![Town River Iron Works Site](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/10/Town_River_Iron_Works_Site.jpg)
The Bridgewater Iron Works is a historic industrial site located on High Street in
Bridgewater, Massachusetts
Bridgewater is a town located in Plymouth County, in the state of Massachusetts, United States. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the town's population was 28,633. Bridgewater is located approximately south of Boston and approximately 35 miles east ...
, United States, along the banks of the
Town River
The Town River is a river in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States. It flows U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed April 1, 2011 from the northeast end of Lake Nippeni ...
. Previously known as Lazell, Perkins and Company, by the mid-19th century, the Bridgewater Iron Manufacturing Company was one of the largest iron works in the United States, specializing in heavy castings and forgings. The property was later acquired by the
Stanley Works
Stanley Black & Decker, Inc., formerly known as The Stanley Works, is a Fortune 500 American manufacturer of industrial tools and household hardware and provider of security products. Headquartered in the greater Hartford city of New Britain, ...
, with the surrounding village still known to this day as ''Stanley''.
The location was most recently used for manufacturing by the Bridgewater Foundry Company until 1988. It has since been converted into a small public park, with only the remnants of a stone storehouse remaining. The site was added to the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...
in 2002.
Site history
The industrial history of the site began in 1694, when David Perkins was granted permission to construct a dam across the
Town River
The Town River is a river in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States. It flows U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed April 1, 2011 from the northeast end of Lake Nippeni ...
by the
colonial government of Massachusetts. By 1707, Perkins had established a blacksmith shop at the site.
In 1785, brothers Isaac and Nathan Lazell built a new
slitting mill
The slitting mill was a watermill for slitting bars of iron into rods. The rods then were passed to nailers who made the rods into nails, by giving them a point and head.
The slitting mill was probably invented near Liège in what is now Bel ...
on the site - the second mill in the country to be erected after the end of the
Revolutionary War. (The construction of new iron mills had been prohibited by the
British Crown since 1750). A second slitting mill was added in 1793. By 1795, the Lazell brothers were manufacturing over 445 tons of iron per year.
[David R. Moore, Bridgewater Historical Commission, June 2007 (from sign at site)] Jacob Perkins, a skilled mechanic soon joined the company, in which he later became a partner.
From 1810 to 1816, the company was known as Lazell, Carey & Company and produced cannons during the
War of 1812
The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States, United States of America and its Indigenous peoples of the Americas, indigenous allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom ...
and iron pots for the whaling industry, among other items, including cut nails and iron hoops for wooden barrels. In 1816, Carey died and the company was renamed Lazell, Perkins & Company. In 1825, the company became incorporated as the Bridgewater Iron Manufacturing Company, but continued doing business as Lazell, Perkins & Company for many years after.
In 1830, the company began manufacturing steam engines and large additions were made to the works. However, this endeavor was discontinued after just a few years, with the firm deciding to concentrate on its iron and foundry businesses, including the machinery used in the production of these goods. In 1835, upon the death of Nathan Lazell, Jr.,
Nahum Stetson
Nahum Stetson (August 21, 1807 - October 6, 1894) was a leading businessman from southeastern Massachusetts during the 19th century. He is best known for his role in establishing the Bridgewater Iron Company as one of the largest iron works in ...
became treasurer. In the years to follow, Stetson, who had been with the firm since 1825, would guide the company through a period of great expansion, surviving the great financial
Panics of 1837 and
1857. With his successes in Bridgewater, Stetson would also become associated with several other iron works in the area, including the Weymouth Iron Company in 1841, the Tremont Iron Works in
Wareham in 1846, and the Providence Iron Company in 1854. Stetson was also later associated with the Old Colony Iron works in
Taunton
Taunton () is the county town of Somerset, England, with a 2011 population of 69,570. Its thousand-year history includes a 10th-century monastic foundation, Taunton Castle, which later became a priory. The Normans built a castle owned by the ...
, as well as numerous other businesses in the region.
In 1845, the
Fall River Railroad reached
Bridgewater, and the following year, a connection to
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
was completed, allowing the company much easier access to these markets. The company grew rapidly during this time, and by the early 1850s, it employed 250 men and contained about 10 acres devoted to manufacturing. James Ferguson became superintendent of the works in 1856, and would be in charge of the daily operation of the company for several decades.
By 1860, at the dawn of the
Civil War
A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country).
The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
, the Bridgewater Iron Company was one of the largest in the country, specializing in heavy castings and forgings, including key parts for the
United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
, including the famous
USS Monitor and the
USS New Ironsides iron-clad warships, and the
Pacific Mail Steamship Company
The Pacific Mail Steamship Company was founded April 18, 1848, as a joint stock company under the laws of the State of New York by a group of New York City merchants. Incorporators included William H. Aspinwall, Edwin Bartlett (American consul ...
. By 1868, the company employed about 600 men. The company also produced drawn copper and brass tubes for steam boilers.
Bridgewater Iron Company, 1876
/ref>
In 1899, the site was purchased by the Stanley Works
Stanley Black & Decker, Inc., formerly known as The Stanley Works, is a Fortune 500 American manufacturer of industrial tools and household hardware and provider of security products. Headquartered in the greater Hartford city of New Britain, ...
of New Britain, Connecticut for the manufacture of machinery and steel plate used in tool production. The section of Bridgewater surrounding the plant soon became known as Stanley. The company operated the site until 1928, when production was shifted to New Britain. The site was then acquired by the George O. Jenkins Company, for storage of scrap paper.
The property was heavily damaged by the Hurricane of 1938
The 1938 New England Hurricane (also referred to as the Great New England Hurricane and the Long Island Express Hurricane) was one of the deadliest and most destructive tropical cyclones to strike Long Island, New York, and New England. The stor ...
. Between 1946 and 1988, two buildings on the site were operated by the Bridgewater Foundry Company, which produced grey iron castings.
Recent history
The property was donated to the Town of Bridgewater in 1994 by the Brousseau and Landner families, the last owners of the foundry. Much of the site has been converted into Ironworks Park. The park includes a small bridge over the Town River, and the remnants of several buildings. Another portion of the property now contains the town's highway department.
See also
*
* Old Colony Iron Works
* Tremont Nail Company
References
{{National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts
Industrial buildings and structures on the National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts
Historic districts in Plymouth County, Massachusetts
National Register of Historic Places in Plymouth County, Massachusetts
Industrial archaeological sites in the United States
Industrial buildings and structures in Massachusetts
Ironworks and steel mills in the United States
Bridgewater, Massachusetts
Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts