Drinking Fountain

Empty spools, thousands of them, were around the mill.

A guard to keep sawdust from the water fountain.

This picture typifies the industrial ideal of the early 20th century. More metal than air. More efficiency than beauty. More profits than people.

These wide spools sit atop the abandoned tracks that lead to the train shed, which was later repurposed into a truck shed.

There were bins with hundreds of spools in them in the basement.

Standing atop the dust collector, the factory breaks down into diverging patterns, processes.

We know what the ladies’ favorite treats were! Found holding parts on a repair cart.

I really like the porcelain guides for the silk threads, probably used because they could be polished for perfect, persistent, smoothness.

Note the large belt pulley in the center of the frame. Follow the axel it’s on and you’ll see several belts still attached to the drive, which was originally steam-driven.