Cascade Woolen Mill Records
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Scope and Contents
The Cascade Woolen Mill Records are comprised exclusively of financial records ranging from 1883 to 1948. The first item is a stock ledger from 1883 to 1931 denoting the names of stockholders in the company and their allotted shares. A goods sold ledger contains monthly totals for goods sold and goods shipped from 1913 to 1918. General ledgers include one volume for the years 1917-1920 and then 24 more, each encompassing a single year, spanning 1922 to 1943, 1946, and 1947. These general ledgers include the yearly sums for categories such as accounts payable totals, surplus totals, goods sold, freight expenses, express expenses, etc. There is a specific accounts payable ledger covering the years 1944-1947. There are two biannual 'Goods on Hand' journals, one ranging from 1885 to 1902, and the other covering 1903 to 1920. A dividends paid journal covers the years 1918 to 1925, and an asset and liability journal covers the years 1921 to 1932. The final three volumes in the collection consist of general journals (1930-1937, 1938-1943, and 1943-1948). These general journals contain information similar to that found in the general ledgers, but are broken down by month.
Dates
- undated
Conditions Governing Access
Access to the collections in the Kheel Center is restricted. Please contact a reference archivist for access to these materials.
Conditions Governing Use
This collection must be used in keeping with the Kheel Center Information Sheet and Procedures for Document Use.
Biographical / Historical
Cascade Woolen Mill of Oakland, ME, was a woolen fabric manufacturer from the late nineteenth into the late twentieth century.
Biographical / Historical
In 1882, R. B. Dunn, Josiah B. Mayo, Seth M. Milliken, John Ayer and D.A. Campbell got together to construct and incorporate the Cascade Woolen Mill in West Waterville, ME. The mill began operations in 1883, the same year West Waterville became the town of Oakland, ME. While the mill remained afloat throughout the great depression, it was sold to Frederic W. Tipper in 1935. Tipper had been the national woolen sales manager for Deering-Milliken, which held a controlling interest in the Cascade mill up to that point in time.
From the 1930s to the 1950s, the mill made cloth primarily for popular-priced sportswear. World War II brought changes to the mill, as most of the equipment was upgraded and replaced. The mill contracted with the government to produce a wool/cotton blend used to line jackets for the armed forces. During the 1950s, Cascade expanded its physical plant, adding a new boiler house, another wing for the dressing department, and office space. In the 1960s, the mill changed its product from large quantities of popular-priced fabrics to a higher quality wool aimed at specialized customer needs. Plant revisions were made and new equipment installed to compete in the higher quality market.
In 1973, Cascade Woolen Mill merged with Charles W. House & Sons of Unionville, CT, another family-owned mill that produced woolen felts. In 1984, the mill was bought back by Frederic Tipper's grandson, Gerald Tipper. Under Gerald Tipper, the mill reached its peak production from the mid-1980s to the early 1990s. However, the same period also saw its decline, as foreign manufacturing competition steadily grew more pronounced. In a final attempt to remain in business, Cascade Woolen Mill attempted to merge with an Austrian fabric company that specialized in woolens, but the negations fell through and in 1997 the mill officially closed. The mill building was then used for various businesses until it burned down in January 2010.
Extent
11.33 cubic feet
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
Collection of financial records ranging from 1883 to 1948 including stock, sales, accounts payable, expenses, goods on hand, dividends, and asset and liability ledgers.
Custodial History
American Textile History Museum Collection, gift of Gerald C. Tipper.
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the Kheel Center for Labor-Management Documentation & Archives Repository
227 Ives Hall
Ithaca NY 14853