Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1891-07-13

Ha.n Nheh4rseu. Mr.. C.,ihsesh afssfvascs
moved Ia L s,.ios an. did ihsfe s9nn
feich esms from Limerick and sefAea on
What 10 nos kroyn - The Auiaes fAxA
Mr. EsIlh cleared mp the farm - - -
,aAny years . prominent esnzea OF ne
town. He removed 20 Minpesoss y 1890.
Jo,sph soodscow vas N sdoaAeA son ~
Aaron Pusaam, ore Of the piosssfs Of ne
rovn cf Haaitcr, aa9 vas living IN Hoan.n
hsr The Ms.rissns arrived there IN ieiI-
he soon after married Miss Dolly Morrison
And removed 70 New Limerick. vhsfs n
.fr<rvsrds died. Oliver Gould came rom
Berwick. he is taxed in 1s43si;h letS'
Rrgs ID, .hish 10 the ics nsxt east OF me
Rafus Piper farm. and psfsof loss and ~
Rsnee &. noFsh Of Dsev's lake. ~
Could as the hfss town treasurer Of New
Limerick. Jonathan Hayes came from
limerick and made the frss clearing on me
Msses Drew lot u the foot Of Dres't lake.
Sc. posr Randall came from Limefiek ano
sssr,ed on the LOT next north OF ths Dfes
farm. He cleared up the farm and AEec
90 il until his death some ten ysass $50.
Charles Sp2onsr came from Linn erick anc
settled on . pat Of the lot upon which the
t.nnery /, nos situated. Mr.. Sp )olsr mar
RED daughter Of Samuel Morrison- lie
sas the frat collector OF taxes In the tosn
S,megn Lougse vas one OF the early set
tlsrs and msds q farm east Of the tannery
lot upon which bis son now RESIDES. ln
ls3l Ephraim Nickerson and Beni&min :.
Sleksrson of Chins came TO Nes Limerick
and bought the Morrison farms. Benz 'min
r. S.ekerson after ards purchased con-
siderable land in different portions Of the
t,.n and vas prominent citizen. Daniel
Cookson, James Mesefvy and Daniel JAmet
came about 1910, and James Monahan and
Patrick Fleming in l845.
Hsr.iships Of ths Pfonsers.
The early settlers of New Limerick. like
ths pioneers Of the Houlton settlement,
.ho.e nearest neighbor they were. were
subjected to many hardships and pfiystions
10 their struggles to make for themselves
homes in this then remote forest region.
Phere ~ere 10 roads pas,able by carriages
and many Of the settlers were Obliged 10
carry grain on their backs to the mill and
bring bsek -four to make bread for their
families. The first road opened into the
town vas the road now leading BY
the tannery. This ROAD was cut out
eoop after the settlers commenced to
come up % the town but was not passable
for carriages until long Afterwards. In
1910 the new county road so called was
opened. This road runs entirely across the
town from east to west on the line between
ranges 3 and G and now forms part Of
the mail route from Houlton 10 Pstten.
The establishment Of the tannery ct New
Limerick bSs resulted in building up qaits
. little village in the vicinity OF that enter
prise and hiss added much to the business
Of the town and to its valuation.
In the spring Of 1875 Messrs. C. and W
[. Shaw Of Dexter purchased the lot upon
which the tannery now stands comprising
100 acres and also 5000 acres of he mloel
timber land in the adjoining town Of Lin
neus. The south branch Of the Meduxne'
keag stream runs through the tannery lot
and the Messrs Shaw first commenced th'
construction of saw mill in which to man
ufscsure the lumber for the extensive
buildings of the tAnnery plant. They
erected the tannery buildings the SAM
yesr. Ia order to get an idea Of the lsrg'
business here carried on it 10 necessary to
20 through the works and inspect the dif
ferent branches.
The Great Tannery.
The main building is so feet wide and $50
feet long. This contains the vat yard with
2lO watts, and the handler and beam hous'
building adjoining contains AZ watts and
sweat vaults. Passing through this msip
building we come to the first engine house
in which is . so horse power engine. Be
yond is the boiler house SO feet by GO feet
containing two steel tubular boilers each
Is feet long and feet in dism ater. The
only fuel supplied to the huge furnaces is
spent tan which sitter having been thor
ouehly lesched is conveyed from the teaches
to the furnaces by an endless chain. Mex
to this boiler house is the leach house also
&c feet by 60 feet which contains eight
teaches or immense tubs, each capable OF
holding eleven cords Of bark. In these
teaches the liquor is made and is then con-
veyed to an immense tank where it il heated
by coils Of copper pipe, the exhaust steam
from the engines being used for that pur'
pose. Mex. is the bark mill building con;
tanning three bark mills. Here the bark IL
ground and 10 conveyed to the teaches by .
large revolving screw. Beyond the bark
mill is second engine room With an engine
Of 10 horse power which drives the bark
mills, the other engine furnishing thr
poxer for the hide mills and rolling ms
chimes. In the second story Of the main
building is the large dry lott and beyond ID
the rolling room. The dry hides when
brought to the factory are put TO soak IN
water and after being thoroughly soaked go
through the milling process for the purpose
Of softening them and rendering them a.
near as possible to the natural state when
taken from the animal They are then
divided down the back into "sides" and
taken to the sweat vault, where they re-
main from three to ten days according to
the condition Of the atmosphere. They are
then taken to the beams where the hair and
all scraps Of flesh are carefully worked Oh
by men with long scrspers made for this
purpose. From the beam they next go
through the coloring process which requires
but half an hour and thence to the acid watts
where they are soaked in weak solution
Of suiphuric acid from SO to AZ hours.
From the scid watts they are taken to the
tan watts where they remain immersed in the
LIQUOR made from the hemlock bark for a
period of four or Eve months, the liquor
being frequently changed and its strength
increased After having remained in the
tan watts for sufficient length OF time they
are taken to the scrub room where they are
thoroughly scrubbed by means Of .revolv-
ing wheel. They are then oiled and taken
to
The Drying Lott
where they remain from four to fourteen
days according to Temperature. They then
90 to the rolling room where after having
been wet they are rolled with heavy iron
rollers, they are then dried and rolled again
which completes the process. The finished
leather il now weighed. marked and then
hauled to Houlton whe nee it is shipped to
Boston. This tsnnery uses South American
and Western hides, handling about 10000
hides and m snufactufine 500 tous Of cole
leather yearly. Itrtquires 5000 cords Of
h. MOCK bark annually to furnish the tan
rery. An average force of fifty men il
he xw,t kIxyp q