Settlement that developed around one or more mills or factories
A mill town , also known as factory town or mill village , is typically a settlement that developed around one or more mills or factories, often cotton mills or factories producing textiles.
Europe
Italy
Crespi d'Adda (Italy)
Poland
Żyrardów – winter panorama of main square
Żyrardów
The town grew out of a textile factory founded in 1833 by the sons of Feliks Lubienski , who owned the land where it was built. They brought in a specialist from France and his newly designed machines. He was French inventor, Philippe de Girard from Lourmarin . He became a director of the firm.[5] textile mill town in Poland .
In honour of Girard, 'Ruda Guzowska' as the original estate was called, was renamed Żyrardów , a toponym derived of the polonised spelling of Girard's name.
Most of Żyrardów's monuments are located in the manufacturing area which dates from the 19th and early 20th centuries. It is widely believed that Żyrardów's textile settlement is the only entire urban industrial complex from the 19th-century to be preserved in Europe.
Russian Empire
United Kingdom
East Mill in Derbyshire, UK In the United Kingdom, the term "mill town" usually refers to the 19th-century textile manufacturing towns of northern England and the Scottish Lowlands , particularly those in Lancashire (cotton) and Yorkshire (wool ).
Some former mill towns have a symbol of the textile industry in their town badge. Some towns may have statues dedicated to textile workers (e.g. Colne [6] Ossett School ).
County
Towns
Cheshire mill towns
Congleton , Crewe , Macclesfield
Derbyshire mill towns
Glossop , Hadfield , New Mills
Greater Manchester mill towns
Ashton-under-Lyne , Bolton , Bury , Chadderton , Failsworth , Heywood , Hyde , Lees , Leigh , Manchester, Middleton , Oldham , Radcliffe , Ramsbottom , Reddish , Rochdale , Royton , Shaw and Crompton , Stalybridge , Stockport , Wigan
Lancashire mill towns
Accrington , Bacup , Barnoldswick , Blackburn , Burnley , Calder Vale , Chorley , Colne , Darwen , Nelson , Oakenclough , Padiham , Preston for others see table below.
Yorkshire mill towns
Batley , Bingley , Bradford , Brighouse , Cleckheaton , Dewsbury , Elland , Halifax , Hebden Bridge , Heckmondwike , Holmfirth , Huddersfield , Keighley , Morley , Mytholmroyd , Ossett , Pudsey , Shipley , Skipton , Sowerby Bridge , Todmorden , Yeadon
The list above includes some towns where textiles was not the predominant industry. For example, mining was a key industry in Wigan and Leigh in Greater Manchester, and in Ossett in Yorkshire.
Spindleage of some large mill towns in and around Greater Manchester[notes 1]
Date
1883
1893
1903
1913
1923
1926
1933
1944
1953
1962
Accrington 590
438
467
660
191
718
469
287
152
92
Ashton 1,574
1,731
1,781
1,955
1898
1,144
644
633
182
Blackburn 1,671
1,398
1,321
1,280
1,224
1,071
672
451
309
103
Bolton 4,086
4,770
5,457
6,797
7,371
7,842
7,507
6,204
4,886
1,772
Burnley 1,126
734
667
563
538
507
240
182
144
14
Bury 875
899
833
955
1050
1000
745
630
524
268
Chorley 552
527
541
856
838
837
739
491
397
122
Farnworth 557
779
966
1,485
1,478
1,484
1,344
1,237
1,104
162
Glossop 1,106
1,158
968
882
821
839
524
204
154
10
Heywood 660
887
836
1,070
1,100
1,096
864
545
533
68
Hyde 590
499
533
741
793
696
475
366
337
58
Leigh 1,337
1,514
1,679
2,445
2,761
2,925
2,891
2,615
2,336
548
Manchester 2,445
2,353,
2,225
3,703
3,307
3,439
3,417
2,974
1,934
271
Middleton 498
494
645
1,278
1,268
1,252
1,041
1,193
923
161
Mossley 1,153
1,217
1,033
1,288
1,297
1,289
371
264
256
-
Oldham 9,311
11,159
12,230
16,909
17,231
17,669
13,732
8,948
7,621
2,478
Preston 2,146
1,883
2,074
2,161
1,997
1,965
1,592
1,146
1,024
278
Rochdale 1,627
1,835
2,422
3,645
3,749
3,793
3,539
2,459
1,936
983
Stalybridge 1,083
1,157
1,027
1,236
1,104
1,103
801
483
426
122
Stockport 1,601
1,742
1,568
2,266
2,382
1,924
1,427
1,141
154
Wigan 864
775
888
1,085
1,123
1,141
922
681
575
352
In thousands of spindles.
