LAWRENCE, Mass., city, and one of the county-seats of Essex County, on both sides of the Merrimac River, and on the Boston and Maitte Railroad, 26 miles northwest of Bos ton. It is one of the notable and leading manu facturing cities in the valley of the Merrimac River. Built at the lowermost available rapid on the river, the city has the concentrated power of all the tributaries of that stream and receives benefit from the entire watershed feed ing the main current —an area-of 4,450 square . miles. The water power developed at this point, amounting to about 15,000 horse power, is remarkably uniform and reliable.
Water Power 1845-48 the "Great Stone Dam" located at Bodwell's Falls near the old historic "Andover Bridge" was built of hammered granite. When finished this struc ture Was considered the most complete and durable work of •the kind then existing in America. It was bedded upon the underlying strata of bluestone or Merrimac schist and it was so thoroughly constructed that it has stood to this day without alteration or addition, seemingly 'a part of the _ledges between and upon. which it was built. This dam concen trated at one point the power of three suc cessive natural river rapids, the accomplished result being a fall of 26 feet, increased in height, when needful, by flashboards, to 30 feet. The overfall of water is in one unbroken sheet over a crest, nearly straight in line, 900 feet in length between the granite abutments. In • addition to this unbroken span of solid stonework the protecting wings of the dam are 729 feet in combined length. There are two main canals, one along the northern bank of the river, one mile in length, and another upon the southern side, one-half mile long; these distribute water power to the large mills and workshops. In 1915 a survey was made under the supervision of a commission ap pointed by the governor of the State for a navigable channel from the mouth of the river • at Newburyport. to Lowell, Mass., a distance of 36 miles. In 1917 the United States Board
of Army Engineers reported favorably upon the survey, and in 1918 both branches of the Massachusetts legislature passed a bill author izing the building of this navigable waterway in conjunction with the Federal government. Pending war induced the governor to veto the bill at that time, but it will in all proba bility be passed as soon as conditions warrant. Such action will make of Lawrence a direct seaport town. Steam and electric power are also used in addition by nearly all manufac turers and in some instances are exclusively relied upon.
Manufacturing and • Lawrence may well be known to Americans as "The Worsted City,° for the United States census . returns show that in the production of worsted and woolen dress goods Lawrence leads the United States and is second in the world; Birmingham, England, being the only city which excels her in this respect. Lawrence leads the entire country in the amount of capital in vested in any one locality in the Worsted and woolen dress goods industry, and in • the value of that class of goods produced, the sum ;n vested in this distinct business in 1917 being $120,263,298 and the value• of product $135 618,681. Among wool-growers and dealers of the world, the city is known as a leading con sumer of that staple. Among the great manu facturing compames that lead in importance are the Pacific Mills, having over 10,000 em ployees; the American Woolen Company, em ploying 17,000 operatives; the Arlington Mills, with 8,500 operatives; the Everett Mills, employing 5,500. The total investment in the textile industry in Lawrence in 1917 was $175,534,916 and the total value of textile prod ucts was $174,495,698. Lawrence is also famous for its manufacture of calendered book paper. In the manufacture of wooden wheels Law rence also leads the country, the Archibald Wheel Company manufacturing government artillery wheels, wheels for fire engines and automobile wheels.