Draper Mill Committee
About the Draper Mill
Draper Complex History
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Draper Complex History

During the 1880s alone, Draper companies produced and sold more than six million new high-speed spindles to textile companies. Draper looms were used around the world, and are still in use today. The company was originally established in 1816. Their plant had over 1,400,000 sq ft of floor space and 50 acres in Hopedale, Massachusettes.

Hopedale's reputation as a town is mainly found in the Draper Corporation, producer of looms. The business started when Ebenezer Draper joined the community and built the first Draper Shop. The Draper era represents a unique study of the growth and development of a New England mill town. In its prime, over 3,000 people were employed there. In the late sixties, control of the Draper Corporation was passed to Rockwell International. Production ceased in the mid-seventies, thus closing the doors, not only to a building, but also to a period of history. Today, the abandoned and possibly polluted factory site dominates the center of town in its decay.		  
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