Granite Mills are two historic cotton textile mills located on Bedford Street in Fall River, Massachusetts , consisting of Granite Mill No. 2 and Granite Mill No. 3. The site was determined eligible to be listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983, but was omitted due to owner's objection.
21-456: The mills were organized in 1863 with William Mason as president and Charles O. Shove as treasurer. The original Mill No. 1 was built 1864. It was 328 feet (100 m) long by 70 feet (21 m) wide and five stories high with a barn roof. The mill did not begin operation until January 1865, however. Mill No. 1 was destroyed by fire on September 19, 1874. Twenty three workers were killed in the disaster, and thirty three more were injured. Workers on
42-575: A fellow servant standard which held that owners were employees of their corporation and that a corporation could not be held liable for injuries done by one employee to another. As a result of the fire, mills were constructed with flat roofs, as the sloped roof of Granite Mill No. 1 made it difficult for firefighters to get on it and fight the fire. Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court 42°21′33″N 71°03′39″W / 42.359297°N 71.060954°W / 42.359297; -71.060954 The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ( SJC )
63-554: A jury for an inquest into the deaths that occurred in Granite Mill No. 1. Forty-nine witnesses were called to testify. The inquest closed on September 29 and the jury returned its verdict on October 3. The jury found that the fire department responded as quickly as possible given the confusion caused by four different fire boxes being pulled at the same time. The jury did fault the department's hook and ladder trucks as insufficient and poorly handled, but did not find any other issue with
84-413: A mule head ignited oiled cotton and other combustible waste lying around the mule. This was not uncommon and these fires could usually be contained by a bucket of water. However, on this occasion the mill workers could not contain the fire. The fire progressed slowly through the bottom three floors of the building, which allowed those working there to escape without injury. However, it quickly spread up
105-485: A smoldering fire start by a spark from a torch during remodeling of the building damaged some of the floor and caused about 10,000 dollars in damage. This mills now contains the Granite Block Global Data Center. 41°42′05″N 71°08′47″W / 41.7013°N 71.1463°W / 41.7013; -71.1463 Granite Mill fire The Granite Mill fire occurred on September 19, 1874 at
126-428: A supermarket, which later became China Royal restaurant. The site now contains various businesses, including a CVS, Boston Market and a bank. From 1959, Mill No. 2 was the home of suit maker Anderson-Little until it closed in 1998. The building is now occupied by various businesses. Mill No. 3 was for many years occupied by Globe Manufacturing, which manufactured rubber-based goods, including Spandex . On July 28, 2011
147-762: Is the highest court in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts . Although the claim is disputed by the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania , the SJC claims the distinction of being the oldest continuously functioning appellate court in the Americas , with a recognized history dating to the establishment of the Massachusetts Superior Court of Judicature in 1692 under the charter of the Province of Massachusetts Bay . Although it
168-528: The Granite Mills in Fall River, Massachusetts . The blaze killed 23 employees, most of them children. At 6:50 am, only 20 minutes into the work day, a fire broke out on the fourth floor of Granite Mill No. 1. This floor contained the spinning mule department where 100 girls worked under the supervision of a male overseer. The fire started in the northwest corner of the spinning mule room when friction from
189-511: The aftermath of the fire, the Fall River Fire Department was criticized for their response. Chief Holden Durfee was accused of becoming paralyzed by fear and losing control of his men and the ladder company was criticized for not splicing their ladders together so they could reach the top floor. The Granite Mills also faced criticism for not providing adequate means of escape. On September 21, 1874, coroner Andrew W. M. White convened
210-519: The department. It also found that on the day of the fire, the mill's tanks, pumps, pipes, and hoses were lacking water. The jury found that many of the deaths on the sixth floor could have been prevented if those working there had been notified of the fire sooner, as the alarm could only be heard on the floor it was sounded. They also criticized the male employees working on the sixth floor, as the jurors believed that if they had not become so panic-stricken that they would have been able to properly lead all of
