The Forge at Whitinsville

The Forge

NPS

Look for a still-active dam. The water running over the dam is from the Mumford River, a tributary of the Blackstone River. It was far from inevitable that this place would become a base for industry. But local craftspeople saw the potential in tapping into the Mumford and the ground below them centuries ago. Their actions laid the groundwork for future industrial development.  

This area contains iron ore deposits. Colonists in the early 1700s established an iron works and ore yard near this spot to make tools. Some of the implements they made were likely for local farmers, for most colonists who settled around the Mumford were involved in agriculture.  

On December 24, 1771, James Fletcher married Margaret Wood, whose father, Ezra Wood, owned rights to the falls on the Mumford River. Soon after, the Fletchers’ home was constructed (at 1 Elm Place) and James, a blacksmith by trade, purchased an ironworks forge. This operation ran for years while James and Margaret raised their children, including daughter Betsy. Her marriage to Paul Whitin would grow the family’s enterprise even more.  

While building their life together, there were major changes underway, downriver. Paul and Betsy’s 1793 nuptials took place in the same year that Slater Mill, the first successful cotton spinning mill in the United States, opened for business in Pawtucket, RI.  

When 16-year old Betsy married Paul, it was the start of a long-lasting partnership, forged in iron. The Whitins’ ten children would expand their father and grandfather’s business operation, making tools such as scythes and hoes. At the time of James Fletcher’s death, in the 1830s, an entire village bore the name of his son-in-law, Paul Whitin. Keep exploring to learn about the vital role that Betsy played in keeping the business together, even if that meant dividing entire villages as family assets.