Nomination for Otis Company Mill No. 1

From the form

The catalogue entry the section above was filed under.

FHR-8-300 (11-78) United States Department of the Interior Heritage Conservation and Recreation Service National Register of Historic Places Inventory - Nomination Form See instructions in How to Complete National Register Forms Type all entries-complete applicable sections 1. Name For HCRS use only received MAR 18 1982 date entered MAY 2 1982 historic Otis Company Mill #1 and/or common 2. Location The Old Stone Mill street & number city, town Egst Main Street' Ware N/A not for publication N/A vicinity of Massachusetts state 3. Classification Category Ownership district public X building(s) X private structure _ both site Public Acquisition object in process being considered code.

025 congressional district county Hampshire First code 015 Status X occupied unoccupied work in progress Accessible - yes: restricted yes: unrestricted X no Present Use -agriculture X commercial educational entertainment government - industrial military museum park private residence - religious scientific transportation .other: 4. Owner of Property name American Garter Company street & number East Main Street city, town Ware N/A vicinity of 5. Location of Legal Description state Massachusetts 01082 courthouse, registry of deeds, etc. street & number Hampshire County Register of Deeds 33 King Street city, town Northampton 6. Representation in Existing Surveys state MA 01060 title Inventory of the Historic Assets of the Commonwealth date 1970 depository for survey records has this property been determined elegible?

- yes -x no federal X state county _ local Massachusetts Historical Commission city, town Boston state Massachusetts 7. Description Condition - excellent - good fair deteriorated Check one X altered Check one X original site moved date unexposed Describe the present and original (if known) physical appearance

Description of the property

The Old Stone Mill (Otis Company Mill #1) is a five story granite structure which sits amidst a cluster of nineteenth century red brick textile mills. It faces East Main Street to the north and abuts the Ware River along the building's entire southern facade. Due to a difference in ground elevation, only four of the five stories are visible from the street (north) side. The building's design clearly reflects its intended industrial function as well as mid- nineteenth century building technology. The original building is a 48' wide x 200' long rectangle with load bearing walls. Cast iron tie rods which were used to stabilize major interior floor beams form a linear pattern on the exterior wall surface. Numerous 6'x3' Hhon song the noren ste o the buiftin, fr m aiy vertica a me u tne origtcal Locally quarried granite is the primary building material.

The fieldstone foundation is veneered with coursed granite ashlar; the load bearing walls are made of thick granite blocks as is the five story north stair tower; the window lintels and sills are also of granite. The building's lines, proportions, monumental scale, massive cut stone walls, regularly spaced large paned six over six double hung windows, pitched roof, and the granite returns at the gable ends reflect the Greek Revival style which was very popular in Ware at the time of the building's construction in 1845. The date "1845"' is chiseled into a stone above the entrance of the main stair tower on the north side and is corraborated by docu- mentary evidence. There have been a number of additions to the original building. The two story granite annex on the west end apparently dates to 1854. It projects 20' from the main building and is 36' wide.

The scale, building materials, and window alignment complement the main structure. The windows are also 6' high and 3' wide, yet are 12 over 12 instead of 6 over 6. The brick enclosed staircase which rises atop of this annex dates to the revised fire code of 1943, as does the enclosed fire escape at the opposite end of the building. wooden meetinghouse type belfry was removed from atop the main stairtower sometime prior to 1940. Old photographs reveal it to have been decorated with ornamental pilasters and pediments of the Greek Revival style. The one story wooden loading dock (c.1945) situated immediately west of the main stairtower appears to be a rather temporary structure. The five and a half story red brick tower on the south side was built to its present dimensions (20'x20') sometime between 1878 and 1886.

The scale, the materials, and the 12 over 12 segmentally arched windows also complement the main structure quite nicely. sometime before 1875. story of the annex, and possibly the present first floor as well, date to c.1878-86. The granite ashlar walls, modest scale, and fenestration of the same regular spacing also complement the main building. This annex was extended easterly another 36' sometime be- tween 1886 and 1896. However, the river's proximity at this place prompted the company to have this addition turned northerly approximately ten degrees in relation to the rest of the building. The materials, scale and windows match those of the east annex precisely.

