Located on the western bank of the Cuyahoga River, the Alpaca Mill was one of the earliest mills to be established in Kent. The mill's construction began in 1837 and was not fully completed until 1879. The Alpaca Mill was originally a silk mill whose owners planted mulberry bushes along the banks of the Cuyahoga River with high hopes of turning the region into a destination for the production of silk. It soon turned out, however, that the silkworms inhabiting the bushes could not survive the cold Ohio winters, spelling the end of these plans. After the silk mill failed, the building later became a cotton mill, wool (or alpaca) mill, dress factory, machine shop, furniture factory, torque convertor factory and finally a paper box plant. This structure is "Kent to the core," as it is constructed from brick made in a local brick yard. The building now houses apartments. | Source: Kent Historical SocietyDownload Original File
