Plymouth Cordage Company

Cordage Company Tower

The Plymouth Cordage Company was a rope making company located in Plymouth, Massachusetts. The company, founded in 1824, had a large factory located on the Plymouth waterfront. By the late 19th century, the Plymouth Cordage Company had become the largest manufacturer of rope and twine in the world.^[1] The company specialized in ship rigging, and was chosen among other competitors in the early 1900s to manufacture the rope used on the USS Constitution.

The Plymouth Cordage Company served as the largest employer in Plymouth for over 100 years. It went out of business in 1964 after over 140 years of continuous operation. By the early 1960s, the company could no longer withstand competition from more advanced synthetic-fiber ropes, and subsequently declared bankruptcy. It was bought out by the Columbian Rope Company in 1965.^[2] Parts of the original machinery are now on display at Mystic Seaport in Mystic, Connecticut.

Plymouth Cordage also operated a factory in Welland, Ontario. A detailed history of Welland operations can be found at the Welland Public Library Local History site.^[3]

Cordage Commerce Center

Wide view of the Cordage Factory, with the prominent smokestack to the left.

In modern times, the 45-acre (180,000 m²) Cordage factory property in North Plymouth has been turned into a large retail and office center. The building, now known as Cordage Commerce Center, houses the Plymouth MBTA station, a terminus for the Old Colony Line. The factory also contains several restaurants, offices, and stores. University of Massachusetts Boston currently offers some classes in a wing of the building. The largest retailer is Mill Stores. The offices and animation suites of Plymouth Rock Studios have also taken up residence there.There was previously a Wal-Mart located located on the property, but it closed in 2005 and relocated to Colony Place, also in Plymouth.

References

1. ^ "Plymouth Cordage Company: Storied Past". Cordage Commerce Center. Archived from the original on 2007-09-27. http://web.archive.org/web/20070927200510/http://www.cordagecommercecenter.com/flash_content/history.htm. Retrieved 2007-08-12. 
2. ^ "Records of the Plymouth Cordage Company". Mystic Seaport. http://www.mysticseaport.org/library/Manuscripts/coll/coll133/coll133.html#head38723576. Retrieved 2007-08-12. 
3. ^ "Plymouth Cordage Company History". http://www.welland.library.on.ca/industry/Factory%20Pages/Plymouth%20Cordage.htm. Retrieved 2009-02-01. 

External links

• Cordage Commerce Center Official Site
• Plymouth Cordage Historical Society
• [1] Plymouth Rock Studios]

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