FHR-8-300 (11-78) United States Department of the Interior Heritage Conservation and Recreation Service National Register of Historic Places Inventory - Nomination Form For HCRS use only received MAR 18 1982 date entered Continuation sheet Item number 7 MAY 2 Page 1 1982 A one story brick addition (23' x 17') was built adjacent to the southeast corner of the main building between 1878 and 1886. The bricks and windows match those of the south another brick addition (23' wide, two stories high) extended this last mentionec addition 55' along the south side of the east annex sometime between 1886 and 1896. chronology of construction along this section of the mill may be deciphered by noting the slight color ditterentiation of the bricks which comprise its south wall. (See enclosed photo).

The entire east annex, along with its southern addition, was expanded considerably by the construction of a third story sometime between 1888 and 1906. The walls are of red brick and the windows are larger (4'5" x 8'4"). With the exception of a few modest sized offices at the northeast part of the second, third, and fourth floors, the interior of the building is wide open shop space and par- tition free. Walls are plaster covered, much of it undoubtedly original. Wooden support columns, spaced at six foot intervals are found on every floor except the fifth. The Strip fluorescent lighting is found throughout, Steam heating pipes (connected with a plant across the river) Toilet facilities on every floor, and a 6' x 6' freight elevator are situated in the south tower directly opposite the main stairtower.

From the form

The catalogue entry the section above was filed under.

Significance Period prehistoric 1400-1499 1500-1599 1600-1699 1700-1799 1800-1899 x 1900- Areas of Significance - Check and justify below archeology-prehistoric archeology-historic X community plannin conservatior agriculture X economics X architecture education art X engineering X commerce &exploration/settlement communications industry invention landscape architecture & religion law science literature military music philosophy - politics/government humanitarian - ther (spetioy Specific dates 1845 Statement of Significance

Statement of significance

(in one paragraph) Builder/Architect probably Joseph Brown The Otis Mill possesses integrity of location, design, setting, materials, and workman- Architecturally, this building is an outstanding example of an early 19th century textile mill of the Rhode Island type and so meets criterion C. This type of mill was modeled rather closely after its late 18th century English counterpart. As New England's fledgling textile industry of that era played a vanguard role in transforming the U.S. into an industrial nation, the significance of this type of mill can hardly be understated. Otis Mill #1 is one of the last remaining granite textile mills of this early (pre-turbine) period in western Massachusetts.1 For all of these reasons the Otis Mill also meets criterion A. The only other survivors are Thorndike #1 and #2 in Palmer.

The Thorndike mills have been severely altered; a story added, roofs flattened (not uncommon), most windows replaced with cinderblocks, and prolonged neglect has run its ugly course. The exceptional condition of Otis Mill #1 further enhances its significance. n a local level, Otis Mill #1 is significant in a number of areas. The mills determined the site of Ware's major settlement, and even its layout to an extent, for the company originally owned most of the village. The mills were the keystone upon which the local economy rested. Ware's fortunes rose and fell with those of the Otis Company.

mill workers were originally paid only twice a year (in credit redeemable at the Company Store), said mhg mel witn thoe ot cor ueanice ar the conpaly store enjoyed a uniquely advantageous position in the world company likewise played a major role in town politics, education, housing, religion, and even recreation. Otis was the largest of Ware's three textile manufartures and Mill 1 is the oldest surviving structure in the former Otis industrial complex, and the only one which predates the first wave of foreign immigrants. The The original waterworks of Mill #1 were dug during the 1820's at great expense by one of the Otis Company's predecessors, the Ware (Textile) Manufacturing Co. The latter company, a creation of Boston based speculators, caused the initial rapid industrialization of this isolated rural town. Work was supervised by the company's only non-absentee director, one S.V.S.

Wilder, who provided the land, and half the building funds for the nearby Congre- rational Church. The expense of the waterworks excavation, however, caused the company's bankruptcy. Wilder's company was succeeded in 1829 by the Hampshire Manufacturing Company, which went under in the Panic of 1837. The organization of the Otis Company in 1839, again by Boston based speculators, had a lasting impact on the town of Ware. From its inception, Ware had been an agriculturally based community. However, in the 1820's industrial activity spurred an initial migration of industrial laborers to Ware. change in the makeup of the population and work force was solidified with the massive ex- pansion of the Otis Company in 1845.

