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.

Lincoln, Maine - MacGregor's Spool Mill

"Overall, that we worry that the mill will be closed forever. Oct. 18, 1918 At the insisting of my aging mother, my new husband, and my “wise” sister…"

Lincoln, Maine - Mills & Paper Industry - Page 2 of 2

"… 8, 1968: Eastern Fine’s Lincoln and Brewer mills close unexpectedly when the costs of running the mill outweigh the benefits for the Standard…"

Historic Hallowell - The Opening & Closing of Hallowell's Shoe Companies

"The Cotton Mill sold the machinery to a mill in Georgia. In 1903, the Cotton Mill was sold to Kennebec Realty Company."

Historic Hallowell - Nature's Bounty - Raw Material, Close at Hand

"… granite was worked to produce foundation stones, mill stones and door sills. Cornice stones for Boston's Quincy Market, for example, were produced…"

Historic Hallowell - History of The Cotton Mill

"The Cotton Mill closed and had to sell all of its machinery in 1890 and was replaced by the shoe industry."

Historic Hallowell - Cotton Mill & Johnson Shoe Citations

"Cotton Mill & Johnson Shoe Citations Annual Reports. Hallowell: City Council of Hallowell, 1911. “books.google.com.” n.d. (accessed Mar."

Maine's Swedish Colony, July 23, 1870 - Mills and Homes in Stockholm

"… clothes pin mill, bowling pin mill, two lumber mills, cedar mill, shingle mill, and a lath mill (lath are thin strips of wood used as a foundation…"

Western Maine Foothills Region - Continental Paper Bag Company

"Adeline Gallant recalled the mill closing so the women could go see the men leave to enlist in the Army during World War I."

Western Maine Foothills Region - Regional and Town History

"In the late 19th century, as paper mills, textile mills, and shoe factories proliferated along the Androscoggin, additional waves of immigrants, in…"

Western Maine Foothills Region - Byron

"… come and go: spruce gum, several lumber mills, farming, mining of phosphate, and even gold mining, which continues today."

Western Maine Foothills Region - About the Project

"In the River Valley towns, the NewPage paper mill dominates the economy. While the mill’s payroll is less than half of what it was 40 years ago, it…"

Western Maine Foothills Region - Peru

"The mill finally closed around 1990 and today stands empty. Peru is now considered a bedroom town, mainly for the employees of the paper mill in…"

Western Maine Foothills Region - Fires in Rumford

"… housed many of the less well-paid workers of the mills. According to a Rumford Falls Times article of August 4, 1923 by a Mr."

Lincoln, Maine - That Pioneer Spirit

"… bleached Kraft mill on the site of the current mill; and, in 1958, the mill switched from manufacturing sulphite pulp to Kraft pulp (a more…"

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…"

Lincoln, Maine - Lincoln Historical Society - Page 1 of 2

"At the time, Gertrude Mills was the secretary and Addie Pinkham was the Treasurer. Some of the charter members are as follows: Sadie Adams, Mary…"

Western Maine Foothills Region - Welcome to the Western Foothills

"Working closely with local schools, six historical societies came together to help the next generation understand the heritage of their area."

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

"The division finally closed in entirety in 2009, a final end to over 150 years of production. McArthur Library, 2010."

Western Maine Foothills Region - Mt. Zircon Reservoir - Page 3 of 3

"… by August 17 and on August 18, the drain pipe was closed. By November 16, 1914, the “water from Mt. Zircon supply was first turned into the pipes…"

Western Maine Foothills Region - Buckfield

"Even the Oddfellow Theater has closed after a 14 year run. It is clear that there are not as many industries as there once was; in fact there are…"

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…"

Surry by the Bay - Nineteenth Century

"… plus it housed a carding mill, tannery, stave mill, shingle mill, corn and barley gristmills. At the same time, many East Surry men, along with…"

Western Maine Foothills Region - Rumford - Page 3 of 4

"… in nearly every Maine regiment raised down to the close of the war... It is believed that no other town in the county furnished a larger number of…"