USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Lowell > Hand book of business in Lowell : with a history of the city > Part 5
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Shop Bills.
Bills of Fare,
Invitation do.
Time Bills, etc
RECEIPTS, and various other blank notices, useful to business men, on hand, for sale at reasonable rates, or printed to order.
Billets, (all styles,)
Hand Bills, Auction Bills,
Mortgages,
Railroad Receipts,
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HISTORY OF LOWELL:
mind, while in England ; " and some branches of manufactures were examined by him with care." He returned to the United States with a fixed idea, that the cotton manufacture, then mo- nopolized by Great Britain, could be successfully introduced here.
Mr. Lowell had heard of power-looms, and of daily inventions in England of labor-saving machinery. He saw and admitted that the advantages of cheap labor, abundant capital, superior skill, and established reputation, were all on the side of the Eng- lish. But the raw cotton could be procured cheaper here ; water- power was more abundant than in England ; and he thought that the superior intelligence and enterprise of the American popula- tion would ensure the success of the cotton manufacture in these States, in spite of the competition of all Europe.
Mr. Lowell unfolded these views at length to Mr. Jackson, and proposed that an experiment in the cotton manufacture be made here. After deliberation, they both resolved to undertake the enterprise, and were not discouraged by difficulties which would have thwarted less resolute men. The possibility of pro- curing books, designs, or models of machines from England, was of course cut off by the then pending war. Yet these extra- ordinary men,-not bred as mechanics, nor experienced in ma- chinery,-undertook to reinvent, and did reinvent, all that was valuable among the inventions of the ingenious mechanics of Eng- land. Like the youthful General of the Army of Italy, these Napoleons of manufactures created all their own resources ; and their victories were as glorious as his.
The first difficulty was in getting a power-loom. They exam- ined the models of power-looms in the Patent Office, but found none of them practicable. They remembered that in England the power-loom had been invented by a clergyman ; and they concluded that in America it might be invented by merchants like themselves. The invention of a power-loom was actually perfected by their inventive genius in the autumn of 1812. Being in want of a practical mechanic, they secured the services of Mr. Paul Moody. Mr. Moody was born in Amesbury in 1777, and had been for some time engaged in the manufacturing busi- ness in that town, in connection with Mr. Ezra Worthen. Mr.
HAND-BOOK OF ITS BUSINESS. 61
MERRILL & STRAW
ROOK STORE
PAPER HANGINGS. BINDERY
inn
JOSHUA MERRILL, (Formerly Merrill & Straw,)
Publisher, Bookseller, Stationer, AND DEALER IN
APER HANGINGS,
BORDERS, BLANK BOOKS, &c.
Blank Books Made to Order.
Old Books, Pamphlets, Music &c., Bound with Neatness and Despatch. Nos. 23 Central and 1 Middle Streets, OPPOSITE THE POST OFFICE, LOWELL, MASS.
OFFICE OF THE MUTUAL BENEFIT LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY, JOSHUA MERRILL, Agent.
6
62
HISTORY OF LOWELL:
Moody's aid was invaluable in the starting of the first mill at Waltham, though he did not remove to reside there till 1814.
The original design of Messrs. Lowell and Jackson was only to start a weaving-mill, and to buy their yarn of others. No such establishment as a mill where raw cotton was manufactured into finished cloth, without going through different hands, and forming two distinct businesses, was then dreamed of. The practice was to run spinning-mills and weaving-mills as separate establishments. But as soon as their loom was completed, they found it expedient to spin their own yarn, rather than to buy it of others. In 1813, they accordingly fitted up a mill with seven- teen hundred spindles, which is still in operation at Waltham.
Their sizing machine they constructed by improving upon Horrock's dressing-machine, patented in England. Their dress- ing machine was invented by Mr. Moody. Mr. Lowell and Mr. Moody both had a hand in the invention of their double-speeder for spinning. The mathematical scholarship of Mr. Lowell was as indispensable to its success as the mechanical ingenuity of Mr. Moody. The peculiar invention of Mr. Moody was the filling- throstle. The machines invented by these ingenious men were substantially the same as those now in use, though subsequent inventions have improved and perfected them. This fact will appear the more remarkable, when we consider how many dis- advantages and embarrassments beset the original inventors, which are now removed.
