Bernat Mill
The Bernat Mill, also known as Capron Mill, and later Bachman Uxbridge Worsted Company, was an American yarn mill in Uxbridge, Massachusetts, that was for the most part destroyed by fire on July 21, 2007.
This mill complex at Uxbridge had been a hub of manufacturing for Bernat, once based in
"Bernat" is a trademark of an existing company which manufactures yarn products.[1]
History
The original mill, the Capron Mill, was built in 1820, by John Capron, the father of Colonel John Capron and anti-slavery champion Effingham Capron on the Mumford River at Uxbridge Center.[2][3] The first power looms for woolens were introduced at the Capron Mills.[4] These were made in a machine shop at Cumberland, Rhode Island.[4] These were reportedly the first power looms ever made for woolens in the U.S.[4] The first manufacture of "satinet" was at this mill. Uxbridge became famous for its Cashmere wool. The period of the Capron Mill, and later as the Bachman Uxbridge Worsted Company was famous for manufacture of clothing and the manufacture of military uniforms for the United States.
The Bachman Uxbridge Worsted Company
The mill was featured in the August 24, 1953, edition of
The first woolen mill in the
Research into textiles at Bachman Uxbridge Worsted Company produced a range of blended fabrics, including the "wool-nylon serge" used for army uniforms. The original
"In January 1948 President Truman approved authorization of the proposed new blue Air Force uniform and a week after that Air Force Chief of Staff Hoyt Vandenberg officially circulated word that funding had been approved by the congressional appropriations committee. The new uniform, incorporating a shade of blue fabric (patented as 'Uxbridge Blue' and based on 'Uxbridge 1683 Blue, cable shade 84', developed at the former Bachman-Uxbridge Worsted Company) would be available for distribution by September 1950".[7] Shortly thereafter, on March 29, 1954, Time magazine reported: "American Woolen Co. will ask its stockholders to approve a merger with Bachmann Uxbridge Worsted Corp. As a combined operation, troubled American Woolen (1953 sales, $73,494,160; net loss, $9,476,981) and Bachmann Uxbridge (1953 sales, $52,609,000; profit, $272,000) would be by far the biggest woolen manufacturer in the country. Textron, Inc., which wants American Woolen to merge with it, and claims to own almost 4% of American Woolen's stock, plans to fight the merger".[8][9]
The merger of American Woolen and Bachman Uxbridge was however blocked by Textron, which emerged in the 1960s as a Providence, Rhode Island, based conglomerate. This was Bachman Uxbridge's last bid to be the largest woolen company in America.[10] By 1964 the assets of Bachman Uxbridge were sold to Bernat Yarn of Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts.
2007 fire
Early, on the Saturday morning of July 21, 2007, a fire erupted at the historic mill, devastating the complex on Mendon and Depot Street. 600 firefighters from 66 communities battled the blaze, but the complex was nearly totally destroyed. It took three days to extinguish the flames fully. At the time of the fire, the 400,000 square feet (37,000 m2) structure, had ceased operating as a mill and had been converted into space containing 65 small businesses.[11] The business losses following the fire were estimated in the millions of dollars and between 300-500 people lost their jobs.[citation needed]
Fire cause and aftermath
The fire marshall's report concluded that there was unpermitted welding occurring in a mill business, the sprinkler was not operable, and that both contributed to the fire.[12] Mill owners planned to rebuild.[12] The two-state
See also
Notes
- ^ Bernat.com
- ^ a b "Walking tours - Uxbridge". Blackstone Daily. Archived from the original on 2016-03-03. Retrieved 2007-09-23.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - ^ Chapin, Judge Henry (1881). Address Delivered at the Unitarian Church in Uxbridge, 1864. Worcester, MA: Press of C. Hamilton. pp. 165.
address delivered at unitarian church chapin henry first woman voter.
- ^ a b c "MHC Reconnaissance Survey Town Report: Uxbridge; Report Date: 1984 Associated Regional Report: Central Massachusetts;" (PDF). Massachusetts Historical Commission. 1984. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-12-02. Retrieved 2007-11-20.
- ^ a b "The Pride of Uxbridge". Time. August 24, 1953. Archived from the original on December 22, 2008. Retrieved September 24, 2007.
- ^ "Getting the Blues, by Tech. Sgt. Pat McKenna". Air Force Link. Archived from the original on 2007-02-02. Retrieved 2007-09-24.
- ^ Of Uniform Concern: A Casual History of the USAF 'Blue Suit' By Kalikiano Kalei
- ^ "Time Clock". Time.
- ^ Three Portraits of the Root Family, by Ellery Hall
- ISBN 9781893122475. Retrieved 2012-10-30.
- ^ John Guilfoil (July 22, 2007). "Fire ravages old Uxbridge mill". The Boston Globe. Retrieved 2007-09-24.
- ^ a b "Mill Owners Hope to Move On". Milford Daily News. Archived from the original on 2013-01-29. Retrieved 2007-12-01.
- ^ "Uxbridge video". Telegram & Gazette. Retrieved 2007-09-24.