Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1911-11-28
SHOWS Fan. Property Sold.
BRIEF HISTORY OF OPERATIONS AND
ATTEMPTS AT THAT PLACE.

/ BRIEF HISTORY OF OPERATIONS AM
ATTEMPTS AT THAT PLACE.
This Communication received by tn
Democrat reviews the industrial histor,
of Shows Falls, and gives an indication
that the water power there, 30 long idle
may be in the near future employ cd T.
good purpose
An event which, IL 10 hoped, means a
advance In the industrial prosperity o
Paris occurred In Boston on Thursday
the Esd inst, when the Shows Fall
Mfg. Co. by Fred j. Wood president
decided to Eugene v. Earle Of Marble
head, Mass, all of the extensive mil
buildings and property situated a
Shows Falls in this county.
In the fall of the year 1S47, Thoma
Stearns Of Cambridge, Mass, in compan,
with William Chase OF Paris Hill, and C
B. Hamilton of Portland, bought o.
Eleazer Durham. Jr., father-in-law o.
the late Charles T. Buck, that portion Of
his homestead farm which covered
Shows Falls, and proceeded to erect {
mill for the manufacture of chairs. Thi,
business prospered In the early days and
the dwelling house now occupied By
John r. Wood was built in lS49 by Phin
cas- Stearns, q brother of Thomas, tc
provide boarding house for the work.
men in the mill. Soon after the opening
Of the Grand Trunk Railroad, the Stearni
chair factory was set on fire by sparks
from passing engine and burned to the
ground. The late j. j. Gerrish of Port
land was conductor on the Grand
Trunk during its first years and he once
described to the writer the appearance
and location of the old mill which, be
said, always appeared tout of plumb
on account of tho inclination of the Cal
windows as the trains rolled around the
curve, which is quite sharp at that point
The same optical illusion has been often
remarked, especially just after the cree
ton of the three-story building in 1893
when George r. Hammond. the builder
had to take lot of unmerited "jOlly
ing" for ii.
Mr.. Stearns acquired his partners in
terests in 1850, and for over thirty years
was the sole owner of Shows Falls, eX.
cept during the two years while an am
bitiouS tenant was trying to raise the
purchase price. Mr.. Stearns for several
| ears leased the second mill to his neph.
ews, Benjamin K, Levi D., Edwin b
Alfred w., Marshall N, and Thomas E.
S,earns, sons of Phineas Stearps, who
successfully manufactured chairs for
several years About 1876 Lewis E.
Mann of West Paris was a tenant in the
old mill and he has related how he used
| to pay the conductor of train five dol
lars for holding his train at the Falls
long enough for Mr.. Mann to load or un-
load car of freight.
Jan. /, 1877, Mr.. Stearns sold the
property to John Kerslake, taking back
mortgage for all but $500 of the pur-
chase price. Mr.. Kerslake engaged in
the manufacture OF wall paper but was
unfortunate as his mill was burned on
the 5,h of June, 1877, and he reconveyed
to Thomas Stesrns two years later.
Late in the year 1880 the Exeter Wood
Pulp Co. acquired the property and de-
veloped il for the manufacture of wood
pulp and, for the next few years, pros
perty reigned at Shows Falls. But,
following the concentration into larg g
plants of the wood pulp industry, small
| mills were frozen out and Shows Falls,
with its next below neighbOr at Biscoe
| Falls, suffered from the loss of business.
The property was leased in 1884 to Ger
tain parties for the manufacture of pulp
bobbin heads but that business was a
failure from the start aud in June, 1885,
the mill, with the whole manufactured
stock, was again destroyed by fire under
circumstances which caused a general
shaking of heads by those conversant
with the affairs.
In the fall of 1885 certain parties, hav-
ing no interest in the premises, obtained
permission to erect a mill under agree
ment to sell TO the owners of the land
when satisfactorily completed. A mill
was erected in October and November
of 1885 but, by an incomprehensible
error of judgment, it was placed low
down in the gorge below the Falls, and
the prophecies of the neighbors were
verified by the first freshet which came
in the next January and swept the mill
down stream.
The entire property passed into the
Ownership Of Fred j. Wood 10 1889 and,
in 1898, he moved to Shows Falls, occu.
plying the large white house above the
Falls, and devoting himself to the i'm.
provement of the mill property. A
three-story mill building was erected in
the fall of that year and water wheel
was installed. But the panic of 1893,
now matter of history, prevented the
completion of all plans and prvented the
development of any business for several
years.
In 1902 the Linen Mfg Co. was organ
lied and acquired the Shows Falls priv
lege. This concern proposed to manu-
facture various products Of linen and
for few years, did vigorous business
But, owing to Engagements among
those in control, the business fell off and
the company passed into the hands of q
receiver.
For the past few years the title has
rested in the Shows Falls Mfg. Co.,
which owned the property from 1893 tC
1902 and sold to the Linen Mfg. Co., and
nothing has been done beyond the main
tenance of the buildings and the opera
ton, In the fall Of each year, Of cider
mill.
BY the above it appears that the mills
at Shows Falls, during the past sixty
four years have been three times de.
stroysd BY fire and once by food, not a
bad record after all considering the cir
cumstances of two of the fires; and the
ill-advised location within reach of the
food.
The new owner is q man prominent 10
the business circles Of Boston, and a
vigorous and pushing parsonage. 1t ID
expected that operations of interest ant
benefit to the town will soon commence
The Maine Dairymen's Conference.
The annual state dairymen's con
ference will be held by the state com
missioner of agriculture In connection
with and with the aid Of the State Dairy
mems Association, at Norway, Dec. 5, &
and Z. Prizes are offered in cash and
specials for all kinds of dairy products
The program 10 as follows:
Opera House, Tuesday, DEFENDERS.
80 p. m. Music.
Invocation BY Rev. b. c. wentworth,
Norway
= Address Of welcome-From the Norway
i Board Of Trade, Hon. Alfred 8. kimball
From the Norway Grange. ,,s u..,.,
l Responss-Hop. q. 8. Stetson. Master
Maine State Grange
II Music.
| Address-Robert J. Alley. President Uni.
versity of Maine
Grange Hail. Wednesday, December 6.