Not so very many years ago one looked forward to receiving certain weekly magazines which featured advertising with the slogan "a title on the door rates a Bigelow on the floor". We all knew that was a reference to the prestigious Bigelow carpeting, and the company founded by Erastus Brigham' Bigelow and his older brother Horatio N.

Erastus was born 2 April,1814 at West Boylston, MA, son of Ephraim ⁶ (Abel ⁵, Amariah ⁴ Samuel ³, Samuel ², John ¹ ) and Polly (Brigham) Bigelow. The father was a farmer, wheelwright, and chairmaker. Erastus was out working at the age of ten, having mastered mathematics by himself, and acquired a taste for extensive reading in his short terms at school. Some of his youthful occupations included farm work, playing violin in the church orchestra and at country dances, clerking in a dry-goods store, and teaching penmanship. As his first business experience, he published a pamphlet on self taught stenography, but ended with most of the copies unsold. He had hopes of entering Harvard to study medicine, but never matriculated, for his active mind was too busy inventing machinery. In 1831 the father established a small cotton mill where both brothers were employed.

By the age of eighteen, Erastus had devised a hand-loom for making suspender webbing, and another machine for making piping-cord. In 1837 he invented a power loom for making coach lace, followed in 1838 by a power loom for weaving counterpanes. These looms contained features which were later adapted to weaving rugs. Erastus next produced a loom capable of weaving two-ply ingrain carpets, which previously had been woven on hand-looms at two yards a day. Various improvements in Bigelow's looms soon enabled a weaver to turn out twenty-five yards per day.

Erastus, with his brother Horatio, immediately formed a firm to produce looms under the name the Clinton Company. Located near Lancaster, the factory village was later named Clinton. From this factory came all the looms that made counterpanes, ginghams, silk brocatel, pile fabrics, and wire cloth. Most of the plants for producing them were near Lowell (MA) or Derby (CT), but Clinton remained the center of Bigelow enterprises.

Erastus visited Europe frequently to consult on manufacturing matters. Between 1837 and 1868 he amassed six volumes of English patents, the original drawings for which are at the Massachusetts Historical Society, to which he belonged. It has been said that Erastus Bigelow did more than any other man to develop the textile arts.

An encyclopedia describes him as being of medium stature, though stooping in later years, fair of complexion, with the typical Bigelow high forehead and jutting eyebrows. He lived in Boston and maintained a summer home (Stonehurst) in North Conway,NH; in both he loved to entertain guests. [Stonehurst is now a guest inn and restaurant.]

Concerning his personal life., Erastus married (1) 1838 Susan W. King- their intentions to wed were filed 20 October 1838, she died 1841, and (2)16 May 1843 Eliza Means of Amherst, NH the daughter of Col. David Means of Amherst. The Wedding took place at Amherst.

Children of Erastus and Susan (King) Bigelow

While credit for forming Bigelow Carpet Co. belongs to Erastus Bigelow's inventive mind, its development and administration was in the hands of his brother Horatio Bigelow.

(15383.61) Horatio Nelson ⁷ Bigelow, son of Ephraim ⁶ (Abel ⁵, Amariah ⁴ Samuel ³, Samuel ², John ¹ ) and Polly (Brigham) Bigelow was born 13 September 1816 at W. Boylston, Worcester, MA . He had a genius equal to that of his younger brother: but it lay in organization and management. In 1831 his father, recognizing this talent, placed him in charge of the family cotton mill. He stayed their about a year, and then with his brother Erastus , started in the manufacture of Coach Lace at Lancaster, MA . where they founded the Clinton Company. On 24 Sept. 1834 Horatio Bigelow married Emily Worcester.

Other enterprises followed: counterpanes in 1841, Gingham Mills in 1843-44, the Bigelow Carpet Company in 1849, the Clinton Wire and Cloth Company in 1856. Horatio lived in the town of Clinton (MA), which his brother had founded. He was in effect its leading Citizen and benefactor. Horatio was one of the founders of Congregational Church, the first President of the Clinton Savings Bank, first President of the Clinton Gas Company, Vice President of the Clinton National Bank, a Director of the Boston, Clinton & Fitchburg RR Company, and also the Worcester Mutual Insurance Company.