The First Company at Waltham.
HAVING DOW, after incredible labor, completed their designs, Messrs. Jackson and Lowell associated other gentlemen with them, and, in 1813, obtained a charter as the Boston Manufac- turing Company, with a capital of one hundred thousand dollars. This " speculation," as it was then called, proved a splendid suc- . cess ; and the business was soon extended as far as the water-
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HAND- BOOK OF ITS BUSINESS.
PERRY DAVIS' VEGETABLE PAIN KILLER
TILL TRIUMPHANT!
And after a THOROUGH TRIAL, by innumerable living witnesses, has proved itself to be
THE MEDICINE OF THE AGE.
Although there have been many medicinal preparations brought before the public since the first introduction of PERRY DAVIS' VEGETABLE PAIN KIL- LER, and large amounts expended in their introduction, the PAIN KILLER has continued to steadily advance in the estimation of the world, as the best Family Medicine ever introduced. As an internal and external remedy, it is truly a source of
JOY TO THE WORLD.
One positive proof of its efficacy is, that the sales have constantly increased, and wholly upon its own merits, as the proprietors have not resorted to adver- tising to gain for it the rank it now holds among the great number of prepa- rations of the present time. The effect of the PAIN KILLER upon the patient, when taken internally, iu cases of colds, cough, bowel complaints, cholera, dys- entery, and other affections of the system, has been truly wonderful, and has won for it a name among medicinal preparations that can never be forgotten. Its success in removing pain, as an external remedy, in case of burns, bruises, sores, sprains, cuts, stings of insects, and other causes of suffering, has secu- red for it such a host of testimony, as an almost infallible remedy, that it will be handed down to posterity as one of the greatest medical discoveries of the nineteenth century.
THE MAGICAL EFFECTS OF THE PAIN KILLER,
when taken or used according to directions, are certain. You have only to be sure that you buy the genuine article, and adhere to the directions in its use, and you will admit its wonderful medicinal properties.
The genuine Perry Davis' Pain Killer is now put up in panel bottles, with the words, " Davis' Vegetable Pain Killer" blown in the glass, and with two steel engraved labels on each bottle-one an excellent likeness of PERRY DAVIS, the original inventor of the medicine, the other a steel engraved Note of Hand. None others can be relied upon as genuine.
Price of Bottles, 25 cents, 50 cents, and $1.00, respectively.
5"For sale by most of the Medicine Dealers throughout the world.
PERRY DAVIS & SON, PROPRIETORS,
No. 74 High Street, - Providence, R. I.
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HISTORY OF LOWELL:
power at Waltham would permit. The first suggestions and many of the chief plans were made by Mr. Lowell ; but Mr. Jackson devoted the most time and labor to the management of it. He spent much of his time at Waltham, away from his family ; and at length became so absorbed in manufactures, that, in 1815, he abandoned mercantile business altogether.
While cotton cloth was being sold at thirty-three cents per yard, Mr. Lowell, fired with the presentiment of what his plans would accomplish, predicted to a friend, that, " within fifty years, cotton cloth would be sold for four-pence a yard." The prediction was called "visionary" then; but it has long since been fulfilled. Our far-sighted adventurers were frequently ad- vised, by meddlesome outsiders and gossipping Mrs. Grundys, that they would soon overdo their new business. No sooner did one mill send forth its cloth, than all agreed that it would be the last. The markets would be glutted. Goods would lie by, and rot in the warehouses. Bankruptcy, ruin, pauperism, would ensue. But our adventurers kept right on, paying no more at- tention to the gossip of the Mrs. Grundys, than they would have paid to the evolutions of an army of grasshoppers. True, they saw not all the future, nor half " the wonders that would be ;" but they remained firm in the conviction that by improved ma- chinery they could compete successfully with England in all the markets of the globe ; and experience has proved that this convic- tion was not without foundation.
