Planned a full day of fun with granddaughters Ella and Neve this past week-end. Breakfast a la Paka is always appreciated and a sure way to start the day with energy and smiles. Our first stop was the most adventurous.... driving go-carts around a "Grand Prix" track that includes a bridge, 2 tunnels, a straightaway and some hairpin turns.
They maneuvered through the course several times, each jockeying for position as we cheered them on from behind the spectator fence!
I thought a game of miniature golf would be a nice relaxing next activity, totally underestimating the competitive spirit of the youngest in this group. We could all brag about some low scoring holes but they were mixed in with some hilarious high ones too. I don't remember who won, but I do remember the sunshine, the laughs, the helpful pointers and suggestions, and two sisters constantly checking each others math on the scorecard.
Off to lunch... (Chick-fil-A), always a hit.
Arriving at the Slater Mill site in Pawtucket, Rhode Island I noticed immediately how quiet it was. Bucolic and tranquil are not words you expect to think of when standing in the middle of a city. Traffic sounds were non-existent except for a brief distant siren, birds warbled, the Blackstone River ambled along and we were a crowd of 4 waiting only 10 minutes for the next tour.
The cobble walkways in front of the colonial Sylvanus Brown House (1758), led to a fall garden mostly past its prime and an area growing medicinal herbs (all properly labeled) and a few lonely cotton plants displaying pods that unfortunately would not reach maturity due to our northern cooler weather. We watched a groundhog poke out and stare at us from behind a bush atop the garden stone wall. Guess he's use to visitors because he then slowly waddled along to disappear under plantings opposite the lower level colonial kitchen doorway.
Mr Brown was an early artisan, pattern maker, woodworker, millwright and dam builder who was responsible for giving Samuel Slater lodging when first in Pawtucket. The two eventually formed a partnership that was responsible for the development of equipment that mechanized the home-based manual spinning and weaving of the era. They went on to establish the very first industrial mill of colonial America. Now cotton and linen would be "manufactured", and this forever changed rural life in America.
Our tour guide was knowledgeable and entertaining as she gave us a vivid narrative of life at the time of our country's industrial awakening. The girls were delighted with her anecdotal telling of an 18th century family's agrarian life and how it all changed dramatically over just one generation.
Learning exactly how tedious working a spinning wheel and home loom was, the time and work involved to make just one piece of cloth (months) was in stark contrast to our "shopping for clothes" in modern times.
In the kitchen we observed provisions, herbs, simple utensils, wooden plates and interesting gadgets of the time i.e."spinner's weasel", along with a lengthy list of expected chores.
To measure out a skein of yarn (an 80 yard measure) one would have to spin the arm repetitively which turned the gears. When the clock-face mechanism completed one full revolution a "pop" would be heard, signifying the "skein" length. Because it was made of mulberry wood, has the "pop" indicator, and the fact that this chore was usually given to a child and is called a "weasel", historians believe it to be the source of the children's song "Pop Goes the Weasel".
A smaller sparse corner room offered no pretense of comfort or warmth despite a demonstration of how a coal filled warming pan was used. The bed, with its pegs and sagging ropes elicited frowns and a couple of wrinkled-up noses.
Our guide took us through a full day in a young mill worker's life "from sun-up til sun-down" via a commanding storytelling and empathetic imagery. Awakened by the peeling bell of the mill tower they would make their way to the wooden building and had the door locked shut behind them. Picturing small seven year-old hands attending to these dangerous machines still ensconced here for display, and visualizing them performing tedious tasks repetitively over many hours without any safety provisions and only one short break, was an eye-opening experience.
The cotton "gin" (short for engine) was invented by Eli Whitney to quickly separate the seeds from the cotton fibers. It made cotton farming inherently more profitable, thereby greatly multiplying the need for more cotton field workers and perhaps inadvertently increasing the south's dependency on slavery.
The Wilkerson Mill, built of rubble stone in 1810 along the Blackstone River displays the mechanical engineering genius of the era.
The mill provided three shifts of "skilled" year-round jobs which meant farmers could supplement their income. Sending their children to work at the mill was a safety net for farming families who were always at the mercy of harsh weather events and crop-eating insects for their livelihood.
We learned each machine's purpose and witnessed the loud din of the many moving parts and belts as our guide put one into use.
A lower level 16,000 pound waterwheel with large gears and a towering piston reaching to the upper floors displayed early mechanical ingenuity.
A crafted smaller model showed us exactly how it all worked so expertly, using the flow of the river water to power the mill where Oziel Wilkinson and his son David made the iron parts for Slater's textile machines, manufactured nails, and also forged anchors.
