Martha's Vineyard Museum
A Finding Aid to the Paint Mill Records, 1865-1880
Table of Contents
Descriptive Summary
Repository | Martha's Vineyard Museum,
Gale Huntington Research Library 59 School Street P.O. Box 1310 Edgartown, MA 02539 (508)627-4441 |
---|---|
Call Number | RU 418 |
Creator | Paint Mill (Chilmark, Mass.) |
Title | Paint Mill records |
Date | 1865-1880 |
Extent | 1/2 box (4 volumes) |
Language | The materials are in English. |
Abstract | Record books of the Paint Mill of Chilmark include shipping records, merchandise inventories and payroll records, dating from 1865 to 1880. The mill produced powder pigment for paint from clay extracted along the north shore. |
Administrative Information
Access Restrictions
There are no restrictions.
Use and Reproduction Restrictions
Requests to reproduce material from this collection should be directed to the library's staff. Reproduction fees may apply.
Preferred Citation
Martha's Vineyard Museum, RU 418, Paint Mill Records.
Acquisition Information
Gift of Mrs. Everett D. Whiting in 1948. (Accession no. 1948.004)
Bibliography
Flender, John O. "Chilmark's Paint Mill, An Ancient Manufactory." In Dukes County Intelligencer 47:1 (August 2005): 3-19.
Publication Information
Martha's Vineyard Museum
Gale Huntington Research Library59 School Street
P.O. Box 1310
Edgartown, MA 02539
(508)627-4441
Processing Information
Finding aid prepared by Insley Julier October 2012. Machine-encoded by Nathaniel Janick April 2014.
Processing of this collection and creation of this finding aid was sponsored by the towns of Aquinnah, Chilmark, Oak Bluffs, Tisbury, and West Tisbury through the Massachusetts Community Preservation Act. Machine-encoding of the finding aid was sponsored by the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.Related Materials
Related Materials
See also, the Martha's Vineyard Museum's Photograph Collection for images of the Paint Mill.
Index Terms
Genre(s)
- Inventories
- Payroll records
- Shipping records
Geographic Name(s)
- Chilmark (Mass.)
Subject(s)
- Paint industry and trade--Massachusetts--Chilmark
- Wages--Paint industry
Biography/Historical Note
First established by Franklin King of E. & F. King and manager, Lindley Moore Wing around 1864, the Chilmark Paint Mill was located off North Road on the Vineyard Sound. The mill had its own wharf where schooners landed to be loaded with paint destined for the mainland. The paint was manufactured as a dry powder of finely ground clay in a range of white, red, yellow and ochre colors. The clay pigment would later be mixed with oil to create paint. Workers dug clay from the pits with shovels. The clay was then hoisted from the pits with buckets and carted to large drying sheds. It dried for several days and then the workers would bring it to the mill where they were paid according to the dry weight of the clay. The mill employed water and later steam power to grind the clay. Once ground, the pigment was packed into barrels for shipment. Shipments were sent to Woods Hole, Boston and New Bedford, Massachusetts and Hallowell and Portland, Maine.
The mill's primary employee was Eben Norton of Vineyard Haven who worked there for 30 years, however other islanders were periodically employed at the mill including; John Allen, James Arnold, Albert Look, Elijah Mayhew, James Mayhew, Elihue Mosher, Moses Norton, Richard Norton, Francis Reed, Rodney Reed, Mayhew Stuart, George Tilton and George Wicks.
Scope and Content of Collection
Record books of the Paint Mill of Chilmark include shipping records, merchandise inventories and payroll records, dating from 1865 to 1880. Laborers were paid according to the number of tons of paint that they carted and records document the number of tons and pounds carted per day, as well as the number of hours worked. They also note how much employees were paid and when the wages were disbursed. Merchandise inventories indicate the number of tons of clay in particular buildings. Shipping records track the vessel, captain, tonnage and destination of inventory.
Arrangement
The collection is arranged chronologically.
Collection Contents
Box | Folder | |||
Payroll Records, 1865, 1868-1870 | 1 | 1 | ||
Shipping Records, 1871-1875 | 1 | 2 | ||
Shipping Records, Inventories and Payroll Records, 1871-1880 | 1 | 3 | ||
Payroll Records, 1872-1874 | 1 | 4 | ||