In 1816, Mr. Lowell visited Washington, to impress upon members of Congress, as Mr. Everett says, " the importance, the prospects and the dangers of the cotton manufacture, and the policy of shielding it from foreign competition by legislative pro- tection." Constitutional objections have often, in more recent times, been urged against the protective system. No objection of this kind was then heard of. The New England States were too exclusively engaged in commerce to listen to him; but the Middle States favored the new plan. The States of the West were divided ; the South, as usual, held the balance of power ; and Mr. Lowell's appeal to the interests of the Southern planters prevailed. The famous minimum duty on imported cotton fab-
HAND-BOOK OF ITS BUSINESS. 65
A. B. FRENCH, WHOLESALE AND RETAIL DEALER IN
CONFECTIONERY AND CAKE, No. 37 Central Street, Lowell, Mass.
Meals Furnished at all Hours of the Day.
PARTIES SUPPLIED WITH ICE CREAM, JELLEY, CAKE, OYSTERS, AND ALL ARTICLES REQUIRED FOR AN ENTERTAINMENT, AT THE SALOON OR AT PRIVATE RESIDENCES.
Connected with the Saloon is a' LARGE AND ELEGANT DANCING HALL, And a Dining Room for Private Parties.
BALL AND ENGINE SULTERS, DIG-NIES, &C.,
Furnished with every requisite at short notice and with punctuality.
.GILBERT & CO.BOSTON
400 Washington Street.
The only manufacturers of Coleman's Patent Folian Attachment for Massachusetts.
A large assortment of T. GILBERT & Co's PIANO FORTES, with or with- out the much admired Aolian Attachment, which gives to the Piano the beautiful and rich tones of an organ. The AEolian in no way interferes with the Piano-either can be played alone, or the two united. For sale on the same terms and prices as at the manufactory in Boston, and warraated to give satisfaction or the money will be refunded. They will be sent any distance within 25 miles free of charge.
GEO. HEDRICK, 36 Central Street, Lowell, Only Agent for the past fifteen years for T. GILBERT & Co., Boston.
N. B .- T. GILBERT is the oldest Piano Forte maker in Boston, having been in the business for nearly thirty years, and having every facility for doing the work in the best manner. No better Instruments for sweetness, richness of tone, and durability of workmanship, can be found in this country, than are made by T. GILBERT & Co.
Second hand church Organs for Sale. Good second hand Piano Fortes to let. G. H. is also Agent for Geo. Stevens, Organ Builder, East Cambridge, Ms.
6F
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HISTORY OF LOWELL:
rics was proposed by Mr. Lowell, recommended by Mr. Lowndes, advocated by Mr. Calhoun, and incorporated into law in 1816.
In this way, American manufactures were protected from Brit- ish competition, and nursed in a vigorous life. It is to this provis- ion of law, says Mr. Everett, in the memoir before quoted, that " New England owes that branch of industry which has made her amends for the diminution of her foreign trade ; which has kept her prosperous under the exhausting drain of her population to the West ; which has brought a market for his agricultural pro- duce to the farmer's door; and which, while it has conferred these blessings on this part of the country, has been productive of good, and nothing but good, to every portion of it."
The whole credit of this policy is due to Mr. Lowell. But he did not live to witness the realization of his plans. " Man pro- poses, but God disposes." He died in 1817, at the age of forty- three ; and committed to others the completion of his vast de- signs. The Memoir of Mr. Everett contains an eloquent eulogy of this great public benefactor, whose name will go down to pos- terity as the father of the City of Spindles. "Pyramids and mausoleums," says the American Cicero, " may crumble to the earth, and brass and marble mingle with the dust they cover ; but the pure and well-deserved renown, which is thus incorpora- ted with the busy life of an intelligent people, will be remembered, till the long lapse of ages and the vicissitudes of fortune shall reduce all of America to oblivion and decay !"
The First Company in Lowell.
