1. A Portrait of Damon Mill

Damon Mill in the nineteenth century.

The area where the Damon Mill now stands in West Concord has been associated with industry and manufacturing since just after Concord's founding.

Beginning in the mid-seventeenth century, the Damon Mill site was home to an ironworks, as well as saw, grist, and fulling mills. The Assabet River supplied water for both power and processing. The present Damon Mill was preceded by a wooden mill building more than one hundred feet long that produced cotton yarn. The mill passed through several hands before it was purchased in 1834 by Calvin Carver Damon. With years of experience in the textile business, Damon expanded his enterprise. He shifted production from cotton to satinet, and then from satinet to domett cloth.

Damon Mill has been listed in the National Register of Historic Places for nearly half a century, and now houses primarily offices. This exhibit takes viewers through the nearly 400 years of the Damon Mill area's history and highlights the memorable cast of characters connected with this storied building.