Others duties included the first representative from Clinton to the Legislature and the first Postmaster. In 1852 he and Erastus gave the land for a 4-acre park which is the heart of Clinton, deeming that no structure should ever be built thereon, and that it should remain as a park and be "beautified and maintained" at public expense.

Horatio Bigelow served six years on Clinton's school committee. Other generous acts included Horatio's gift of land to the First Baptist Church and the First Congregational Church, plus an equal offer to the First Methodist Church. He was a member of the First congregational Church and its first Sunday School Superintendent. Horatio established conditions for both residential and business districts, showing an instinct for city planning, and founded Bigelow Public Library, as well as Bigelow Mechanics' Institute.

He established Clinton's post office, was a lifelong president of Clinton Savings Bank, and a member of the board of directors of First National Bank (now the Clinton branch of Worcester County National Bank). He proposed the construction of Clinton House, the town's hotel. Through his efforts the Worcester and Nashua Railroad passed through Clinton, later called the Boston & Maine RR Co. Horatio served on its board of directors.

In the midst of his work, he was stricken with disease and a trip to Europe to recover was doomed to disappointment and he returned home and died 02 January 1868 from Òparalysis and softening of the brain. His widow died 16 January 1892 at Clinton.

Children of Horatio and Emily (Worcester) Bigelow were:

After the death of the Bigelow brothers, the carpet company in 1899 merged with Lowell Carpets. The turn of the century brought more improvements to rug manufacturing, including the loom which introduced carpeting woven in strips wider than the traditional 27 inches. It was inevitable that- Bigelow combine with its big competitor in 1929, in order to survive the Depression. Headquarters eventually moved in recent years to Greenville, SC. Today there are no Bigelows in charge at Bigelow Sanford Carpet Company, which is a subsidiary of Sperry-Hutchinson. The old New England buildings which once housed their looms are devoted to other types of manufactures.

If you visit Washington, D.C.'s National Portrait Gallery, you may notice a 57 x 76- inch painting showing "Men of Progress". Portrayed are inventors of the nineteenth century, among them Erastus B. Bigelow, the inventor of the two brothers.

SOURCES: Howe, Bigelow Family of America; several encyclopedias of prominent Americans; clippings from Denton, Dallas, and Clinton newspapers.

Date: Thu, 19 Mar 1998 10:55:36 EST
From: Springarm <Springarm@aol.com>

Don,

Im A full time Firefighter in Enfield Connecticut , in the Bigelow Carpet mill district. about 8 or 9 years ago a private party purchased the property and turned it into apartment complex and commercial office area.

During the entire renovation of the buildings we were ther providing fire protection whenever there was a welding or cutting torch going,hence I was spending close to 30 or more hours a week there extinguishing fires on the 100 or so year old oil soaked rotted floors. So we had plenty of time to poke around and investigate into the past.

Some of he items I came across are quite a few old soda and milk bottles, timeclock punch cards,old newspapers and about the best item I found was a old brass guage approximatley 8 inches in diameter, it reads "Made for Hartford Carpet Co. Thompsonville Ct. by Ashcroft Mf'g Co.Boston self testing guage working scale patented Nov 9 1869 208 " and is scaled in 20 lb increments up to 180.

As far as old pictures we have plenty at the firehouse and there are quite a few in some of the local businesses around town.After all the town of Enfield, specifically Thompsonville was built and and life centered around the mill. There are still lots of old mill houses in our district, that were built by Bigelow for its employees. I have a couple nice pictures in a calender taken by a well known photographer of that era.

For history on the mill the best is a book from the Enfield Historical society titled "The challenge of change"copyrighted in 1977. I have two copys myself and I think there are some still available for about 10 dollars if you are interested.

If you have any more questions feel free to get a hold of me.

Sincerely

Paul J. Vendetta