Stillwater History, Part Two: The Head Race

The Head Race

(Part 2)

 This is a view of the head race from inside the building basement.   The play of light on the falling water obscures the view of the brick wall beyond the waterfall.  This brick wall contains additional clues as to the developmental history of the technology of early industrial water power.  The most obvious characteristic of this wall is a brick archway which provides passage below the existing iron turbine.   This archway can be made out in the below photo although obscured by the falling water and plant roots.  This archway is only three feet tall and nine feet wide and extends back under the location of the above ground iron turbine. 

                                                                  

                                                                    The Brick Arch

The arch is two bricks wide and forms the entrance to what appears to be a circular chamber with fallen wooden beams and a rounded shaft in the center.

                                                                

                                                        The Interior Through the Brick Arch

 Additional investigation is clearly warranted, but if these first impressions are true, then there is a high probability that this later water wheel was an early horizontal turbine type that became popular later in the industrial revolution.  The turbine was favored over the waterwheel in situations where the head (difference in height between the pond water level and the tail race)  was greater than the practical diameter of the water wheel.  It wasn't until 1827 that the first prototype horizontal water wheel was first made by Foureyron, and these turbine type waterwheels were not common until the late 1830's - 1840's.  

Other circumstantial evidence indicating the possibility of a horizontal wheel at the mill can be observed in the following picture which was taken looking down at the iron turbine and head race area.

There is a circular depression below the iron turbine made visible by the ponding of water around the turbine. The dimensions of this "pond" are approximately those observed when trying to look through the brick wall archway.  Safety concerns prohibit the closer examination of the chamber at this time.

                                         

The iron turbine is believed to be the most recent technological hydro-power addition to the site.  This turbine represents the fourth head race configuration and is located above the older brick arch passage which is indicative of a earlier (third head race configuration - the horizontal turbine) technological advancement at the site.  It is also worth note that at some point following the use of brick for the construction of the  head race, the brick doorway [seen in the upper center of  the photograph] was filled in with concrete and concrete block – begging the question, “what is behind this wall?”.

Stillwater History, Part One: The Head Race

Let’s begin today with a narrative tour of the Stillwater Mill Site.  As recently as this summer, it has been cleared of dense brush, revealing to locals driving on Stillwater Road in Smithfield, two historic stone structures that accompany a dam.  This blog is a tour that will take our curious reader, perhaps having just recently seen these buildings for the first time, back to a time when the mill served the community, and helped shape the village of Stillwater.

  

Finding a time to set the story is difficult.  Throughout its development, there were several different technological adaptations to the mill, specialized modifications to the river’s stream flow, and natural environmental impacts that continue to reshape the mill; river; community, and its surroundings.

     We welcome you to take look at what we have found, presented here in this blog, and determine for yourself, the reader, whether our interpretation of the mill as a story "fits" into the historical context; any prior knowledge of the site similar to what we are describing can be mentioned.  If you would comment, please feel free to let us know your experiences with the mill at Stillwater in a historic context.

THE HEAD RACE

                                                                          (Part 1)

     We are starting the mill tour with the head race.  The term is used to describe the channel for bringing flowing water to the water wheel from a pond or stream.   After the water leaves the water wheel, it flows away through a channel called the tail race.  The old wooden water wheels that were used at the Stillwater mill are long gone, and the only obvious remaining hydro-power element is the boiler plate iron turbine that still has water flowing through it.  We believe that if the internal working mechanisms of this turbine were made of Brass, the turbine may still be functional. 

     We know that the dam was modified and enlarged over time, so it is logical that the head race was also changed over time to fit the new dam configuration.  What we discovered was a series of modifications to the head race that open windows to the character and ingenuity of the early Quaker settlers of Smithfield.  These discoveries also provide clues to the small evolutionary changes in technology that were the basis for the huge advances that made the Industrial Revolution.

                                                            

     Our tour continues, by looking at one of the site's most outstanding features, the dual arches that form the north and south foundation walls of the mill.  The above photo is a view of the head race at the north side of building with the iron turbine in foreground.  Note the “basement” arch.  This arch, which allows water to flow through the structure, was carefully constructed of cut granite while the surrounding foundation and building walls are primarily made from field stone (with the exception of cut granite which was used to "coin" the buildings four corners).  Here we ask: why would people who believed that simplicity and functionality; where virtues go to the expense and effort to construct these interesting architectural elements?

     Our theory is that arched head race through basement provided an additional 10-12 feet of hydraulic head which would have translated into approximately 25% additional “Water Power” for the mill.                                                             

     Here we see a detail of the stonework used in head race arch.  Note use of granite blocks for the arch and the use of local field stone for wall.  Also note "drill" holes- these quarry marks can be useful in determining the age or date the stone was prepared.   Upon a close up examination of the notches used to split the stone,  it has a lack of uniformity in terms of:  drill holes; the tool marks used to make the holes; and the blocks of granite, all are suggestive of very early workmanship.   For the purposes it serves in this blog, we will call the fully open archway 'the original' or 'first head race configuration'.

     Our first suggestion may be that the head race was changed- evidence is found in support of this- in the above photo.  The overlap of the field stone wall in front of the granite arch indicates a high probability that this addition to the head race took place after the original mill construction.  The net effect of this "new" wall was: to reduce the width of the mill's basement opening arch configuration- from 13 feet (base of arch to base of arch) to 10 feet across (the second head race configuration).  This narrower head race was lined with field stone, and continues in a northerly direction for a distance of about 10 feet where it is interrupted by what appears to be an even newer wall- made of brick.  This new brick wall is the background for the new 'ground level' upon which the iron turbine sits.

      So we ask: why these changes?   At some point, technology changed between different construction styles: from that utilized an old-style water wheel, to a different- and probably more efficient- water wheel mechanism.   Additional structural modifications to the head race (now lined with a new style of brick wall)  indicate that there were further adaptations to the head race to accommodate even newer technologies (configuration 3).

      ... To be continued

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Sustainable Tourism

Our efforts are to revitalize the cultural heritage of the community of Stillwater, along with the Smith Appleby House Museum, to present historical data interactively through a series of workshops.  Once more, the mill will be operational as a small textile operation; self sufficient in nature, providing information about its works through archeology and restoration.  What's further, we are immediately concerned over about our natural footprint; our desire is to exercise our role as a primary stakeholder in a local watershed improvement effort.  Using the watershed planning process examined in Maryland, we have set forth goals to restore and conserve the headwaters of the Woonasquatucket River in Smithfield Rhode Island.  Currently in the early phases of the project, we are now seeking local stakeholders.  Using the mill property as a focal point between our community and its history, we aim to lead environmental progress for the upper Woonasquatucket watershed.  By studying nutrient loads, enacting town ordinances, working with the Army Corps of Engineers, RIDEM, EPA, and Fish and Wildlife, our efforts are to enhance the soil and water quality for the benefit of both wildlife habitat, and future generations.


Our program is aligned with local school programs to introduce students to our archeological study, show students our dam engineering plans, and ask them to participate in our local watershed plan.  It's important to emphasize the interrelatedness of these topics as they relate to the mill site.  The cultural elements of history should be intwined with a respect for the land, and each topic in turn should drive the other.  Education is the key to all of this- without a mill functioning, we rely on educational materials to provide an aspect of what the mill would really have been like.