Ella and I watched BBC's production of Elizabeth Gaskell's North and South that evening as it portrayed an industrialized English city's cotton mill of the 1850's. Enjoying the story and how it complemented our outing, she exclaimed "Why have you never shown me this before?"
Slater Mill website
They maneuvered through the course several times, each jockeying for position as we cheered them on from behind the spectator fence! 
I thought a game of miniature golf would be a nice relaxing next activity, totally underestimating the competitive spirit of the youngest in this group. We could all brag about some low scoring holes but they were mixed in with some hilarious high ones too. I don't remember who won, but I do remember the sunshine, the laughs, the helpful pointers and suggestions, and two sisters constantly checking each others math on the scorecard.Off to lunch... (Chick-fil-A), always a hit.
Arriving at the Slater Mill site in Pawtucket, Rhode Island I noticed immediately how quiet it was. Bucolic and tranquil are not words you expect to think of when standing in the middle of a city. Traffic sounds were non-existent except for a brief distant siren, birds warbled, the Blackstone River ambled along and we were a crowd of 4 waiting only 10 minutes for the next tour.
The cobble walkways in front of the colonial Sylvanus Brown House (1758), led to a fall garden mostly past its prime and an area growing medicinal herbs (all properly labeled) and a few lonely cotton plants displaying pods that unfortunately would not reach maturity due to our northern cooler weather. We watched a groundhog poke out and stare at us from behind a bush atop the garden stone wall. Guess he's use to visitors because he then slowly waddled along to disappear under plantings opposite the lower level colonial kitchen doorway.
Mr Brown was an early artisan, pattern maker, woodworker, millwright and dam builder who was responsible for giving Samuel Slater lodging when first in Pawtucket. The two eventually formed a partnership that was responsible for the development of equipment that mechanized the home-based manual spinning and weaving of the era. They went on to establish the very first industrial mill of colonial America. Now cotton and linen would be "manufactured", and this forever changed rural life in America.
Our tour guide was knowledgeable and entertaining as she gave us a vivid narrative of life at the time of our country's industrial awakening. The girls were delighted with her anecdotal telling of an 18th century family's agrarian life and how it all changed dramatically over just one generation.
Learning exactly how tedious working a spinning wheel and home loom was, the time and work involved to make just one piece of cloth (months) was in stark contrast to our "shopping for clothes" in modern times.
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| "spinner's weasel" or "clock reel" |
To measure out a skein of yarn (an 80 yard measure) one would have to spin the arm repetitively which turned the gears. When the clock-face mechanism completed one full revolution a "pop" would be heard, signifying the "skein" length. Because it was made of mulberry wood, has the "pop" indicator, and the fact that this chore was usually given to a child and is called a "weasel", historians believe it to be the source of the children's song "Pop Goes the Weasel".
A smaller sparse corner room offered no pretense of comfort or warmth despite a demonstration of how a coal filled warming pan was used. The bed, with its pegs and sagging ropes elicited frowns and a couple of wrinkled-up noses.
A short walk from the house is the
1773 Slater Mill
1773 Slater Mill
Our guide took us through a full day in a young mill worker's life "from sun-up til sun-down" via a commanding storytelling and empathetic imagery. Awakened by the peeling bell of the mill tower they would make their way to the wooden building and had the door locked shut behind them. Picturing small seven year-old hands attending to these dangerous machines still ensconced here for display, and visualizing them performing tedious tasks repetitively over many hours without any safety provisions and only one short break, was an eye-opening experience.
The cotton "gin" (short for engine) was invented by Eli Whitney to quickly separate the seeds from the cotton fibers. It made cotton farming inherently more profitable, thereby greatly multiplying the need for more cotton field workers and perhaps inadvertently increasing the south's dependency on slavery.The Wilkerson Mill, built of rubble stone in 1810 along the Blackstone River displays the mechanical engineering genius of the era.
The mill provided three shifts of "skilled" year-round jobs which meant farmers could supplement their income. Sending their children to work at the mill was a safety net for farming families who were always at the mercy of harsh weather events and crop-eating insects for their livelihood.
A lower level 16,000 pound waterwheel with large gears and a towering piston reaching to the upper floors displayed early mechanical ingenuity.
For ninety minutes we were immersed
in a time-period so foreign to our present lives
yet so historically momentous.
Ella and I watched BBC's production of Elizabeth Gaskell's North and South that evening as it portrayed an industrialized English city's cotton mill of the 1850's. Enjoying the story and how it complemented our outing, she exclaimed "Why have you never shown me this before?"
It was a truly wonderful day.
An ideal mix of fun, education, appreciation of local history, and family togetherness!
