Rural Economy in New England TJX 



The largest towns, Litchfield and New Milford, had populations of 

 4,600 and 3,500 respectively, but in neither of them was there any 

 industrial development beyond the artisan activities which were 

 regularly found in agricultural communities. Their growth was 

 based upon exceptionally large area^ and upon exceptional oppor- 

 tunities enjoyed by their inhabitants in getting produce to market. 

 On the other hand, the towns in which the iron manufacture was most 

 important were considerably smaller, Salisbury having 2,700 people, 

 Canaan 2,200 and Kent 1,800. 



The iron industries in south-eastern Massachusetts depended on 

 the bog ore which was dug or dredged from the bottom of their 

 shallow ponds.2 Another valuable asset were the tracts of small 

 pines and oaks, which furnished a plentiful supply of charcoal for 

 fuel. At the beginning of the century there were 14 blast furnaces, 

 6 air furnaces, 20 forges and 7 rolling and slitting-mills in this region. 

 The furnaces turned out on an average 75 to 90 tons of cast-iron each 

 year, the forges had a capacity of about 50 tons of bar-iron and the 

 rolling and slitting-mills produced about 200 tons each annually.^ 

 The furnaces gave employment to about eight or nine men each, 

 when they were in operation. Besides nails and nail-rods, which 

 seem to have been the staple product, these works manufactured 

 agricultural implements, such as spades, shovels and scythes, wire 

 teeth for wool and cotton cards, saws and edge tools, buttons, cannon- 

 balls and firearms, anchors, bells, sheet-iron and iron utensils. 



The towns of Taunton, Plymouth, Middleborough, and Bridge- 

 water^ were those most engaged in this industry, although a half- 

 dozen or more neighboring towns had a furnace or a forge or two 

 apiece. The total annual output from the works in Taunton was 

 estimated in 1810 at 800 tons, including 350 tons of nails and 200 

 dozen spades and shovels.^ In Plymouth there were rolling and 



' Litchfield contained 72 square miles and New Milford 84. 



2 One of these ponds, in the town of Kingston, was said to have yielded 3000 

 tons of this ore in the space of a few years. A full description of the various sorts 

 of bog-ore found in this region and of the methods of obtaining it will be found in 

 the Collections of the Massachusetts Historical Society. Series I. Volume 9, 

 pp. 254-256. Ore was also imported in small quantities from New Jersey for 

 these works. 



3 Bishop, History of American Manufactures. I. 492. See also Mass. Hist. 

 Soc. Coll. I. 9: 263. 



* These were all larger in population than the typical inland town. Bridge- 

 water, the largest town in New England off tide water, had 5150 people. The 

 others ranged from 3900 to 4400. 



•Morse, Gazetteer, 1810. 



