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Western Avenue Studios
Mass. Mohair Plush Company Mills/ Joan Fabric
Built between 1890-1940
Site History
Western Avenue Studios occupies two of the former Massachusetts Mohair Plush Company site. The site itself, alongside the Pawtucket Canal was largely undeveloped prior to the 1840's. The earliest uses, documented on the 1850 map of Lowell included Howard's Lumber Yard, the City Stables and the Lowell Manufacturing Company. On the 1879 map of Lowell there were scattered structures on the property with a small Locks and Canals building at the eastern most end of the property and four small Lowell Manufacturing properties at the western end of the site.
The 1896 atlas of Lowell shows the first large structure on the site, the Coram Block, now known as the A Mill. There is no information available as to what took place in the Coram Block but the large number of loading door openings located on the north and west facades suggest a warehouse function. By 1906 the site was owned by the Massachusetts Mohair Plush Company and the five story C and D Mill buildings had been built along the Pawtucket Canal. The central stair town which is visible from downtown Lowell was built at this time. The two story G Mill was built in the 1930's, this structure is notable for the distinctive sawtooth roof line.
Preservation and Reuse
The Massachusetts Mohair Plush Company left the site in the mid 1950's and the complex was purchased by Joan Fabrics. Operations in the complex included the dyeing of yarn for the automotive upholstery industry and office space for Joan Fabrics. Joan Fabrics sold the site to Collins and Aikman who then sold the site to BPV Lowell LLC in 2004. Collins and Aikman remained as tenants until they ceased operations in 2006.
In 2005 BPV Lowell built out the 5th floor of the C and D Mill buildings as artist work spaces, the 4th floor was converted in January of 2006 and the 3rd floor in August of 2006. Conversion of the 2nd and 3rd floor of the A Mill to artist work spaces took place in 2007 and the 2nd floor of the C and D Mills was converted in 2009. In addition to artist studio space, the complex houses Classic Elite Yarns on the 4th and 5th floor of the A Mill, FI Office in the basement of the C and D Mills. The E/H Mill is owned by Alpha Imaging a distributor of large format printer supplies and the second floor of the B Mill is owned by The Space a music rehearsal and recording studio. Construction of artist live/work space in the G Mill is anticipated in the summer of 2011.