History of spool mills topic at Hebron Historical Society meeting

HEBRON – Historian and author Peter Stowell of West Gardiner recently spoke to the Hebron Historical Society on the history of spool mills in the state of Maine.

Beginning with the Kashmir shawl, which was very expensive to produce, the Jacquard loom was invented in 1804 and thus made shawls cheaper to manufacture. The Paisley shawl became popular after this because of cheaper production costs. Later, James Clark of Scotland wound thread on a lathe-made spool and along with cheaper labor the spool industry was born. Buyers would pay a small deposit for each spool and production became very lucrative.
Because of the availability of suitable wood, Clark came to America and set up a factory in Newark N.J. White Birch became the wood of choice; it was plentiful, clean, workable and resisted staining. Initially much of the wood was shipped there from Maine. factories were built here. The first records suggest factories were built here in 1848 in what was identified as “Berrysville,” near Lewiston. From then until 1975, there were a total of 151 mills throughout the state. Records reveal the existence of 53 mills in Oxford County alone, including one on Ben Stone road in Hebron.
The next society meeting will feature Maine mystery writer William Andrews on “Historical Societies – Great Places for Murder.” The meeting will be held Tuesday, May 28, beginning at 7 p.m. at the Town Office, 351 Paris Road. The public is invited.