Misplaced Pages

#216783

33-720: The Slater Mill is a historic water-powered textile mill complex on the banks of the Blackstone River in Pawtucket, Rhode Island , modeled after cotton spinning mills first established in England. It is the first water-powered cotton spinning mill in America to utilize the Arkwright system of cotton spinning as developed by Richard Arkwright . The mill's founder, British immigrant Samuel Slater - having apprenticed as

66-637: A combined amount of more than 20 in (510 mm) of rain within a week. This led to the highest water mark on record for the Blackstone river in Woonsocket at 21.8 ft (6.6 m), a full 12.8 feet (3.9 m) above flood stage. The river, together with the Woonasquatucket River to the south, was designated an American Heritage River in 1998. Canal System : To further facilitate industrial growth and transportation in

99-523: A rough southeast course past Worcester City and Northbridge. It then flows through Millbury , Sutton , Grafton , Northbridge , Uxbridge , Millville , and Blackstone . It continues into Rhode Island, flowing past Woonsocket , Cumberland , Lincoln , Central Falls , and Pawtucket , where it then reaches Pawtucket Falls . Following this, the river becomes tidal and flows into the Seekonk River just north of Providence . Other tributaries join

132-571: A young man with industrialist Jedediah Strutt in Belper , England - arrived in Rhode Island with the desire to use English mill plans to build like mills in America. Slater - with capital provided by Moses Brown of Providence, Rhode Island - first produced a working set of machines necessary to spin cotton yarn using water power, with construction of the machines completed in 1793, with a working mill, dam, waterway and waterwheel. Manufacturing

165-833: The Conservation Law Foundation , citing this report, filed a lawsuit claiming that the discharge permit issued to the UBWPAD by the Environmental Protection Agency was not "sufficient to meet state water quality standards". River clean-up is ongoing and as of 2010, the Blackstone River was rated as the worst category ("impaired") for all assessed uses ("aquatic life", "fish consumption", "primary contact" (e.g. swimming), "secondary contact" (e.g. boating) and "aesthetics") up to its beginning at Middle River. Processing problems at

198-473: The Puritans in nearby Charlestown but the rockier highlands lacked easily tappable wells. Blaxton and Johnson were university contemporaries from Emmanuel College, Cambridge. In 1630 Blaxton wrote an historic letter to Johnson and his group that advertised Boston's excellent natural spring, and invited them to settle on his land, which they did on 7 September 1630. One of Johnson's last official acts as

231-525: The Woonsocket sewage treatment plant and the consequent flow of solid waste into the river prompted no-contact advisories for the Rhode Island portion of the river in 2022. William Blaxton William Blaxton (also spelled William Blackstone ; 1595 – 26 May 1675) was an early English settler in New England and the first European settler of Boston and Rhode Island . William Blaxton

264-723: The 1670s. Roger Williams and Blaxton disagreed on many theological matters, but they remained lifelong friends. Williams frequently invited him to preach in Providence, among other churches throughout Rhode Island. According to one modern journalist Blaxton "is considered to be the pioneer clergyman of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States ." At age 64, Blaxton married a widow named Sarah Fisher Stevenson in Boston on 4 July 1659. They had

297-412: The 18th century. Early industries discharged a variety of pollutants into the river, including dyes from textile mills , heavy metals and solvents from metal and woodworking industries. Metals are still being measured in sediments near and adjacent to the river. The inaugural celebration of Earth Day , in 1970, increased public support for remediation projects. While environmental activists in

330-490: The Blackstone River Valley were already organizing clean-up efforts locally, in 1971, a formalized plea for action was made to the then Governor of Rhode Island, Frank Licht . In December 1971, political support was pledged at the state level. The Blackstone River Watershed Association, which at the time was two years old, was designated to lead the effort. By April 1972, support among the public for cleaning

363-610: The Blackstone River is offensive throughout its course, from Worcester to the state line at Blackstone. The condition of the stream is likely to grow worse until effective measures are completed for removing from the river much of the pollution which it now receives." Recent pollution can be partially traced to the Upper Blackstone Water Pollution Abatement District (UBWPAD), the wastewater treatment plant for Worcester, Massachusetts and surrounding communities, which discharges into

