Slatersville Historic District - Slatersville RI
Posted by: Groundspeak Premium Member nomadwillie
N 42° 00.001 W 071° 34.786
19T E 286341 N 4652997
Slatersville is centered around the cotton textile mills first built in 1805.
Waymark Code: WMQT1Y
Location: Rhode Island, United States
Date Posted: 03/26/2016
Published By:Groundspeak Premium Member Outspoken1
Views: 3

Slatersville is now part of North Smithfield and set on the banks of the Branch River. It consists of 5 main roads, Main St, North Main, Green St, School St and Railroad Ave. The complex is dominated by a four story stone mill, built in 1826 to replace one that was destroyed by fire and built in 1806. In total there are 4 building / mills that make up the mill complex. Included in the district are residential properties as well as 2 churches, Town Hall and a few commercial buildings.

The first successful cotton mill in the US was established in Pawtucket by Samuel Slater. 15 years after the building and establishment of that mill, Samuel Slater built the first mill in Slatersville. Before Slater there were existing mills on the site known as Buffam's Mills which was a grist mill, saw mill and had a few shops. Upon building the first textile mill in 1807, Slatersville became the first textile mill village in Rhode Island and quite possibly the US.

In 1915 the mills were purchased by Henry Kendall, who tried to transform the community into a model of high principal and moral rectitude. The mill residential properties were bare bone living spaces, Kendall set out to individualize the properties by adding porticoes, porches, arbors, planting trees and painting the houses different colors.

In 1954 Slaterville ceased to be a company town with the mills being closed down and the residential properties owned by the mill were sold.
Street address:
Main, Green, Church, and School Sts. and Ridge Rd
Slatersville, RI


County / Borough / Parish: Providence

Year listed: 1973

Historic (Areas of) Significance: Event, Architecture/Engineering

Periods of significance: 1875-1899, 1850-1874, 1825-1849, 1800-1824

Historic function: Domestic, Industry/Processing/Extraction

Current function: Domestic

Privately owned?: yes

Primary Web Site: [Web Link]

Secondary Website 1: [Web Link]

Season start / Season finish: Not listed

Hours of operation: Not listed

Secondary Website 2: Not listed

National Historic Landmark Link: Not listed

Visit Instructions:
Please give the date and brief account of your visit. Include any additional observations or information that you may have, particularly about the current condition of the site. Additional photos are highly encouraged, but not mandatory.
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