Sevill Schofield's Economy Mills

Sevill Schofield's Economy Mills. Schuylkill River National and State Heritage Area. , First, McFadden's Mill , In 1845, the Schofield family emigrated from England directly to Manayunk to work in the textile industry. After considerable success, Sevill Schofield left his father's cotton mill in 1857 to operate a new family endeavor: spinning carpet yarn in the McFadden Mill near the canal's lower locks., Then the Economy Mills , Although growth was steady, Sevill Schofield's Economy Mills business was further boosted by lucrative contracts to weave Union Army blankets for the Civil War. They were part of a "canyon" of four- and five-story mills that lined the canal from Lock Street north to Rector Street and covered Venice Island to the area of the Performing Arts Center. By 1885, the mill complex employed 850 men, women, boys, and girls who spun wool and cotton yarn, and wove cloth. Sevill Schofield's Economy Mills was one of the largest textile enterprises in Philadelphia., Later, Imperial Woolen , The Economy Mills expanded and thrived until the 1890s, when an economic slump caught Schofield by surprise. Thereafter, his brother-in-law, James Dobson, operated the mills as the Imperial Woolen Mills. They weathered the 1930s Great Depression but closed shortly after, leaving hundreds of workers without jobs. The buildings occupied by Richard Apex Inc., manufacturer of cleaners and lubricants for the metal industry, were purchased in 1957. The vacant buildings burned and were razed in the 1970s., [Caption:] , View downstream to Lock Street in 1971. Schofield's Economy Mill, later the Imperial Woolen Company, is on the right side of the Manayunk Canal. The bridges connected business offices on Main Street to their respective mill. Only one bridge remains today.