SECTION 10

#1732771867217

396-801: The Blackstone along the way, such as the West River and Mumford River in Uxbridge , Massachusetts; and the Branch River , in North Smithfield, Rhode Island . Along with the Providence River , the Blackstone river served as the north-eastern border of Dutch claims for New Netherland from Adriaen Block 's charting of Narragansett Bay in 1614 through the Hartford Treaty of 1650. In 1790, Samuel Slater opened

429-426: The Blackstone caused extensive damage to Woonsocket, Rhode Island . Whereas the river is usually 70 ft (21 m) wide, it swelled to over 1 mi (1.6 km) in width. The flooding of the Blackstone was the result of a succession of dam breaks, which were caused by rainfall from Hurricane Connie and Hurricane Diane a week later. In some parts of Rhode Island and Massachusetts, these hurricanes resulted in

462-488: The Blackstone. A 2005 report written by the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management said, "... [the] UBWPAD, North Attleboro, and Attleboro WWTFs play a significant role in the ability to improve water quality in the Providence and Seekonk River system [into which the Blackstone discharges], and efforts to reduce their nitrogen inputs should be initiated as soon as possible." In September 2010,

495-608: The Peterson/Puritan Superfund Site Despite clean up efforts, the effects of industrial wastewater discharge into the river were long-lasting: in 1990, the United States Environmental Protection Agency called the Blackstone "the most polluted river in the country with respect to toxic sediments." A 1990 Massachusetts Department of Public Health report said of the river: "...that the condition of

528-514: The Slater Mill built in 1793 was six bays long and two stories tall. Several additions were made beginning in 1801, and a second added in 1835. Between 1869 and 1872, a large addition was made to the north end of the mill. Cotton spinning continued until 1895, after which the mill was used for various industrial purposes until 1923. The building had suffered numerous fires in the past, and two fires occurred in 1912 which precipitated awareness of

561-520: The Slater Mill site. The Slater Mill site now serves as a museum, educational center, and music venue, which "celebrates innovation and the entrepreneurial spirit by engaging audiences in relevant cultural, historic, and artistic endeavors". It includes five acres of land on both sides of the Blackstone River, a dam on the river, two historic mills (the Slater Mill and Wilkinson Mill), and the Sylvanus Brown House (built in 1758 but moved to

594-419: The building and the need for its preservation. In 1921, the non-profit Old Slater Mill Association was founded with the purpose of saving the historic Mill. Efforts to restore the mill began in 1923; modern additions to the structure were removed, restoring the mill to its 1835 appearance. In 1955, it opened as a museum. Restoration of the nearby Wilkinson Mill (built 1810–1811) was completed in 1978 as part of

627-489: The children, and publication of the images helped lead to the establishment of new laws created to help protect children. Slater’s hiring practices involving children and families established a pattern that was replicated throughout the Blackstone Valley known as the "Rhode Island System". The Rhode Island System was later eclipsed by Francis Cabot Lowell 's Waltham System . The mill and surrounding area were

660-573: The first successful water-powered cotton mill in America: Slater Mill , at Pawtucket Falls . This mill was powered by the waters of the Blackstone River. Many other mills appeared along the Blackstone River over time, making it a significant American industrial location and contributing to the river becoming the main cause of the Narragansett Bay pollution by the end of the 20th century. In August 1955, severe flooding on

693-492: The largest library in the colonies at the time, but his library and house were burned during King Philip's War around 1675. Blaxton's friends among the Indians included Narragansetts , Miantonomi , Canonchet , Wampanoag , sachems , Massasoit , and Metacomet . Metacomet was known to the colonists as King Philip, and it was his followers who later burned Blaxton's home to the ground during that sachem's eponymous war in

SECTION 20

#1732771867217

726-605: The leader of the Charlestown community before dying on 30 September 1630 was to name the new settlement across the river "Boston," after his hometown in Lincolnshire , from which he, his wife (namesake of the Arbella ) and John Cotton had emigrated to New England . Blaxton negotiated a grant of 50 acres (200,000 m ) for himself in the final paperwork, around 10% of the peninsula's total area. However by 1633