The transformation was given further impetus in 1847 when the seat of town government was officially shifted from Ware Center, which was the geographic center of town, to its present site which is adjacent to the mills near the south- east corner of town. The change was culturally reflected in the new churches which were 9.

The rest of the file

Bibliography, boundary description, and the people who prepared and reviewed the nomination.

Major Bibliographical References Chase, Arthur, History of Ware, MA. (Cambridge: The University Press, 1911) Conkey, John and Dorothy, History of Ware 1911-1960, (Barre, MA: Baree Gazette, 1961) Historical Collections of the Young Men's Library Association, Ware, MA. Photographic Archives of the Merrimack Valley Textile Museum, N.Andover The Arthur T Safford Papers, on file at Baker Lihrary, Harvard Iniversity MA 10. Geographical Data ACREAGE NOT VERIFIED Acreage of nominated property - 1.02 Quadrangle name Ware Quadrangle scale 1:25000 UMT References ^L118/LZ|217/71610 L416|811191610 TM NOT VERLEKD Easting Northing Zone CLL EL LLILIL Easting Northing LILLL HL Verbal boundary description and justification The Ware River runs along this property's southern boundary, and East Main Street along its northern line. Nenameseck Industrial Properties, Inc. abuts to the east and west.

(See enclosed map) The subject property is delineated as "Parcel sseor adustet prepopertle , mee. ont August"20,, Inc. Of Northampt Hampshire for Nenam- and counties for properties overlapping state or county boundaries (see continuation sheet) state code county code state code county code 11. Form Prepared By Candace Jenkins, Registration Director name/title Edward Halligan, Preservation Planner with Thomas J. Morgan and Antoinette Tomasik organization Massachusetts Historical Conmission date December 1980 street & number 294 Washington Street telephone (617) 727-8470 city or town Boston, Massachusetts state 12.

State Historic Preservation Officer Certification The evaluated significance of this property within the state is: _ national _ state local As the designated State Historic Preservation Officer for the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 (Public Law 89 665), I hereby nominate this property for inclusion in the National Register and certify that it has been evaluated according to the criteria and procedures set forth by the Heritage Conservation and Recreation Service. State Historic Preservation Officer signature Paluua h Woslanki title Executive Director, Massachusetts Historical Commission date 2/25/82 For HCRS use only I hereby certify that this property is included in the National Register Bnc.

Keeper ofythe National I Attest: atriek Anduus Chief of Registration date 5/2/82 dano 4/26/92 GP O 938 835 FHR-8-300 (11-78) United States Department of the Interior Heritage Conservation and Recreation Service National Register of Historic Places Inventory - Nomination Form For HCRS use only received MAR 18 1982 date entered Continuation sheet Item number 8 Page 1 built to serve the new immigrant laborers. Ihe technology employed by the Utis Comany in 1845 determined the size, Shape,and layout of this building. Mill #l was designed to accommodate a modified version of the English Arkwright processes. As New England's factories of 1845 relied on whale oil and sunlight tor lighting, prodigious use of windows and the long, narrow, multi-storied design maxi- mized the potential number of machines which could be placed near windows.

This narrow design likewise minimized the excavation costs of the foundation which was necessarily deep in order to withstand machine vibrations and occasional floodwaters. The building's narrowness also reduced roofing costs and contributed to the floor strength. A stair- tower separate from the shop floor freed more space for machines and offered some degree of protection and escape in case of fire. The Otis Company bell, housed atop the stair- tower, helped to regulate employee lives. All of the above features together comprise the archetypal early stone mill of southeastern New England. Very soon after the construction of Otis #l, the vastly improved turbine of Francis and Boyden and newly discovered means of transmitting power efficiently over longer distances rendered breast wheels obsolete.

New England began converting to hydraulic turbines, Following Lowell's lead in 1846, textile mills througnout which permitted mills of far greater size and complexity. lfter World War I, the workers of Ware found it increasingly difficult to compete against the cheap, non-union labor of the southern states. In 1926, for example, due to high labor costs and high taxes, the Otis Company threatened to move out of town. To try to accomodate Otis, property taxes were immediately reduced from $85,000 to $35,000 and employee wages were slashed 10%. The $410,405 profit realized by Otis' absentee ownership over the following eight months was little consolation to the people of Ware.3 Indeed, the contin- ued reluctance, in after 1900, of Otis Company directors to re-invest a portion of the profits modernization merely served to accelerate the company's decline.

