admin – Page 154 – Canal Days

The 161-167 High location has always been with wooden structures only. This is the only location on northern High Street as such. The original wooden structure is still there but now with a stone and brick facade. The three part interior is now one part.

Sanborn map analysis:

Sanborn 1884 map

Sanborn 1889 map

Sanborn 1895 map

Sanborn 1915 map it is three separate buildings and no internal doors to join them and all in wood

Sanborn 1949 map it is three separate building with some joint doors inside and all of wood and is one floor

Sanborn 1956 map now it is one building in wood of one floor

Old Spillway 5 and and History of the Canals

The Old Spillway 5 is at the juncture of Appleton Street and Water Street.

This is were the spillway number 5 used to be before it was taken out. Stand on Appleton Street between Water Street and the juncture of North Canal and South Canal Streets. Look to the north. There is the spillway. The water in the Second Level Canal once flowed a half mile farther south. Now this portion is just a safety canal. It is the southeastern end of the Second Level Canal.

The Norman Paper Mill is just to the east.

History of the Canals by their Development in Lengths

First Level Canal:

1847 to 1853 dug to 350 feet north of Dwight Street

1871 to 1872 dug to Appleton Street

1872 to 1880 dug to 75 feet north of Cabot Street

1880 to 1883 dug to Sargeant

Second Level Canal:

1847 to 1853 dug along the western branch from County Bridge to 150 feet north of Cabot and Race

1854 to 1857 dug south to the end

1872 to 1874 dug along the eastern branch from County Bridge to Lyman Street at the River

1880 to 1882 dug along the eastern branch to 600 feet more

1888 to 1892 dug to Appleton

Third Level Canal:

unknown – dug from Race to Cabot

1880 to 1884 dug from Cabot to Appleton

The mill to your west is the Whitmore Paper Mill

The mill to your southwest is the Marvellum or Springfield Photo Mount firm.

Munn Block

The Munn Block is at 329 to 331 High Street. It was a four floor building.

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is 9487578-1024x384.jpg — 1890 ad

In about the 1930s, the building was lowered and remodeled to an Art Deco look.

Sanborn map analysis:

Sanborn 1884 map shows a 2 floor stone structure

Sanborn 1889 map shows an empty lot

Sanborn 1895 map shows a 4 floor building

Sanborn 1915 map shows a 4 floor building

Sanborn 1949 map it is one floor

Sanborn 1956 map it is one floor

Connor Brothers Woolen Mill

The Connor Brothers Woolen and Shoddy Mill are the makers of cassimeres, overcoating, cloakings, wool shoddies, flocks, extracts, wool waste, gig, and shear flocks.

They had two locations in Holyoke. One at the crossing of the Second and Third Levels and then at the First near the Skinner Mill. While there they were called Connor Brothers Satinette.

The A T Stewart Mill is from 1864. It would be run as the New York Mill until the early 1880s. The Connor Brothers would operate this until a 1901 bankruptcy.