Rhode Island Mill History
Hilly terrain, hard bedrock, and high volume water flow made the Pawtuxet River valley ideal for water-powered textile mills. Eighteenth-century settlers and farmers first harvested the Pawtuxet River’s power to run sawmills. Rhode Island cotton mills began springing up in the 1790s, and embargoes surrounding the war of 1812 allowed dozens more textile mills economic sustainability.
The Rhode Island cotton industry peaked in the late 19th century and declined precipitously after World War I when New England mills could no longer compete with southern states. The textile worker strike of 1922, which began at Royal Mill, had a devastating effect on the New England textile industry at large. Though area textile production saw a brief rebound during World War II, most mills had been abandoned or converted to other manufacturing and storage concerns by the 1960’s.
