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The Powder Mills, Paper Mill and Jewell Mill

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Title

The Powder Mills, Paper Mill and Jewell Mill

Description

Items from the American Powder Mills (which operated under other names such as American Cyanamid). The mills spanned the towns of Maynard, Acton, Concord, and Sudbury and were a source of black powder (used for guns, blasting, etc.) The mills were the site of several large explosions over their operating lifetimes.
Information relative to the Paper Mill and Jewel mills that operated in Maynard in the 1800 hundreds.

Contributor

Collection Manager (Maynard Historical Society)

This is a PREVIEW of Items in the The Powder Mills, Paper Mill and Jewell Mill Collection

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Collection of American Powder Mills Stencils
Five stencils used to mark cases and bundles at the American Powder Mills.

American Cyanamid & Chemical Corp. Box
An American Cyanamid & Chemical Corp., American Powder Division, Maynard, Mass. large box. It contained ditching dynamite.

American Cyanamid & Chemical Corp. Box Panel
A piece of a wooden box with the label "American Cyanamid and Chemical Corp. - American Powder Division - Maynard, Mass, U.S.A." Mr. & Mrs. Worsley Fardy were traveling in New Hampshire and saw this piece of a box at a flea market.

American Powder Mill Insurance Map - 1916<br />
Acton, Mass.
Map shows the function of the various structures used in the manufacturing of gun powder.

Red Flag - DANGER
Used at the American Powder Mills to warn danger of explosives.

Army - Navy E Award<br />
Charles Clark
A certificate given to Charles Clark in recognition for his contributions "by effort and efficiency while an employee of this company in winning the Army-Navy Production Award for Excellence in War Production"

Paper Mill Key
The paper mill was in operation from 1820 to the early 1880's located at what is now the corner of Waltham St. and Parker St. The Parker family owned and operated the mill for many years.

Cartridge Powder Label<br />
American Powder Mills
A paper label used to identify rifle cartridge shell powder kegs.

Two Views of the Paper Mill Dam - 1898
The second photo has a note pointing out the Music Hall (or the Rink) on Main Street. The woolen mill smoke stack is seen upstream of the Assabet River.

American Powder Mill  -  Corning Mill
The corning mill is where the final product was ground into a suitable size for use as gun powder.

American Powder Mill  -  Wheel Mill
This photo was taken during the dismantling of the wheel mill. Each of the wheels weighed 7 tons. The cross shaft and crown gear weighted 3 tons making a total of 17 tons. The large crown gear had wooden teeth to avoid the friction or sparking of…

Powder Mill Employees  -  1930
1st photo : Robert "Wink" McGarry. The nickname is attributed to the constant blinking of the eyes due to irritation from manufacturing process.

2nd photo: l to r Alvin Stone, Alfred Carey, "Wink" McGarry

3rd photo : l to r Alfred Carey ,…

American Powder Mills Truck
Photos of a restored American Powder Division truck seen at a show in 2011.

Paper Mill Dam and Bridge  -  ca 1920
A photo of the Paper Mill Dam & Bridge.

Collapse of Paper Mill Bridge<br />
Flood of November -  1927
A photo of the bridge, which was composed of field stone and granite, but the heavy rains caused a flood to undermine the structure. A concrete bridge was built at that time and it lasted until 2012 when it was replaced.

The second photo shows the…

Paper Mill Bridge<br />
 Flood of November - 1927
Top picture is the north side. Bottom picture is the south side.

View of the Assabet Mill from Paper Mill Dam and Bridge  -  ca 1870&#039;s
Top view from the Paper Mill Bridge.
Bottom view looking South on the Assabet toward the Paper MIll Bridge and the Assabet Mill.

Paper Mill Dam  -  ca 1920
Photos of winter views from the Paper Mill Dam.

The Falls, Maynard, Mass  -  ca 1900<br />
Paper Mill Dam
Until 1927 was located south of where the Assabet River runs under the "Paper Mill Bridge". Both the dam and the bridge was washed out in the flood of November 1927. The bridge was replaced and is being replaced again in 2012. The large dark…

Paper Mill Dam  -  ca 1900
Remains of this dam can still be seen from the Paper Mill (Waltham Street) Bridge. The picture was taken in the winter with Assabet River in flood.