Savage Mill

Savage Mill, Foundry Street, Savage, Maryland

Savage Mill, Foundry Street, Savage, Maryland

– Click on the image to enlarge or purchase –

Savage Mill

Savage Mill is a historic cotton mill complex on the banks of the Little Patuxent River in Howard County, Maryland. The current buildings date from between 1822 and 1916 although there had been a mill on this site as early as 1810.

The earliest mill was started by four brothers: Nathaniel F. Williams, Amos Adams Williams, Cumberland Dugan Williams and George Williams. The mill was located next to the marital house of Nathaniel which was built by his father-in-law, Commodore Joshua Barney in 1760. Commodore Barney had a colorful career as an American Navy officer in the Continental Navy during the Revolutionary War, merchant and privateer ranging from Philadelphia to Jamaica.

The town and mill were named after Kingston, Jamaica born John Savage of the Philadelphia shipping company, Savage & Duggan. It was John Savage who lent the Williams brothers $20,000 to start the business eventually buying the mill outright in 1823. The mill’s main product was cotton duck (from the Dutch “doek” meaning linen canvas), a heavy plain tightly woven cotton fabric. This fabric was originally used to make the sails for the clipper ships that ported at Baltimore Harbor.

The mill was in almost continuous operation until January 1, 1948. There had been a two year shutdown from 1861 to 1862 due to a lack of raw cotton from the Southern states during the Civil War.

After the mill closed the complex was purchased by Harry Heim who used it to manufacture Christmas ornaments. The site also features a Christmas Village featuring live reindeer. This operation did not last long, though. In 1950 the mill was acquired by Albert Winer and his three brothers and used as a warehouse for the National Store Fixture Company.

Savage Mill, Foundry Street, Savage, Maryland

Savage Mill, Foundry Street, Savage, Maryland

– Click on the image to enlarge or purchase –

Savage Mill was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974. The mill complex was renovated in the early 1980s. In 1985 it was reopened as a collection of restaurants, specialty shops and antique dealers. Limited changes have been made to the fabric of the buildings, and the original timbers and iron fittings can be seen throughout.

Summary
Savage Mill
Article Name
Savage Mill
Description
Savage Mill is a historic cotton mill complex on the banks of the Little Patuxent River in Howard County, Md dating from between 1822 and 1916
Author
Publisher Name
Mark Summerfield
Publisher Logo

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Copy Protected by Chetan's WP-Copyprotect.