IN 1820, Mr. Jackson was still connected, as agent, with the mills at Waltham. Mr. Moody was also there, as machinist. Hon. Nathan Appleton had a large interest in the same concern. Their success had been great ; but their operations in Waltham could be extended no further, from want of water-power. Of all the establishments called into life by the war of 1812, none had
67
HAND- BOOK OF ITS BUSINESS.
GENTLEMEN'S
CUSTOM READY-MADE
HATS, CAPS, AND
RICH FURNISHING GOODS;
No. I CANAL BLOCK, CENTRAL STREET,
Where can be found constantly on hand every description of the above named goods, in large quantities, of the best quality, and
LATEST IMPORTATION,
got up in the most thorough manner, and guaranteed to suit the purchaser and give him as good satisfaction as if he had theni made expressly for him. By getting up large quantities at a time, I can afford to sell
GREATLY REDUCED PRICES !
Having paid strict attention to the business for the last ten years, I flatter myself that I can appreciate my customers' wants in such a manner that if they call on me once, they will be sure to call again, and make my store their resort for the purchase of the above named goods.
CALL AND EXAMINE,
NO. 1 CANAL BLOCK, CENTRAL STREET, LOWELL, MASS.
J. Frank Croxford.
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HISTORY OF LOWELL:
been more profitable than theirs. They had resolved to establish other mills elsewhere, and were in quest of a place affording a good supply of water-power, for that purpose.
Messrs. Jackson and Appleton visited Souhegan, in New Hampshire, and examined the water-privilege at that place. They passed the place where Nashua now stands, and stopped to look at an old saw-mill, that then stood there. They also examined other privileges ; but finally returned to Waltham, rejecting them all. At this time, Mr. Worthen was still interested in the origi- nal establishment at Amesbury. Shortly afterwards, Mr. Moody, while on a visit to Amesbury, mentioned to Mr. Worthen, that the company at Waltham were in quest of a water-power. None of these Waltham gentlemen knew anything of the water-power at the Pawtucket Canal. Mr. Worthen had been familiar with Pawtucket Falls from his boyhood ; and he very naturally replied to Mr. Moody's remark, by asking, " Why don't they purchase the land round Pawtucket Canal ? They can put up as many mills as they please there, and never want for water."
On returning to Waltham, Mr. Moody went out of his way on purpose to look at these falls, and Mr. Worthen accompanied him. Arriving at Waltham, they related to Mr. Jackson a de- scription of the place, and Mr. Worthen chalked out upon the floor a map of Merrimac River, including both the Pawtucket Falls and Canal. Mr. Jackson listened eagerly to their story, and was soon convinced that a large manufacturing town could here be built up. The great idea of possessing himself of the whole power of Merrimac River filled his mind ; but with charac- teristic sagacity, he kept the secret locked in his own breast until he had secured all the stock of the Pawtucket Canal, and a very considerable portion of the adjoining lands.
To purchase these shares of the Locks and Canals company Mr. Thomas M. Clark, a merchant of Newburyport, was employed. The shares were five hundred in number ; and the par value of each was one hundred dollars. Some of them were purchased twenty dollars below par ; and nearly all of them were secured at something less than par. The farms of Nathan Tyler, Josiah Fletcher, Mrs. Joseph Warren, and the Cheever farm, were all
69
HAND-BOOK OF ITS BUSINESS.
THE HEAD ACHE KILLER! DR. J. W. POLAND'S, Of Goffstown Centre, New Hampshire.
Each succeeding year adds to the reputation of this invaluable Specific for the Sick and Nervous Head Ache, Tic Douloureux, Neuralgia, and other
NERVOUS AFFECTIONS.
It was first put on sale, in a popular form, in 1849. Its sales have been on a steady increase ever since. All who sell it say that their customers invariably bring back a good report concern- ing it.
The fine prominent virtues which so highly recommend this preparation, are :-
1 .- It is but slightly cathartic in its effects, unless used in over doses.
2 .- It is scientifically compounded,-not thrown together by guessing.
3 .- Its color is produced by pure vegetable drugs,-not by adding dye-stuffs.
4 .- Though containing a large amount of medicine, it is sold at half the price of most other remedies offered for sale.
