Gonic Manufacturing Photographs, 1940-1960
Collection Number: 6669 P
Kheel Center for Labor-Management Documentation & Archives
Cornell University Library
DESCRIPTIVE SUMMARY
Title:
Gonic Manufacturing Photographs, 1940-1960
Repository:
Kheel Center for Labor-Management Documentation & Archives
Collection Number:
6669 P
Abstract:
Aerial and other views of the Gonic Manufacturing Company buildings.
Creator:
Gonic Manufacturing Company
Quanitities:
1 folders
Language:
Collection material in English
Gonic Manufacturing was founded in 1859 by Nicholas Varney Whitehouse, after his previous
business venture in Gonic, N.H., had failed. During the Civil War the high demand
for wool uniforms and blankets by the Union Army meant that business was good for
the company, which used some of their profits to improve the mill's water power and
add steam engines. In 1861 a large addition was added to the west end of the mill.
The 1870s saw a drop in the demand for wool, and a warehouse fire destroy much of
Gonic's finished material. After Whitehouse's retirement in 1877 and a weavers' strike
the mill closed in 1878. After economic conditions improved the mill reopened in 1880.
By the 1890s a residence for the mill agent and 30 tenements for workers were included
in the company's holdings. Although the mill stayed in operation through the Depression,
it had to sell many of its tenements in 1935.
World War II saw Gonic Manufacturing fulfilling U.S. Navy orders for blankets and
other material, earning it the a "Navy E" award.
During the 1940s and 1950s demand was such that the mill was expanded and improved.
The 1960s, however, saw a decline in demand, due in part to the increased use of synthetic
fibers.
Gonic Manufacturing Compnay ceased operations and closed in 1971.
Several aerial views of the Gonic Manufacturing Company. Also photographs of the falls,
mill yard, and buildings.
Access to the collections in the Kheel Center is restricted. Please contact a reference
archivist for access to these materials.
This collection must be used in keeping with the Kheel Center Information Sheet and
Procedures for Document Use.
INFORMATION FOR USERS
Gonic Manufacturing Photographs #6669 P. Kheel Center for Labor-Management Documentation
and Archives, Cornell University Library.
Related Collections: 6669: Gonic Manufacturing Records
Names:
Gonic Manufacturing Company.
Subjects:
Forest fires
Textile factories
Textile mills--Office
Waterfalls
Woolen mills
Gonic (Rochester, N.H.)655: Aerial photographs
CONTAINER LIST
Container
|
Description
|
Date
|
|
Box 1 | Folder 1 |
Gonic Manufacturing Mill Photographs
|
1940-1960 |
Box 1 | Folder 1 |
Item 1: Aerial view of Gonic Manufacturing Co.
|
|
Format: black and white photograph
|
|||
Scope and Contents
Gelatin silver print. Image depicts the Gonic Manufacturing Co. in Gonic, N.H., from
the air. Complex is in the middle of the photograph; water visible in curve on the
left; residential houses in the upper right. Gonic is a village in the city of Rochester,
N.H. Gonic Manufacturing Co. was a woolen manufacturer. 17.75 x 12.75 cm.
Format: black and white photograph.
|
|||
Box 1 | Folder 1 |
Item 2: Aerial view of Gonic Manufacturing Co.
|
|
Format: black and white photograph
|
|||
Scope and Contents
Gelatin silver print. Image depicts the Gonic Manufacturing Co. in Gonic, N.H., from
the air. Difficult to see exactly where complex is; possibly hidden by the smoke in
the distance (from a forest fire?). See item 9 for a nearly identical view, and item
3 for a much better aerial view of the company. Gonic is a village in the city of
Rochester, N.H. Gonic Manufacturing Co. was a woolen manufacturer. 17.75 x 12.75 cm.
Format: black and white photograph.
|
|||
Box 1 | Folder 1 |
Item 3: Aerial view of Gonic, N.H.
|
|
Format: black and white photograph
|
|||
Scope and Contents
Gelatin silver print. Image depicts part of Gonic, N.H. (?) from the air. Photograph
is blurry so locating the Gonic Manufacturing Co. in this photo is difficult. Wooded
area to the left; river flows through the center of the picture; residential areas
in the upper and lower right-hand corners. Gonic is a village in the city of Rochester,
N.H. Gonic Manufacturing Co. was a woolen manufacturer. 17.75 x 12.75 cm.
