PACIFIC MILLS. Cotton. Wooden Display Case.
Lawrence, Massachusetts: Pacific Mills, (n. d.). 11-3/4" x 16" x 1-1/4". Dark wood cases with gold PACIFIC MILLS decal to front. Left side with 3 brass wood screws [for glass removal & adjusting of contents]. Minor wear, rubs & scratches to cases. Glass appears to be 20th C. Very Good Plus. Item #42557
In 1853, Pacific Mills incorporated in Lawrence, Massachusetts with capital of $1 million. The original mills & print works were built by the Essex Company, remodeled in 1882, and frequently expanded during the many years of its existence. In the late 19th C., the firm was considered one of the foremost corporations in the world. Abbot Lawrence, the city’s namesake, was the first company president. The firm started as a producer of women’s dress goods in wool & cotton, and included a print house & dye works. By the mid-1890s, the mills were producing many divers cloth fabrics, including calicos, lawns, & shirtings, with over 200,000 spindles in operation.
This lot consists of a late 19th C. Pacific Mills dark wood sample case with clear glass top showing the 3 stages of production: the raw fiber product, intermediate stage processing & final cloth sample. With 16 printed cloth sample labels.
An uncommon late 19th C. surviving artifact documenting the processes of the very important US textile industry.
Price: $600.00