The Walker Woolen Mill, also known as the Foster Mill, was built in Wilton, Maine, in 1840.[1] It was expanded and refurbished over the next 40–50 years using local local pine and wood eventually shipped using the transcontinental railroad.[2]
Maine is the most wooded state in the United States, and has a long history of manufacturing everything from shoes to paper.[3] Charles Forster, a later owner who has been called the "father of the toothpick"[4] used the mill to produce the world's first toothpick in 1881. It later housed a supplier of fabric to the automotive industry and a factory producing plastic cutlery. In 2015, the Town of Wilton acquired it through foreclosure.[5]
By 2019 the mill had undergone the final stages of demolition.
References
edit- ^ Wilton, Town of. "HISTORY OF WILTON TIME LINE". Town of Wilton, Maine. Retrieved 14 February 2013.
- ^ "Transcontinental Railroad". History Magazine. Retrieved 14 February 2013.
- ^ Sturdevant, Joseph. "Inventor of the Toothpick was from Maine". Maine Mill History. C & E Jensen Assoc, LLC. Retrieved 14 February 2013.
- ^ Stanley, George. "Charles Forster Fathered The Toothpick Industry And Built First Toothpick Mill" (PDF). Town of Dixfield. Town of Dixfield, Maine. Retrieved 14 February 2013.
- ^ Hanstein, Ben (2020-03-04). "Wilton board discusses future of former Forster mill property". Daily Bulldog. Archived from the original on October 14, 2024. Retrieved 2024-10-14.