The following materials cover a wide range of topics related to the textile industry in Willimantic from the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Children of the Cotton Industry
This presentation examines the lives of southern children who grow up picking cotton for northern US factories.
Child Labor 1870s – 1930s
Child Labor presents the lives of children who worked in factories during the heyday of the textile industry.
The Story of My Cotton Dress
My Cotton Dress explores all of the work children had to do to make a single garment. From growing and picking the cotton to selling the finished product.
The Boss Family
The Boss Family looks at the privileged lives of a mill manager’s children verses children of working class families.
Life of a Mill Worker’s Family – 1893
This is the story of one poor Irish immigrant family and how they came to Willimantic to start a new life.
Mill Memories: Photographs of Mill Workers
Mill Memories (pdf)
A look at the lives of mill workers through the photography collection at the Windham Textile and History Museum.
Willimantic 1882 – 1909
Using old maps and images, a story is told about the town of Willimantic at the turn of the 20th century.
Swift Waters, Hot Steam, and Electric Motors
A presentation on different types of power used by the mills at Willimantic Falls, 1822-2012.
The Civil War: Connecticut’s Cotton Connection
This lecture was given during the Mill Museum’s Civil War exhibit in 2011-2012.
A Gneiss Prospect: Shaping an Early Industrial Ecosystem in Connecticut’s Lower Willimantic River Valley, 1820-1920
A Gneiss Prospect (pdf)
How both environment and industrial history helped shaped eastern Connecticut.
If Walls Could Talk: Researching the History of Your House: A Guide for Beginners
If Walls Could Talk (pdf)
A 2011 lecture given by the WTHM director, Dr. Jamie Eves.