231-769: The executive council of the Massachusetts Provincial Congress (which acted as the state's executive from 1775 to 1780), and governors elected under the state constitution. The SJC sits at the John Adams Courthouse , One Pemberton Square , Boston, Massachusetts 02108, which also houses the Massachusetts Appeals Court and the Social Law Library . The legal citation for the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
SECTION 10
#1732898486069252-489: The fire department, however this caused confusion as to the location of the fire. As a result, fire engines did not arrive until 15 minutes after the blaze began, by which time the mill was completely engulfed in flames. Four firemen were injured in the blaze. The fire burned until around 11:30 am and the recovery of bodies began almost immediately and went until around 5:00 p.m. A number of bodies were so badly burnt or disfigured that they could not be easily identified. In
273-547: The mill is two stories, while the rear part is three stories. The company also built nearly one hundred triple decker tenement houses nearby for the accommodation of its workers. By 1917, the company had a capacity of 122,048 spindles and 3,000 looms. In 1932 the Granite Mills were acquired by the Pepperell Manufacturing Company, and continued to operate into the 1950s. Mill No. 1 was demolished in 1961 for
294-617: The province's local court of last resort (some of the court's decisions could be appealed to courts in England). When the Massachusetts State Constitution was established in 1780, legislative and judicial records show that the state's high court, although renamed, was a continuation of provincial high court. During and after the period of the American Revolution the court had members who were appointed by royal governors,
315-435: The sixth floor and the fire department's ladders were not long enough to reach it. Some employees were able to escape by climbing down a cotton rope, however it eventually burnt. Many of those trapped on the sixth floor suffered fatal injuries jumping the 60 feet (18 m) from the windows and missing the straw and mattresses provided by people on the ground. Alarms in the mill and on nearby streets were sounded to alert
336-428: The tower containing the building's staircase, rendering it unusable to those on the fifth and sixth floors, where the mill's youngest employees worked. The fire alarm could not be heard on the sixth floor and no one from the lower floors alerted the sixth floor of the fire. Thus, they were unaware of the fire until smoke had already filled the sole staircase. Although the building had fire escapes, they did not extend to
357-446: The upper floors faced a desperate choice, either jump five stories to the ground, or be burned to death. The Granite Mill fire was widely publicized in the press and became the subject of several folk songs found throughout New England and New York , as well as Nova Scotia , where many of the workers came from. The scandal led to reforms in the design of future mill buildings, requiring multiple exits and fire escapes. Mill No. 1
378-519: The women and children out of the building before the stairs caught fire. Lastly, the jury found that the loss of life would have been avoided if the sixth floor had been constructed with an adequate amount of escapes. Some of the survivors sued the mill company for not an adequate exit from the sixth floor. One employee, Ellen Jones, had her case go all the way to the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court , however, Massachusetts had
399-526: Was flattened to a full story after the tragic 1874 fire in Mill No.1, due to safety concerns. This mill was powered by a 750-horsepower Corliss engine . Water for the steam-powered mills was drawn through a canal from the Quequechan River . Mill No. 3 was built in 1893, also in granite, but wider and with less ornamentation. It measured 510 feet (160 m) long by 127 feet (39 m) wide. The front half of
420-544: Was historically composed of four associate justices and one chief justice, the court is currently composed of six associate justices and one chief justice. The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court traces its history back to the high court of the British Province of Massachusetts Bay , which was chartered in 1692. Under the terms of that charter, Governor Sir William Phips established the Superior Court of Judicature as
441-480: Was soon rebuilt, but with a flat roof and a fire sprinkler system. The rebuilt Mill No. 1 was powered by a 650-horsepower Corliss engine , fed by twenty four boilers. Mill No. 2 was constructed in 1871 at the corner of Bedford Street and Robeson, from local Fall River granite in the Italianate style. It is 378 feet (115 m) long by 74 feet (23 m) wide. Originally five stories with a barn roof. The sixth floor
SECTION 20
#1732898486069#68931