Cotton Textile Mill, 1840 New England textile factories ran on the power of coursing rivers. The linear motion of the river was converted to rotary motion by large waterwheels. A complex series of belts and wheels delivered that motion to the various floors of the factory. This room contains “spinning frames,” machines that replaced spinning wheels, turning cleaned cotton into yarn for textile weaving.
Cotton textile mill: Mary Evans Picture Library/age fotostock; shuttle with spindles: Picture Research Consultants & Archives.