east and west sides of the roof and a pair of unique teardrop-shaped window can be found in each of the building’s gable ends. A pair of wooden entry doors are located on the second floor of the stairtower’s east elevation, these accessed via a walkway spanning a 15’ gap between the building and Stillman Avenue. The third and fourth floors of the stairtower have paired loading doors with hoist beams situated directly above the openings. A stone plaque that reads “1848” is centered within a recessed brick panel located just below the tower’s cornice and low-pitch pyramidal roof.

Exterior Material(s)

Structural System(s)

Roof Form

Roof Material

Power Source

Condition

Fair, Deteriorated

Condition Notes

The factory is in fair to deteriorated condition. While the building appears structurally sound, many sections of the plant show deterioration along the exterior walls and most of the original windows are missing. 4/15/2019: The northeast corner collapsed in the early morning, and by 5pm the town had begun demolition.

Property Information

Specific Location

One 1.28-acre parcel (75 Stillman Avenue) located at the southeast corner of the intersection of Stillman Avenue and Arch Street and along the west bank of the Pawcatuck River.

Adjacent To

Exterior Visible from Public Road?

Yes

Parcel ID / Assessor Record Link

Acreage

1.28

Use (Present)

  • Other: (2017) Permits in place for conversion to 15 residential units and development of additional units to the south. See Jason Vincent, Town Planner. DECD awarded $139k brownfield grant for assessment for potential site redev post demo 6/2021.
  • Vacant
Sources

Form Completed By

Lucas A. Karmazinas

Date

04/30/2015

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, 1979.
  10. History of the Town of Stonington; Wheeler, Richard Anson, 1900.
  11. Pawcatuck in Olden Times; Hinkley, Elias B., 1926.
  12. Stonington Chronology, 1649-1976; Haynes, Williams, 1976.
  13. Roth, Matthew, et al, Connecticut: An Inventory of Historic Engineering and Industrial Sites (Washington DC: SIA, 1981).
Representative View(s)Click on image to view full file



Photographer

Lucas A. Karmazinas

Photography Date

04/30/2015