[7] On his tour of northern England in 1849, Scottish publisher Angus Reach said:
In general, these towns wear a monotonous sameness of aspect, physical and moral ... In fact, the social condition of the different town populations is almost as much alike as the material appearance of the tall chimneys under which they live. Here and there the height of the latter may differ by a few rounds of brick, but in all essential respects, a description of one is a description of all.[8]
North America
United States
New England and Northeast
Peabody, Massachusetts A. C. Lawrence Leather Co. a factory town c. 1910 .[9] [10] The Androscoggin River at Berlin, New Hampshire Beginning with Samuel Slater and technological information smuggled out of England by Francis Cabot Lowell , large mills were established in New England in the early to mid-19th century. Mill towns, sometimes planned, built and owned as a company town , grew in the shadow of the industries. The region became a manufacturing powerhouse along rivers like the Housatonic , Quinebaug , Shetucket , Blackstone , Merrimack , Nashua , Cocheco , Saco , Androscoggin , Kennebec or Winooski .
In the 20th century, alternatives to water power were developed, and it became more profitable for companies to manufacture textiles in southern states where cotton was grown and winters did not require significant heating costs. Finally, the Great Depression acted as a catalyst that sent several struggling New England firms into bankruptcy.
State
Towns
Connecticut mill towns
Bridgeport , Danbury , East Windsor , Enfield , Glastonbury , Hartford , Killingly , Madison , Manchester , Middletown , Naugatuck , New Haven , New London , Norwich , Putnam , Sandy Hook , Seymour , Shelton , Torrington , Vernon , Waterbury , Willimantic , Winchester , Windham , Windsor Locks
Maine mill towns
Anson , Auburn , Augusta , Baileyville , Biddeford , Brunswick , Chisholm , Corinna , Lewiston , Lincoln , Lisbon Falls , Livermore Falls , Millinocket , Milo , Newport , Old Town , Orono , Pittsfield , Portland , Rumford , Saco , Sanford , Skowhegan , Waterville , Westbrook , Wilton
Massachusetts mill towns
Adams , Amesbury , Athol , Attleboro , Boston , Chicopee , Clinton , Dalton , Fall River , Fitchburg , Framingham , Gardner , Grafton , Greenfield , Haverhill , Holyoke , Hudson , Lawrence , Lowell , Ludlow , Lynn , Maynard , Medford Merrimac , Methuen , Milford , Millbury , Monson , New Bedford , North Adams , North Andover , Northbridge , Orange , Palmer , Peabody , Pittsfield , Rowley , Russell , Southbridge , Springfield , Taunton , Uxbridge , Waltham , Ware , Webster , Westborough , Winchendon , Worcester
New Hampshire mill towns
Belmont , Berlin , Claremont , Concord , Dover , East Rochester , Franklin , Gonic , Gorham , Greenville , Groveton , Harrisville , Jaffrey , Keene , Laconia , Lancaster , Lebanon , Lincoln , Manchester , Milford , Milton , Nashua , Newmarket , Newport , Penacook , Pittsfield , Rochester , Rollinsford , Somersworth , Suncook , Tilton , Troy , Wilton
New Jersey mill towns
