Although Springfield was chartered in 1761, residents did not begin taking advantage of the waterpower on the Black River until the 1800s. Once dams were built to harness the water, mills and factories followed. Innovation could not be stopped, and for the next 150 years one invention or improvement after another emerged from this little town. Things like the spring clothespin and sandpaper were invented in Springfield as well as world-famous tool-making machines such as the turret lathe and gear shaping and grinding machines. Improvements were also made to textile-processing machinery. A combination of the right people at the right place and time allowed Springfield, the "little town that did," to transform from an agrarian and mill town to the home of a world-renowned machine tool industry. Title: History of Springfield Told Through Photographs Publisher: Arcadia Publishing Date: 6/13/2011 The newest addition to Arcadia Publishing's popular Images of America series is Springfield from local author Rosanne E. Putnam. The book boasts more than 200 vintage photographs, many which have never before been published. Although Springfield was chartered in 1761, residents did not begin taking advantage of the waterpower on the Black River until the 1800s. Once dams were built to harness the water, mills and factories followed. Innovation could not be stopped, and for the next 150 years one invention or improvement after another emerged from this little town. Things like the spring clothespin and sandpaper were invented in Springfield as well as world-famous tool-making machines such as the turret lathe and gear shaping and grinding machines. Improvements were also made to textile-processing machinery. A combination of the right people at the right place and time allowed Springfield, the "little town that did," to transform from an agrarian and mill town to the home of a world-renowned machine tool industry. Putnam hopes that the book will "will encourage readers to realize that it was the creative people with new ideas that took Springfield from little mills along the river to a world-recognized machine tool manufacturing community. As the town looks for a new identity, it is a new world and it will take a new set of people with new ideas to start it all over again." Highlights of Springfield: ? Roads, bridges and the railroad ? Early businesses ? Machine tool industry ? North Springfield ? Leisure and sports ? Charles Lindbergh's visit ? The 1927 flood and the 1938 hurricane Available at area bookstores, independent retailers, and online retailers, or through Arcadia Publishing at www.arcadiapublishing.com or (888)-313-2665. Arcadia Publishing is the leading publisher of local and regional history in the United States. Our mission is to make history accessible and meaningful through the publication of books on the heritage of America's people and places. Have we done a book on your town? Visit www.arcadiapublishing.com. Rosanne E. Putnam grew up in Springfield and currently writes a weekly historical column, "Picture the Past," for the local newspaper. She also serves as the president of the Friends of the Springfield Town Library. Most of the images in Springfield have come from the Springfield Town Library collection and the Whitcomb glass slide collection, with others culled from personal and public archives. Used Book in Good Condition