- The Cocheco Manufacturing Company had the largest overshot flywheel in the world. It powered the looms and shuttles inside the long five- and six-story building.
- It was the scene of the first all-women’s strike in U.S. back in 1828.
- The mills once had 1,200 workers.
- There were more than 100 company-owned boarding houses.
- The town itself wrapped around the mills rather than to one side.
- Less than half of the mill complex remains.
- The printworks produced 1,000 new patterns a year.
- Mill workers received free milk from the company’s herd on Milk Street. Urine from the cows was essential as the fix (stabilizer) for dyes in the fabrics.
- Calico, sateen, velvet, and seersucker were the principal textiles produced.
- Fire was a constant threat, on occasion erupting spectacularly.
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Published by Jnana Hodson
In downsizing to a remote fishing village in Downeast Maine, this eclectic writer feels everything's coming together.
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