Hearthside - The House That Love Built

Moffett Mill

Built by George Olney along Great Road in 1812, the Moffett Mill is a unique survivor from the early 19th century. Resting along the Moshassuck River next to Chase Farm Park, this small mill is believed to be the first machine shop constructed in Rhode Island and is a rare example of a wooden mill built during the first wave of industrialization in the Blackstone Valley. Arnold Moffett purchased the mill in 1850 and built the stone dam that still stands. The mill has been abandoned since the early part of the 1900s and was donated to the Town of Lincoln in the 1980s. It has recently been renovated and its original tools still in tact.

The Moffett Mill was a versatile, special order job shop that made parts for ships, machines for the early textile industry, furniture, wagons, carriages and sleighs for the local businesses and neighborhood farmers. At one time, the second floor housed a fleet of braiding machines to make shoe and corset laces. An attached lean-to was operated as a blacksmith shop which could do work that required both woodworking and metal crafting skills such as wheels. The blacksmith shop was operated by William Hannaway and then relocated just down Great Road in 1901 to a nearby carriage house across from Hearthside, which was later moved by the Town of Lincoln to its current location at Chase Farm Park.

Moffett Mill

Because of difficulty accessing the site safely along this busy roadway, the opening of the mill to visitors will be limited. An interpretive panel located near the entrance to Chase Farm Park will help inform visitors as to the importance of this rare treasure.

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