5 .- It is not secret medicine, as all of its ingredients are made known in plain English, printed upon the label.
A Circular wrapped around the bottle gives its origin, history, &c. It cannot fail to give satisfaction to all who use it.
PRICE FIFTY CENTS PER BOTTLE.
AGENTS IN LOWELL: S. KIDDER, JR., CARLETON & HOVEY, C. S. EASTMAN, J. R, HAYES, J. T. BILLINGS, A. W. DOWS, L. W. WILLIS,
FOR SALE BY DRUGGISTS and APOTHECARIES EVERYWHERE. Manufactured at Goffstown Centre, N. H.,
BY J. W. POLAND.
The following List of Medicines, prepared by DR. POLAND, are daily in- creasing in demand, and have an excellent reputation wherever known : THE HUMOR DOCTOR, .. 50 cents. WHITE PINE COMPOUND, for colds, cough, &c., 37 1-2 " PAIN EASER, (2 oz. and 4 oz. bottle,) .15 and 25 “
70
HISTORY OF LOWELL:
purchased in 1821-'24, for about four hundred thousand dollars in all. These farms contained about four hundred acres ; they covered what is now the most densely peopled part of the city ; and were bought at prices ranging from one to two hundred dol- lars per acre. Most of these lands have been sold at various times by the Locks and Canals Company, at from twelve cents to one dollar per square foot. This far-sighted man, Mr. Jackson, at once bade the farmers retire, and dedicated this place to the Genius of Art. He now offered a share of his investment to his former colleagues at Waltham ; his offer was gladly accepted ; and, in 1822, he and his colleagues were incorporated as the Mer- rimac Manufacturing Company, with a capital of one and a half million dollars.
Such was the beginning of manufacturing companies in Lowell. Of course, the value of real estate here was suddenly greatly en- hanced. A single illustration of this, related in Rev. Dr. Miles' " Lowell as it was, and as it is," must not be omitted :- Nine undivided tenths of the Cheever farm were bought in 1821 for eighteen hundred dollars ; and the owner of the other one-tenth had agreed to convey the same for two hundred dollars. Before he had conveyed it, however, he died, suddenly, insolvent ; and the one-tenth was sold by order of court. But such had been the increase in its value, that the Locks and Canals Company paid upwards of three thousand dollars for seven and a half-tenths of it ; and the remaining two and a half-tenths were sold, one year afterwards, for upwards of five thousand dollars !
One hundred and twenty thousand dollars were spent by the new company in widening and deepening the canal, and cutting an additional lateral canal from the Pawtucket Canal to the Mer- rimac River. The mills were erected on the margin of the river, and completed in 1823. The first return of cloth was made in November of that year.
71
HAND- BOOK OF ITS BUSINESS.
FREDERICK BARON, Druggist & Apothecary.
COR. MERRIMACK & WORTHEN STS., LOWELL. MASS., Keeps constantly on hand and full assortment of PURE DRUGS, CHEMICALS, EXTRACTS, FRESH HERBS, "SELECT POWDERS," GLASS WARE, FANCY ARTICLES, PERFUMERY, &C- Physicians' Prescriptions Compounded with accuracy at all hours, Day or Night, From such preparations only as the proprietor, in his experience deems suitable to dispense.
On hand and for sale, the following, with numerous others, not mentioned : POWDERS, Rochelle, Soda, Seidlitz, Lazell, Marsh and Hunn's "Select Powders," etc. HAIR DYES, Bachelder's, Hutchins', Mathews', and Naples.
PERFUMERY AND FANCY OILS, Lubin's, Glenn's, Harrison's, Rimmel's, Wright's, etc. OILS .- Geranium Rose, Citronella Rose, Otto Rose, San- dal Wood, Sweet Briar, Spring Flowers, Jasmin, Limon Grasse, Rhodium, Neroli, etc.
COLOGNES, French English, German and Domestic.