Allaire , Allentown , Bernards , Boonton , Chester , Clinton , Cranbury , Cranford , Dover , Eatontown , Elizabeth , Freehold , Frenchtown , Griggstown , Helmetta , Hillsborough , Imlaystown , Jamesburg , Kearny , Keyport , Kingston , Little Falls , Manville , Medford , Millhurst , Milltown , Millville , New Brunswick , Newark , Orange , Paterson , Perth Amboy , Plainfield , Prallsville , Rahway , Raritan , Roselle Park , Smithville , South Brunswick , Stillwater , Tinton Falls , Trenton , Walnford , Wharton , Woodbridge
New York mill towns
Albany , Amsterdam , Aurora-on-Cayuga , Belmont , Bloomvale , Clinton , Corning , Gardiner , Ithaca , Kingston , Little Falls , Marlboro , Mechanicville , Middletown , Montgomery , New Berlin , New York Mills , Newburgh , Newcomb , Niles , Philmont , Poughkeepsie , Rochester , Rome , Roslyn , Saddle Rock , Schenectady , Schuylerville , Sleepy Hollow , Stony Brook , Sunset Park , Troy , Utica , Victory , Water Mill
Rhode Island mill towns
Bristol , Burrillville , Central Falls , Coventry , Cumberland , Lincoln , Pawtucket , Providence , Slatersville , Valley Falls , West Warwick , Westerly , Woonsocket
Vermont mill towns
Bellows Falls , Bethel , Brattleboro , Bridgewater , Burlington , Ludlow , Newport , Springfield , Vergennes , Winooski
Assawaga Mill, Dayville, CT, in 1909
American Thread Co. Mill, Willimantic, CT, c. 1910
Hollingsworth & Whitney Paper Mill, Waterville, ME, c. 1920
Cumberland Mills, Westbrook, ME, c. 1902
Mill Street, Attleboro, MA, in 1908
Arlington Mills, Lawrence, MA, in 1907
Merrimack Falls, Lawrence, MA, c. 1905
Amoskeag Mills, Manchester, NH, c. 1912
Jackson Mills, Nashua, NH, in 1907
Alice Mills, Woonsocket, RI, in 1911
Colchester Mills, Winooski, VT, in 1907
Midwest
State
Towns
Wisconsin mill towns
Biron (Biron Mill)
South
State
Towns
Alabama mill towns
Fairfax (Fairfax Mill and Fair View Mill), Lanett (Lanett Mill), Langdale (Langdale Mill), Sylacauga (Avondale Mill), Opelika (Opelika Mill), River View (Riverdale Mill), Shawmut (Shawmut Mill), Valley (Carter/Lanier Mill)
Arkansas mill towns
Amity , Beirne , Calion , Crossett , Delight , Dierks , Glenwood , Jones Mill , Malvern , Mountain Pine
Georgia mill towns
Bibb City , Cabbagetown , Chicopee , Hogansville , New Holland , New Manchester
Maryland mill towns
Ellicott City , Jerusalem , Oella , Owings Mills , Savage
North Carolina mill towns
Alamance , Altamahaw , Bellemont , Burlington , Bynum , Canton , Caroleen , Carolina , Carrboro , Cliffside , Coleridge , Concord , Cooleemee , Cramerton , Drexel , Eden , Edgemont (East Durham) , Enka , Falls , Franklinville , Glen Raven , Glencoe , Hanes , Haw River , Henrietta , High Falls , High Shoals , Hildebran , Hope Mills , Kannapolis , Long Shoals, Mayodan , McAdenville , Mooresville , Mount Holly , Oakdale , Rhodhiss , Riegelwood , Roanoke Rapids , Sawmills , Saxapahaw , Spencer Mountain , Swepsonville , West Durham , West Hillsborough
South Carolina mill towns
Cateechee , Central , Cherokee Falls , Columbia (Olympia and Granby Mills), Fort Mill , Graniteville , Great Falls , Inman , Joanna , La France , Lockhart , Lyman , Newry , Pacolet Mills , Pelzer , Piedmont , Slater , Startex, Ware Shoals , Watts Mills , Whitmire
Model Mill Settlement, Chadwick Mills, Charlotte, N.C. Published c. 1905–1915
White Oak Cotton Mills, Greensboro, N.C. c. 1914
Aerial view of Ware Shoals Mill
Sawmill towns
