Wheelockville, Massachusetts
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Wheelockville is a village in the town of Uxbridge, Massachusetts, United States.[1] Part of the village centering on Mendon and Henry streets is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the Wheelockville District.
Two mills built here are important to the early history of the Blackstone Valley: The Luke Taft Mill and the Moses Taft Mill. Both mills had connections to the famous American Taft family. In later years the Wheelock family had ownership of the Moses Taft Mill and the village took the name of Wheelockville. However that Mill is listed in the National Register as the Calument Mill, or Central Woolen Mills District. The Waucantuck Mill Complex, near the site of the original Luke Taft Mill is also listed separately on the National Register.
The Moses Taft Mill also held the name of the Calumet mill.[1] The Wheelock family is an influential early American family with roots in this historic community. Wheelockville and Uxbridge are part of the Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor of the National Park Service of the U.S. The Blackstone Valley is the earliest industrialized region in the United States. The Moses Taft mill ran 24/7 during the American Civil War making Union Blue Uniforms.[1] The same mill made Khaki Uniforms and cloth for the armies of France and Italy during the World War I.[1] [1] This village was used for scenes in two movies, The Great Gatsby, and Oliver's Story, in the 1970s.