BRUSHES. Tooth, Hat, Hair, Nail, Cloth, Shaving, Camel's Hair, etc. FANCY AND SHAVING SOAPS, .Low & Cleaver's Brown Windsor, Honey and Musk Scented, Gosnell's, Dahlia, Yankee, Babbitt's, Old Kesan, Castile, Transparent, etc.
HAIR PREPARATIONS, Golden Lustrale, Rosemary and Castor Oil, Delight's Spanish Lustral, Potter's Balm, Kathairon, Lovett's Wahpene, Hun- garian Balm, Pomades, Bogle's Hypereon Fluid, Rose and Bear's Oils, etc.
Together with a large assortment of MISCELLANEOUS ARTICLES.
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HISTORY OF LOWELL:
Kirk Boott and his Compeers.
THE first agent of the new company was Kirk Boott. This gentleman was born in Boston in 1791, and received an academi- cal education at the famous Rugby School in England. He en- tered Harvard College, and sowed an abundance of " wild oats," but never graduated. His tastes being military, a commission was purchased for him ; and he served five years as an officer in the British Army. He fought under Wellington in the Peninsu- lar War, and commanded a detachment of troops at the siege of San Sebastian, in 1813. His courage was perfectly bullet-proof ; and, not dreamning what a page history had left blank for him to fill, he labored assiduously to perfect himself in the science of arms. But his father having died shortly after his resignation of his commission, he, in 1817, returned to Boston. It was through the intimacy that arose between him and Mr. Jackson, while the latter was agent of the mills at Waltham, that he was employed as agent of the new company at East Chelmsford (or Lowell.)
Mr. Boott established himself here in the spring of 1822, took charge of the mills, and infused into the whole place much of his own determined spirit and unconquerable will. He became, by the general assent of all, the man of the place, and represented its interests in the State Legislature. His portrait, which hangs in the Mechanics' Hall, will ever be regarded as one of the most precious mementos of the early days of our city. A chronic disease of the spine, contracted " on the tented field," seri- ously impaired his constitution ; and, after a residence among us of fifteen years, he died suddenly on the 11th of April, 1837, dropping dead from his chaise in the street.
Mr. Worthen removed here at the same time with Mr. Boott, and his services as superintendent were of inestimable value to the place. Like Mr. Lowell, Mr. Worthen was not permitted to see even " the beginning of the end " of his plans. He died after a lingering illness, June 18th, 1824, and his loss was
73
HAND-BOOK OF ITS BUSINESS.
Billings' Toilet Oil, -- for the Hair.
In compounding this elegant preparation, the proprietor has carefully avoided the use of such articles as would in the least in- jure the hair, and has succeeded in producing a skilful combina- tion of such ingredients as have been ascertained by actual experi- ment to be salutary and invigorating to the hair. If used in accordance with the directions accompanying each bottle, it will arrest the falling off of hair, and often promotes a healthy growth upon bald heads. It will entirely eradicate dandruff, and cure all other diseases of the scalp. As a dressing for the hair it is unsurpassed-rendering coarse, stiff hair soft and pliable, and giving it that curly, graceful appearance so much admired. In short, it completely combines the properties of a wash, a tonic, and a pomatum. It is highly perfumed with the extracts of flowers, which particularly adapts it to ladies' and gentlemen's toilet use.
Soponaceous Tooth Powder.
Composed of tooth soap, prepared chalk, peruvian bark and wintergreen. This nice combination of tooth soap with the alka- line and vegetable powders constitutes the best dentifrice that can be used. We thus make public the composition of this pow- der, considering it to be both a good and honest recommendation for its use ; for it will at once be seen that this compound must be superior to either the tooth soap or a simple combination of vegetable powders used separately. It effectually cleanses and polishes the teeth and preserves the gums in a healthy condition. Containing nothing unpleasant to the taste, and possessing so much of the agreeable flavor of the wintergreen, it is highly pleasant to use, and imparts to the breath a delightful fragrance. It will be noticed that this dentifrice is entirely free from acid and gritty substances, and cannot injure the enamel of the tecth. Prepared by J. T. BILLINGS, apothecary and chemist, corner of Central and Jackson Streets, Lowell.
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