ANDOVER WOOLEN FACTORY
INFO: Taken from old Andover Newspapers
COMPILED by: William A. Greene
December 2015
Sometime in the early history of Andover a Woolen Factory was built. It stood on Rail Road St. which is now Water St. The factory would have been between what was once the James and Marian Cannon home now owned by James Richmond and wife and the John and Helena Cannon property on Water St.
We have no date as to when it was built and who built it as nothing was written down and if it was it was probably lost in the flood of 1972. All of the old records were kept in the cellar under the Town of Andover office in the old American Legion Hall by the Village of Andover office. When the flood happened the cellar was full of water and everything had to be thrown away. Also there wasn’t a newspaper being printed until June 3, 1869.
So we have no idea when this factory was built, but we do know that it closed down sometime in 1868.
Finally, in the November 11th, 1869 Andover Advertiser on page 5, was this news item: Andover Woolen Factory. On Friday of last week a company was organized for the purpose of reopening the Woolen Factory. The company consists of the following gentlemen: J.J. Harmon, J.L. Williams, Simeon Hann and Dr. J. R. Hartshorn.
The company organized by choosing the following officers: J.J. Harmon, President, S. Hann and Dr. Hartshorn, Treas., Dr. Del McClary Secretary.
The company starts off with a working capital of $25,000. The factory will be reopened on the first of February, 1870.
We are more than glad to see a prospect of the factory starting up again. For one year the property has been lying idle, doing nobody any good with $35,000 or $40,000 invested. Thus it will help to make business here more lively, if it is run as it should be, and we have no reason to think that it will not, with such business men at the head.
May success Crown Their Efforts.
In the December 15th 1869 Andover Advertiser on page 4 was this article:
Andover Manufacturing Company. The organization of this company has been fully completed, it starts with a working capital of $25,000, this is divided into fifty shares of $ 500 each, and owned as follows: J.J. Harman, 18 shares, $9,000, J. R. Hartshorn, 18 shares, $9,000, J.L. Williams, 7 shares, $3,500 and Simeon Hann, 7 shares, $3,500 for a total of $25,000. The officers of the company are as follows: J.J. Harman, J. R. Hartshorn and J.L. Williams are the Directors and Dr. Del. McClary is Secretary.
They now intend to start the factory during the month of February. They are already busily engaged in buying up stock and getting ready to run.
December, 23, 1869 pg: 5. In making mention of the Andover manufacturing company last week, we omitted to insert the name of J.J. Harman, President of the company. In the selection of Mr. Harman as president of the company they did nobly, as a business man, Mr. Harman has few equals, whatever he undertakes to do he accomplishes, as can be plainly seen in his business relations. He adopted the cash system, he now employs four lively clerks and you can bet they don’t get many spare moments all because he goes at business in the right way and uses a plenty of printers ink. EIGHT ISSUES OF THE PAPER MISSING.
In the June 23rd, 1870 page 3: The custom carding machinery at the Woolen Mills is now in full blast, and they have a man running it who has followed carding upwards of 40yrs.
July 28, 1870 pg: 3 The Andover Woolen Mills have bought this season between thirty and forty thousand pounds of wool.
May 14th, 1874 pg. 3 The sale of the Woolen Mills have finally been closed, and Mr. L.B. French of Cleveland, Ohio, is now the owner. Preparations are to be made to put the mill in running order at once. This will make quite a difference with the business of Andover.
As you could see many of the papers are missing. There were no copies of the Andover paper from November 1874 to September 1887.
I was told by Robert “Moose” Baker, past Andover Historian that the mill burnt to the ground, no dates were given.
