Maine Memory Network

Biddeford Mills Museum

A historic mill museum dedicated to creating exhibits that will educate the community and highlight mill history; as a research collection to assist the public in locating information on the mill's buildings, history and employees; and to ensure the story of Biddeford's economic and industrial revolution remains relevant and accessible to diverse audiences.

Biddeford History & Heritage Project - The Civil War/Reconstruction Era as Experienced in Biddeford & Saco - Page 5 of 17

"Saco Water Power Company of York Manufacturing, built the Laconia Mills on the Biddeford side of the river in 1844, then started Pepperell…"

Biddeford History & Heritage Project - VIII. Changing course and new beginnings (1955-Present) - Page 1 of 2

"… Saco "divisions" or move them down South to the textile production centers of Georgia and Alabama, where the help was cheaper and the raw materials…"

Biddeford History & Heritage Project - V. A Cascade of Booms & Busts (1790-1865) - Page 2 of 3

"… first newspaper, first city directory, first textile mills and the first French-Canadian immigrant."

Biddeford History & Heritage Project - RESOURCES

"(N, A) Textile Manufacture Collection (1844-2010). (DC.14) McArthur Library Special Collections. (N, A) Thursday Club Collection."

Biddeford History & Heritage Project - The Civil War/Reconstruction Era as Experienced in Biddeford & Saco - Page 4 of 17

"… Andrews and Sons began a contract for the New York Harlem Bridge and a bridge in Philadelphia to provide 25,000 yards of stone to New York and 600…"

Biddeford History & Heritage Project - IV. Engulfed by nationalism: Revolutionary Biddeford

"Drew's Mill, Biddeford, 1909McArthur Public Library Lumber and other goods from the interior came down the river where they were readied for sale…"

McArthur Public Library

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Biddeford History & Heritage Project - The Civil War/Reconstruction Era as Experienced in Biddeford & Saco - Page 7 of 17

"The Laconia Mills were a critical asset to the city during the war but were unable to recover from the economic hardships they faced during and after…"

Biddeford History & Heritage Project - VII. Flow and ebb: the effects of industrial peak & global upheaval (1900-1955) - Page 1 of 3

"It was the largest city in York County, and one of the largest cities in Maine. In the streets people spoke mostly English and French, but you could…"

Biddeford History & Heritage Project - I. Headwaters of a community: Sowacatuck, Chouacoet, and the sea

"… southern part of the Saco River in Cumberland and York Counties. Purse with fabric woven by Mali Agat, ca."

Biddeford History & Heritage Project - The Civil War/Reconstruction Era as Experienced in Biddeford & Saco - Page 2 of 17

"… for ice harvesting, granite cutting, and cotton textile manufacturing. Businesses that supported the war did well and were able to hire more…"

Biddeford History & Heritage Project - The Civil War/Reconstruction Era as Experienced in Biddeford & Saco - Page 6 of 17

"… from the Southern States then manufactured in textile mills. During the years of the war, cotton manufacturing became extremely challenging."

Biddeford History & Heritage Project - V. A Cascade of Booms & Busts (1790-1865) - Page 3 of 3

"Biddeford's textile mills however, were hit hard by the stoppage in cotton production & the cotton blockades."

Biddeford History & Heritage Project - VI. The deluge of industrial expansion & immigration (1865-1900) - Page 1 of 2

"Tremendous numbers of workers were needed for the textile mills, and Biddeford began to experience an intense level of immigration, first of Irish…"

Biddeford History & Heritage Project - VI. The deluge of industrial expansion & immigration (1865-1900) - Page 2 of 2

"… were drawn to the area to work in the huge textile mills, many became entrepreneurs in their own right and opened small businesses up and down Main…"

Biddeford History & Heritage Project - The Civil War/Reconstruction Era as Experienced in Biddeford & Saco - Page 9 of 17

"… migrated to Biddeford and Saco to work in textile mills, ice harvesting manufactures, lumber mills, and granite quarries."

Biddeford History & Heritage Project - Cities of Smoke and Soot

"… and Saco have long been a center for lumbering, textiles and shipbuilding. Behind the industrial background of these two cities lays a history of…"

Old Berwick Historical Society

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Biddeford History & Heritage Project - V. A Cascade of Booms & Busts (1790-1865) - Page 1 of 3

"Captain Bradbury built a fulling mill on Spring's Island for the felting of woolen goods. Mill wheel bearing, Saco, ca."

Biddeford History & Heritage Project - VIII. Changing course and new beginnings (1955-Present) - Page 2 of 2

"The former mill buildings are slowly being refinished and repurposed into modern residences and boutique manufacturing and business space."

Biddeford History & Heritage Project - The Civil War/Reconstruction Era as Experienced in Biddeford & Saco - Page 1 of 17

"People were migrating to the area to work in the mills and the supporting businesses that supplied them."

Biddeford History & Heritage Project - The Civil War/Reconstruction Era as Experienced in Biddeford & Saco - Page 16 of 17

"“All places of business were closed, and the mills shut down. Flags were to be seen everywhere, and the demand for red, white, and blue ribbons…"

Biddeford History & Heritage Project - Artists and Inventors of Biddeford

"… plus the successful manufacturing at the many mills, combined to foster a lively cultural scene."