History of Industry
Slaterville
Slatersville, RI
Slatersville, RI
In 1803, Samuel Slater and his partners decided they wanted to expand their cotton spinning mill. Pawtucket, however, didn't have enough water to power the mill they wanted to build. Sam's younger brother, John Slater, was sent out to find a place where there would be sufficient land to build what would be the larges mill in America and had enough water to run all of the machines.
Take a walk down the trail behind the North Smithfield Library (20 Main Street) and see some of the machinery that controlled the flow of water that powered Slatersville Mill.
Machinery to control the flow of water to the mill.