Union Mill Complex facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Union Mill Complex
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Union Mill (left), West Bag Factory and George West Office Building, from Prospect Street, 2008
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| Location | Ballston Spa, NY |
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| Nearest city | Saratoga Springs |
| Area | 4 acres (1.6 ha) |
| Built | 1850–1886 |
| Architect | R.N. Brezee |
| Architectural style | Italianate, Second Empire |
| NRHP reference No. | 82003404 |
| Added to NRHP | 1982 |
The Union Mill Complex is a group of old buildings in Ballston Spa, New York. It is also known as Bischoff's Chocolate Factory. You can find it where Milton Avenue and Prospect Street meet. The complex has three brick buildings from the late 1800s. It also includes the remains of an old dam.
This complex was first built to use the power of the nearby Kayaderosseras Creek. It helped make cloth during the time of the Industrial Revolution. Later, a man named George West bought it. He turned it into a factory that made paper bags. His company became very successful. After that, it became a chocolate factory. Then, it was used as a warehouse for a plastics company. In 1982, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places. Today, it is a place with many shops and offices.
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What the Union Mill Complex Looks Like
The Union Mill Complex is on a piece of land shaped like a wedge. Milton Avenue is on one side, and the Kayaderosseras Creek is on another. Prospect Street runs along the south and west. The area around it is mostly shops and businesses. The complex includes three main buildings. These are the George West Office Building, Union Mill, and West Bag Factory. There are also the old stone parts of a dam. This dam was important for the factory's early use.
All three buildings are made of brick. The bricks are laid in a common pattern. The roofs are made of metal. Many decorations are also made of metal. These include fancy tops on towers, window frames, railings, and roof edges.
The Union Mill Building
The mill building itself is shaped like an "L". It has four floors and two tall towers for stairs. It was built in a style called Second Empire. This style uses decorative brickwork and metal details. The inside wooden frame has been replaced with strong concrete on the lower floors. The tower on the east side has a clock face. It also has a large bell that weighs about 1,500 pounds (680 kg).
The West Bag Factory
The bag factory building has two and a half floors. It is long and narrow with a pointed roof. The windows have flat tops and stone sills. Some attic windows have been covered with bricks. Inside, you can still see the wooden roof beams. It has metal roof windows in an Italianate style. The building still has its original wooden structure.
The George West Office Building
Next to the bag factory is the George West Office Building. This building was later used as a creamery. It has two floors with a pointed roof. A smaller, single-story part sticks out from it. On the south side, there is a two-and-a-half-story tower. This tower has a metal roof with dormer windows and decorative supports.
Inside the Buildings
The mill and office building still have many of their original fancy details. The mill was updated by an architect named R.N. Brezee. It has wood paneling made of oak and cherry wood. There is a very decorated cashier's desk and a strong walk-in safe. The bag factory also has a cashier's office with pay windows. It has a staircase with two open sections. The wooden newel posts (main posts) are shiny and turned. It also has a walk-in safe. The owner's office has shiny cherry wood panels. It also has a tiled fireplace and fancy cherry wood around the windows.
The factory part itself does not have many decorations. There are no old machines left in any of the buildings.
Behind the buildings, the Blue Mill Dam on the creek was taken down in the mid-1900s. Only some of its stone supports are left.
History of the Union Mill Complex
Early Days of the Mill
The story of this property began around 1830. A man named Hezekiah Middlebrook built the first dam on the creek. In 1844, the Ballston Mill Company built the first cotton mill here. Six years later, in 1850, they added a wool mill. This wool mill is now the Bag Factory building.
In 1878, a fire destroyed the first Union Cotton Mill. The next year, George West bought the property.
The Time of George West
George West became very successful during the Civil War. He invented the flat-bottomed paper bag. This was the first bag that could hold as much as 50 pounds (23 kg). After the fire, he bought the mill property. He built the current main building and called it the Union Paper Mill. He used a rebuilt water channel and the old cotton mill's turbine for power. He also made the wool mill bigger and turned it into a bag factory.
Over the next six years, the office building was built. It was meant to be a very modern office for its time. In 1882, a flood destroyed the dam, but it was rebuilt. The clock tower got electric lights in 1885. The whole mill had electric lights the next year. The dam was damaged and rebuilt again in 1886. But another flood broke it again.
West made the main mill building even bigger in 1889. By this time, the complex was the main office for his company. His company ran nine mills and two factories. It also had a pulp mill in northern Saratoga County. In 1899, he sold his businesses to the Union Bag & Paper Company.
Bischoff's Chocolates
In 1918, the buildings were sold to Frederick Bischoff. He was a German immigrant who made chocolate. His chocolate company had grown too big for its old place in Brooklyn. It needed a new space quickly. A company from Philadelphia updated the inside of the buildings. They made the mill stronger with steel and concrete. All the old machines were removed by 1920.
Bischoff put in colored lights to shine on the water falling over the dam. He also made other improvements nearby. Bischoff passed away in 1942.
In 1945, there was not enough chocolate because of the war. This forced the factory to close. The dam completely fell apart in 1947 and was never rebuilt.
What Happened Later
The complex was sold in 1950. It had several different owners after that. These included a company that made knitted goods. Later, Tufflite Plastics, a local company, used the mill as a warehouse for its plastic products. Tufflite closed in the late 1990s.
In 1997, the complex was renovated inside. It was changed into spaces for small shops, offices, and a restaurant.
