CyperFair
Project
Our
Local Specialties
About
Lewiston
Specialties
of the Past
Assignment
Manager's
Form
Form
letter
City
Poems
Scavenger
Hunt
School
Links
Our
Classroom site
Martel
School
Lewiston
School System
Other
Links
Lewiston
Unit
Local
Organizations
Local
Festivals
Your
Home, Our Home
City
of Lewiston, Maine
Kids
and Community
Products
Slide Show
Classroom
Slide Show
There are many specialties of the past. Long ago the carding mill, the gristmill, and the sawmill were very important to the young community of Lewiston. All these mills were run by water power and were built on the banks of the Androscoggin River. People came to Lewiston because of these mills. Soon the little community became a trade center and Lewiston grew into a town and then a city in 1861.
The textile industry was very important to Lewiston. Bates Manufacturing made fine linens and bedspreads. These bedspreads were sold all over the world even the Queen of England owned a Bates bedspread that was named after her.
Other industries of the past were the shoe industries and car manufacturing. Many shoe shops once employed many citizens. The Stanley Steamer, a steam powered car, was manufactured right here in Lewiston. This did not get famous because gas powered vehicles became more popular.
Today the textile mills and the shoe shops are no longer the great industries of our city. The big empty brick mills remind us of their importance in days gone by.
Created by group effort