Built about 1820, the old mill building still standing
beside the waterfall was part of Meredith's industrial
history until the 1980s. It was likely built by village
developer John Bond Swasey as either a grist mill or cotton
processing (fulling) mill. About 1830 J.W. Lang and several
partners formed the Meredith Village Cotton Factory Company.
In 1859 this and other nearby mill buildings came under
the control of the Meredith Mechanic Association, familiarly
known as "The Corporation." Fortunes of the
Association improved dramatically when Englishman Samuel
Hodgson opened a hosiery manufactory, using space in this
building and a new larger mill lower on the site (pictured
at right). After Hodgson's mill burned in 1889, the property
was eventually developed into the Meredith Linen Mills,
whose linen cloth, or "crash," was soon in high
demand. Various textiles were milled here until the site
was developed into an attractive shopping area in 1984.
Through it all, Swasey's old mill continues to stand as
a monument to Meredith's mill town roots.
Meredith' Mill Buildings
are located in downtown Meredith, just off of Route 3.
Visit their website: http://www.millfalls.com
