Connecticut River Paper Co. (1888-1899)

This is the third of a three-part series devoted to three papermaking companies that succeeded each other on the same parcel of land over the final 35 years of the 19th century.

Part 1. Bemis Paper Company (1865-1870) *

Part 2. Union Paper-Manufacturing Company (1870-1888) *

Part 3. Connecticut River Paper Company (1888-1899)

* To view these 2 stories, please search using either the Alphabetical Index or Blog Archive, dated 08-29-2026.

Lewis J. Powers and Roswell W. Fairfield purchased the former Union Paper-Manufacturing Company and formed a new corporation in November 1888. 

Seven minority shareholders of the Union Paper-Manufacturing Co, six of whom were from Holyoke and led by Roswell P. Crafts, felt that this was a questionable transaction. The court action indicated that Mr. Powers, in one of his last acts as President and Treasurer of the Union Paper-Manufacturing Company, transferred the corporation's real estate to John Shepard of Boston for a nominal sum. Mr. Shepard then transferred the real estate to Messrs. Powers and Fairfield in deference to Union's shareholders who lost their entire investments. 

Mr. Powers indicated that he wanted the upstart Connecticut River Paper Company to remain creditworthy to those to whom Union Paper owed money, and arrangements were being made to pay them in full. If Union Paper had gone into bankruptcy, shareholders would still have received nothing.

After the financial problems of its predecessor, the company changed its name to the Connecticut River Paper Company. The company produced 6 tons of high-quality, loft-dried writing paper daily. The company employed between 150 and 175 workers.

In 1890, a new addition was constructed at the factory site. The building was 100 feet by 60 feet, multi-storied, providing 33,000 square feet of additional floor space for production. The machines were expected to be installed for use in late 1890. 

A portion of the building was leased to a newly formed company, the Purcell Envelope Company, in 1895. Ten machines were installed, capable of producing 2.5 million envelopes daily.

In 1899, the Connecticut River Paper Company was purchased by American Writing Paper Company. 16 Holyoke paper firms joined to form the paper conglomerate, hoping to eliminate costly redundant services and control the supply of paper production to maintain higher prices.

The Connecticut River Paper Company name was replaced by Riverside Paper Division Mill No. 3 of the American Writing Paper Company.

Citations:

Newspapers.com (paid subscription): Citations: Holyoke (Massachusetts) Transcript & Transcript-Telegram; Springfield (Massachusetts) Republican; publication dates and pages are shown.

Ancestry.com (paid subscription): Genealogy Records and Price & Lee, Holyoke, Massachusetts, City Directories 

1911 Richard's Atlas of the City of Holyoke, Massachusetts

Union Paper Co. (1870-1888)

This is the second of a three-part series devoted to three papermaking companies that succeeded each other on the same parcel of land over the final 35 years of the 19th century.

Part 1. Bemis Paper Company (1865-1870) *

Part 2. Union Paper-Manufacturing Company (1870-1888)

Part 3. Connecticut River Paper Company (1888-1899) *

* To view these 2 stories, please search using either the Alphabetical Index or Blog Archive, dated 08-29-2026.

The Union Paper Manufacturing Company was founded in Springfield, MA, in 1865, after the dissolution of Holister, Taylor & Company. The papermaker was located at the corner of Main and Taylor Streets in that city. One of its principals was Simeon Dickinson.

When the Bemis Paper Company was put up for sale in 1870, the operatives of the Union Paper Mfg. Co. decided to purchase the business and all 3 parcels of real estate, 2 of which were in Holyoke. The map below shows the Holyoke acquisitions. The real estate and mill powers remained in the name of Union Paper Manufacturing Company for the next 18 years.

The new papermaking corporation was named the Union Paper Company and was capitalized at $200,000. The company would produce 3 tons of paper daily at its inception. Union Paper produced loft-dried, engine-sized writing papers, and chromo papers were its specialty. Henry and Edwin Dickinson and J. E. Taylor were the company's principals.

Over time, additional machinery was needed to keep up with demand, which required more factory space and led to plant expansion. Eventually, the company employed 150 workers and produced 5 tons of paper daily.

The main plant was extended to 200 feet long and three stories tall. Over time, there were 10 engines, each with a 600-pound capacity. There was one L constructed at right angles to the main building. A portion stood 3 stories tall with an attic, with drying lofts on the upper two stories, and the lower floor was dedicated to packing, shipping, and office space. Bleach and steam boilers were located on the riverside.

 Two smaller, separate buildings were used as a repair shop and as a siding for the Connecticut River Railroad to send and receive goods.

The company, along with the Whiting and Parsons Mills, received awards for their exceptional paper quality at the International Exposition held in Paris in 1878.

In 1885, the boarding house and its contents, located at the northwest corner of Hamilton and Canal Streets, were put up for auction to raise capital for the business. The property did not sell at the time.

The company was not as successful as several of its contemporaries and, over time, accumulated significant debt. Although shareholders holding an 85% interest agreed to the sale of the business in 1888, the 15% shareholders, including Lewis J. Powers, its Treasurer, and Roswell Crafts, felt obligated to pay off its debts dollar for dollar and committed to doing so to maintain their own creditworthiness. 

The business, all real estate holdings, and mill powers of the Union Paper Mfg. Co. were sold on October 15, 1888, to John Shepard. A new papermaking corporation, the Connecticut River Paper Company, was formed in 1888. The leadership team included Lewis J. Powers, formerly of Union Paper, and Roswell M. Fairfield.

The concluding Chapter 3 will provide further information on the successor to the Union Paper Company, the Connecticut River Paper Company.

Citations:

Newspapers.com (paid subscription): Citations: Holyoke (Massachusetts) Transcript & Transcript-Telegram; Springfield (Massachusetts) Republican; publication dates and pages are shown.

Ancestry.com (paid subscription): Genealogy Records and Price & Lee, Holyoke, Massachusetts, City Directories

Holyoke-Chicopee A Perspective, Ella Merkle Dicarlo, Book Press, Brattleboro, VT, 1982

Holyoke, Massachusetts, A Case History of the Industrial Revolution in America, Constance McLaughlin Green, Archon Books, Reprint 1968

Holyoke today: penned and pictured 1887, J. E. Griffin, publisher

Massachusetts Cultural Resource Information System

Registry of Deeds, Hampden County, Springfield, Massachusetts

Map of Holyoke, Massachusetts, Loomis & Kirtland, 1874

Photo Source: Milan P. Warner (c.1885-1899)

The factory of the Union Paper-Mfg. Co. is shown along the Connecticut River.

The company's boarding house is outlined at Hamilton and Canal Streets. 

Union Paper Company, 

Excerpt of Map of Holyoke, Massachusetts, 1874