Russell Company Upper Mill - Middletown CT - Water Mills on Waymarking.com

The Upper Mill was powered by a water wheel for an extended period, until at least 1913. Coal-fired steam boilers were used to produce steam power on a seasonal basis when the water level in the pond was low, or frozen in winter, and to heat the building. This unusual reliance on water power in the twentieth century is explained by the fact that as the first mill upstream on Sumner Brook, it had control of the water supply. It also explains why there is no physical evidence or documentation to suggest that a water turbine was ever used, even on a transitional basis. Undoubtedly the mill's power train was equipped with the company's own product, the more efficient continuous transmission woven belting, but the use of water power limited the expansion of the mill. Instead of continuing to expand the original mill to the north with a similarly elongated building, as might have been expected, a decision was made to expand to the east and west with four-story wings to make more efficient use of the existing power train.

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Current Status: Still In Use Current Use: Condo Complex

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