759-705: The major park in present-day downtown Boston . The Anglican Blaxton did not get along with the Puritan leaders of the Boston church and in 1635 he moved about 35 miles (56 km) south of Boston to what the Indians called the Pawtucket River and is today known as the Blackstone River in Cumberland, Rhode Island . He was the region's first European settler, one year before Roger Williams established Providence Plantations . The area that Blaxton settled

792-466: The new town's 4,000 citizens made retention of such a large parcel untenable and Blaxton sold all but six acres back to the Puritans in 1634 for £30 ($ 5,455 in adjusted USD). Governor Winthrop purchased the land through a one-time tax on Boston residents amounting to 6 shillings (around $ 50 adjusted) a head. This land became a town commons open to public grazing and now forms the bulk of Boston Common ,

825-568: The region, the Blackstone Canal was constructed in the early 19th century. The canal ran parallel to the river, providing a vital transportation route for goods between Worcester, Massachusetts, and Providence, Rhode Island. The Blackstone Canal played a significant role in the economic development of the region, allowing for the efficient movement of raw materials and finished products. The Blackstone River has been significantly impacted by industrial activities and resulting pollution since

858-679: The river increased. Additionally, the 1972 federal Clean Water Act (CWA) was passed by Congress , offering a framework for more protection of the water quality of The Blackstone River. While the CWA did not specifically mention The Blackstone River by name, it stated that the act "establishes the basic structure for regulating discharges of pollutants into the waters of the United States and regulating quality standards for surface waters." In 1983, EPA identified concerns with impairment of water quality in The Blackstone River and established

891-644: The river is named after William Blackstone (original spelling William Blaxton ), who arrived in Weymouth, Massachusetts in 1623 and became the first European settler of present-day Boston in 1625. He relocated to Rhode Island in 1635 and built his home on the river, in what would become Cumberland . The river is formed in South-central Worcester, Massachusetts , by the confluence of the Middle River and Mill Brook. From there, it follows

924-604: The ship Katherine, as a chaplain in the subsequent expedition of Robert Gorges . By 1625 all of his fellow travelers had returned to England and Blaxton moved five miles north to a 1 mi rocky bulge at the end of a swampy isthmus, surrounded on all sides by mudflats. Blaxton became the first colonist to settle in what would become Boston , living on the Western end of the Shawmut Peninsula by himself for more than five years. In 1629, Isaac Johnson landed with

957-589: The site in the 1960s). The Slater Mill and other key buildings that are part of the Old Slater Mill Historic District were acquired by the National Park Service in 2021. Blackstone River The original Native American name for the river was the "Kittacuck" which meant "the great tidal river ." The "Kittacuck" used to be plentiful with salmon and lamprey in pre-colonial and colonial times. In English,

990-526: The site of early labor resistance, including the first factory strike in the United States, which was led by young women workers in 1824. Slater Mill was added to the National Register of Historic Places and designated a National Historic Landmark on November 13, 1966, the first property to be listed on the register. In December 2014, the mill was added to the newly formed Blackstone River Valley National Historical Park . The original portion of

1023-494: Was based on the Arkwright cotton spinning system, which included carding, drawing, and spinning machines. While celebrated as bringing upon the Industrial Revolution with the establishment of the first successful textile mill in the nation, Slater’s initial employment of young children ages 7-13 also brought the mill notoriety. Renowned photographer Lewis Hines documented the extremely harsh working conditions for

Slater Mill - Misplaced Pages Continue

1056-571: Was born in Horncastle , Lincolnshire , England. He was admitted to Emmanuel College, Cambridge as a sizar in 1614 and received an MA in 1621. He was ordained as a priest of the Church of England in May 1619 by Thomas Dove , Bishop of Peterborough. Blaxton joined the failed Ferdinando Gorges expedition to America in 1623. He eventually arrived in Weymouth, Massachusetts later in 1623 on

1089-586: Was part of the Plymouth Colony until 1691, when it came under the jurisdiction of Massachusetts Bay Colony until 1741; it finally became part of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations . He tended cattle, planted gardens, and cultivated an apple orchard, and he cultivated the first variety of American apples, the Yellow Sweeting. He called his home "Study Hill" and was said to have

#216783