Coddington Wharf - Coddington Landing (Newport, Rhode Island)

 mill, condos, wharf, textile industry

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currently Condos... nice location ;)

The Coddington Mill [1837] was a series of medium sized granite and wood framed building located at the corner of Thames Street and Coddington Wharf. The main building ran parallel to Thames and was set back approximately 30 feet. Behind this building, there were two smaller stone structures; one on Coddington Wharf and one on what would later become Goodwin Street.
According to Bayles, the mill was constructed in 1837; he also states that in 1860, while owned by a man from Providence, the mill was totally destroyed by fire (537). The Rhode Island Historic Preservation Commission states that it was destroyed by fire in December 1869. In a quandary, we must look to the map for clarification. The 1850 Dripps’ map does show an intact enterprise there in its full configuration, and known as Coddington Mill. So to does the 1859 Dripps’ map, however it is listed as the Touro Mill and contains a number of buildings, including a large, long liner building and three smaller building behind that. The Dripps’ map of 1860 (revised 1870) does not show the mill, but then again, being a revision, it might not. The date of the conflagration will remain a mystery until further research can be done.
In the 1870 Beers’ map, the main mill is gone and, in the1876 Hopkins map, it shows at most three major buildings, all much smaller then the previous complex, one of which is listed as an “Enamel Factory”. The operator of the factory is the Richmond Manufacturing company. This information is corroborated to some extent by the 1878 Galt & Hoy birds-eye view map, which shows three buildings, one of which has a factory style smokestack. The theory is that the main long, liner factory building burnt in 1860 and the remaining building were used for industrial purposes. The 1884 Sanborn map shows both buildings, but lists them as “Old”, probably a good indication of it being defunct. By 1891 one of the buildings is being used to store “Masons Materials” while the other has been made into a dwelling with attached wagon house. The 70 foot chimney is labeled “not used.”
At the height of its production in 1860, the Coddington Mill ran 11,000 spindles and operated 275 looms. This produced 50,000 yards of printing cloth weekly and employed 220 people (Bayler 537).
All that remains of the mill today are the three smaller building visible on the maps. All are built of stone. One is located on Goodwin Street and the other two on Coddington Wharf.

'Industry in the Southern Thames Street Neighborhood of Newport, Rhode Island, 1820 -1920'
Daniel P. Titus, Salve Regina University
escholar.salve.edu/fac_staff_pub/31/