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Ropewalks
of Essex
by Don Malcarne
Town Historian
The
Essex Historical Society presented a program on the making of
rope and where this process was carried on in Essex, on May 15th
of 2003. This presentation was very favorably received and this
author thought the story of the Essex Ropewalks was worthy of an
article.
Webster's
College Dictionary describes a ropewalk as being "a long, narrow
building where ropes are made." Essex has had two of these
places, in different locations, at different times. A ropewalk was
essential where there was a large production of sailing vessels,
as was the case in Essex in the late 18th and into the 19th centuries.
The
first ropewalk in what is now Middlesex County (Middlesex did not
become a county until 1789) was built in Middletown prior to1750
by Philip Mortimer. This was located on the west side of Main Street
in the north end of town. Later, another ropewalk was constructed
in the Upper Houses (now Cromwell). The existence of these rope
making places testified to the great significance of the ship building
industry in the greater Middletown area, especially prior to the
Revolution.
After
the Revolutionary War, Potapoug Point (Essex Village), became another
focal point in the construction of wooden sailing ships. Consequently,
a ropewalk was required here, and in 1797, Grover L'Hommideau set
one up on land leased from Samuel Lay. The deed agreement (SLR 12/222
- 10/19/1797) between these two gentlemen is very revealing. It
states that L'Hommideau had "lately erected" a frame that
was 15' wide by 60 rods (1000') long that ran on the north side
of Main Street. Converting this description into the locations of
2003, this meant it ran from the west side of the current "Glass
Basket" building to where Essex Square is today. There was
a 20' wide "store" at the west end of this ropewalk, and
the land rent was 4 pounds per year. It must be understood that
Main Street followed a different path at that time, being located
roughly halfway between current Main and Pratt Streets, and there
was no Essex Square or North Main Street then. Grover was allowed
to have a "copper"(large tar kettle) and a capstan for
winding rope on the north side of this structure, although these
were on Lay property. This "frame" was said to be "open,"
indicating it probably had a roof, but no sidewalls. Consequently,
it was probably operated on a seasonal basis.
In
1802, Grover L'Hommideau sold his ropewalk company to Jared Hayden,
for $1,800.00. Jared was the eldest son of Ebenezer Hayden, the
lower valley's leading entrepreneur and financier (SLR 13/211).
This move gave the Hayden family a unique control over local ship
building. The Hayden "yard" was by far the largest south
of Middletown, the Hayden family (most notably Ebenezer) was the
leading financier of ships, and now they controlled ropemaking.
Within a few years, Jared sold 3/4 of this business to Gurdon Smith,
George Harrington, and Levi, Sala, and Reuben Post. Documents (SLR
14/342) indicate that this "old" ropewalk was still in
operation in March, 1813. By May of 1816, however, a new and larger
ropewalk had been constructed about 250' north of the old one. The
Post brothers and Gurdon Smith were the original proprietors of
this new concern. A question can be raised as to the demise of the
original ropewalk: could it have been destroyed (or damaged) by
the British during the April 8, 1814 attack? There is no direct
evidence to support this idea, yet it remains an interesting possibility.
The
new structure was 22' wide and almost 1,200' long (SLR 16/308) and
it ran from North Main Street almost to the west shore of North
Cove, just south of current Bushnell Street. It was entirely enclosed
and considerably larger than its predecessor. The Ropewalk Company
passed through many owners over the subsequent years, including
David Andrews, William Robbins and Alvin Whittemore, the latter
perhaps better known as a druggist and one of the initial witch
hazel entrepreneurs. This ropewalk ultimately failed, as did the
ship building industry that supported it, and by the end of the
19th century it was a relic that had to be demolished. The New Era
Press reported on March 25, 1898 that the ropewalk was to be torn
down. This article noted that some of the lumber from the original
ropewalk had been used in the construction of this building, and
that in the last half of the century fishline and nets had been
made there.
There
are a few extant photographs of the second ropewalk as well as an
1880s painting of its interior, that hangs in the Essex Library.
Interestingly, Cross Street was laid out as the way to the new ropewalk
from Main Street, as there was no Pratt Street at the time. Also,
the lots that were soon laid out on the north side of Pratt Street
were all 9 rods north/south from the line of the ropewalk, indicating
that highway was built in accordance with the ropewalk building.
Some of these properties have the same configuration today. Included
is a picture depicting Essex Borough of Saybrook in 1836, by John
Warner Barber. The ropewalk is the most prominent feature in this
etching, clearly implying how important a commercial center Essex
Borough had become. The buildings on "Church Hill," seen
in the background are from left to right: the Episcopal Church (on
the corner opposite the current Congregational Church), the Methodist
Church (due south of the former firehouse), the brick Baptist Church
(which stood on the parking lot of the former firehouse) and Hills
Academy.
The
construction of the second ropewalk resulted in many cultural changes
in Essex Borough. Main Street was moved to the south and straightened.
Within 2 years New Street (later Pratt Street) was laid out and
North Main Street was put in its present position. All this reconfiguration
resulted in the formation of Essex Square. Shortly, the business
center, which was Champlin Square, relocated to the new square.
Essentially, these geographics have been unchanged since that time,
which sort of fits into the motto of Connecticut, "the land
of steady habits."
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