In the end (1937), Otis operations went the way of those of countless other New England textile manufactures: South. FOOTNOTES 1) Conclusion arrived at by consulting Massachusetts Historical Commission files and local historians in every western Massachusetts town in which a textile manufacturer was incorporated prior to 1850. For listing, see Appendix A of Caroline Ware's The Early New England Cotton Manufacture, A Study in Industrial Beginnings, Cambridge: Riverside Press, 1931). 2) Mill #l's present turbine, installed by the Holyoke Machine Company In 1898, apparently replaced by a verticle shaft Boyden/Fourneyron of 1850's vintage. See "Hercules Turbine Catalogue of the Holyoke Machine Co." (1876 and 1895 editions on file at the Holyoke Machine Co., Main Street, Holyoke, MA. 3) Papers of Arthur T.

Safford, Baker Library, Harvard University FHR-8-300 (11-78) United States Department of the Interior Heritage Conservation and Recreation Service National Register of Historic Places Inventory - Nomination Form Continuation sheet Item number 10 County Registry of Deeds, Northampton, MA. For HCRS use only received MAR 18 1982 date entered Page Sketch map of the former Otis Company's Mill #1, showing present property lines, building dimensions, and dates of various additions N 1" = 50' 1:600 -130' owned by Nenameseck Industrial Properties, Inc. East Main Street (Routes 9 & 32) former Otis Co. Mill #3 (1856) Lower Dam (1861) WARE RIVER -West annex (c.1854) owned by Nenameseck Industrial Properties, Inc. original section of Mill #1 (1845) Main+ stairtower 18 * 15 former Otis Co.

Repair Shop (1879) 200- × 48° +194 South tower (c.1880) A+Site of original breast whee1(s _c.1880 1 *Site of former 36" turbine -Site of 39" -East turbin ^.annex (1860-86) (c.1890) 35+20 80'x 42' 44' x 36! (c.1890), / Power House indicate the subject property's 1.02 acre parcel SdN:1 2 NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES substantive EVALUATION / RETÜRN SHEET Property:- Sts Company mill #1 State, County:_ Federal Agency: MA, Hampshire resubmission nomination by person or local government owner objection appeal Substantive Review: - sample Reviewer's comments: United States Department of the interior National Park Service Working No.. 3.18.82.815 Fed. Reg. Date: Date Due: TT.S/52 -5/2/82 Action: Y ACCEPT_ 5/2/82 RETURN REJECT photos maps - request - appeal - NR decision Recom.

/Crtteria Aueft, - A4 C Reviewer Matuch Andius Discipline tistorian Date - 4726/82 - see continuation sheet -Nomination returned for: - technical corrections cited below _substantive reasons discussed below V 1. Name / 2. Location X3. Classification Catogory Pumership Xmadlic Acqudeltion /4. Owner of Property Btatus Aocosslble Prosent Use V 5. Location of Legal Description 6. Representation in Existing Surveys has thle property beon determined eligibte? yes - no 7. Description Conditior _ excelient good fair deteriorated ruins - unexposed Chock ene unaltered - - altered Check one original site - moved date the eont and eriginal (Il known) phrysical appoerance summary paragraph completeness clarity alterations/integrity dates boundary selection 8.

Significance Ported ocific datee ad justify boler Bullder Architeet nt el Bignitleaneo (in ene paragras summary paragraph completeness clarity applicable criteria justification of areas checked relating significance to the resource context relation ship of integrity to significance justification of exception other Major Bibliographical References 10. Geographical Data Acreage of nominated property - Quedrangle neme - UMT Reterences Verbel boundery doscription and jstification 1. Form Prepared By 12. State Historic Preservation Officer Certification The eveluated significance of thie property within the state is: - national - state - local Blate Historic Preservation Officer signature 13. Other Maps Photographs Other Questions concerning this nomination may be directed to.

Signed - Date - Phone: 202 272 -3504 Comments for any item may be continued on an attached sheet Otis Company Mill #1 Ware, MA Thomas J. Morgan 1980 25 Pleasant St., Northampton, MA Southern facade rn facade of the Otis Co. Mill #1, Massachusetts #1