Format: black and white photograph.
|
|||
Box 1 | Folder 1 |
Item 4: Gonic Manufacturing Co. and falls
|
|
Format: black and white photograph
|
|||
Scope and Contents
Gelatin silver print. Image depicts the Gonic Manufacturing Co. building (on the left)
and the falls (with a bridge over them) in Gonic, N.H. Mill building is four stories
with a bell on the roof. Gonic is a village in the city of Rochester, N.H. Gonic Manufacturing
Co. was a woolen manufacturer. See item 7 for a close-up view of the falls, and item
6 for a view of the building on the left taken from the exact opposite direction.
23.5 x 14 cm.
Format: black and white photograph.
|
|||
Box 1 | Folder 1 |
Item 5: Gonic Manufacturing Co. mill yard
|
|
Format: black and white photograph
|
|||
Scope and Contents
Gelatin silver print. Image depicts the mill yard of the Gonic Manufacturing Co. in
Gonic, N.H. Mill building with bell on the roof is in the background; another four-story
brick mill building with a tower is on the left. Man sitting on park bench under tree
on the right. Gonic is a village in the city of Rochester, N.H. Gonic Manufacturing
Co. was a woolen manufacturer. 24.25 x 14.5 cm.
Format: black and white photograph.
|
|||
Box 1 | Folder 1 |
Item 6: Gonic Manufacturing Co. building
|
|
Format: black and white photograph
|
|||
Scope and Contents
Gelatin silver print. Image depicts Gonic Manufacturing Co. mill building in Gonic,
N.H. Mill building is four-story brick. Taken from bridge; see item 4 for a view of
the building from the exact opposite direction. Gonic is a village in the city of
Rochester, N.H. Gonic Manufacturing Co. was a woolen manufacturer. 23.5 x 14 cm.
Format: black and white photograph.
|
|||
Box 1 | Folder 1 |
Item 7: Close-up view of falls at Gonic Manufacturing Co.
|
|
Format: black and white photograph
|
|||
Scope and Contents
Gelatin silver print. Image depicts the falls at the Gonic Manufacturing Co. in Gonic,
N.H. Bridge passes over falls; mill building on the left is four-story brick. Gonic
is a village in the city of Rochester, N.H. Gonic Manufacturing Co. was a woolen manufacturer.
See item 4 for a more distant view of the building and the falls. 23.25 x 15 cm.
Format: black and white photograph.
|
|||
Box 1 | Folder 1 |
Item 8: Office of the Gonic Manufacturing Co.
|
|
Format: black and white photograph
|
|||
Scope and Contents
Gelatin silver print. Image depicts the office building of the Gonic Manufacturing
Co. in Gonic, N.H. Building is one-story brick, surrounded by trees. Gonic is a village
in the city of Rochester, N.H. Gonic Manufacturing Co. was a woolen manufacturer.
22.5 x 15.5 cm.
Format: black and white photograph.
|
|||
Box 1 | Folder 1 |
Item 9: Aerial view of Gonic Manufacturing Co.
|
|
Format: black and white photograph
|
|||
Scope and Contents
Gelatin silver print. Image depicts the Gonic Manufacturing Co. in Gonic, N.H., from
the air. Difficult to see exactly where complex is; possibly hidden by the smoke in
the distance (from a forest fire?). See item 2 for an almost identical view, and item
1 for a much better aerial view of the company. Gonic is a village in the city of
Rochester, N.H. Gonic Manufacturing Co. was a woolen manufacturer. 17.75 x 12.75 cm.
Format: black and white photograph.
|
|||
Box 1 | Folder 1 |
Item 10: Aerial view of forest fire (?) in Gonic, N.H.
|
|
Format: black and white photograph
|
|||
Scope and Contents
Gelatin silver print. Image depicts what appears to be a forest fire in Gonic, N.H.
The Gonic Manufacturing Co. may be in the lower foreground of the photo but it is
difficult to tell. Smoke stretches across the upper half of the photograph. See item
1 for a much better aerial view of the company. Gonic is a village in the city of
Rochester, N.H. Gonic Manufacturing Co. was a woolen manufacturer. 17.75 x 12.75 cm.
Format: black and white photograph.
|