Joseph P. Battles Papers

Joseph P. Battles was born in Dorchester, Massachusetts, moved to Lowell as a boy, and came to Lawrence, Massachusetts in 1848 to be paymaster of the Atlantic Cotton Mills; he later became agent at the mills. He was connected with the company for 37 years, resigning in 1887. In 1881 he became the principal owner and treasurer of the Lawrence Machine Shop. Battles was agent of the Atlantic Cotton Mills. The first volume indicates that the records were made by him at the agent's house in Lawrence, Massachusetts. Battles moved to North Andover, Massachusetts in 1887; the second volume records the weather in North Andover. After Battles's death in 1900, there are continued entries by an unidentified compiler. Included is information on water levels, temperature, rainfall, etc., plus mention of mill closings in Lawrence due to the 1894 depression and information about public events. Also contains newspaper clippings about the sale of Battles's mill property and potential buyers, including Geo. E. Kunhardt Co.