{"nrhp_refnum":"93000356","name":"Lehigh Valley Silk Mills","other_names":["Lipps and Sutton Silk Mill","Warren Mill"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"Jct. of Seneca and Clewell Sts.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Fountain Hill","county":"Northampton County","state":"PA","lat":40.604530519000036,"lon":-75.39310216199993,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1993-04-29","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Industry","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"Two late 19th-century red brick silk mill buildings at the north and east corners of Seneca and Clewell Streets in the Fountain Hill district of Northampton County, Pennsylvania. The Lipps and Sutton Silk Mill was built beginning in 1886 and the Warren Mill in 1895, both designed in a vernacular style with Queen Anne-influenced wall treatment.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the Lipps and Sutton Mill was the first silk mill built in Bethlehem and one of the first four in the Lehigh Valley, and that the two mills represent the extremes of local silk mill architecture. The Lipps and Sutton building is described as an unusually scaled and highly articulated example of late nineteenth-century silk mill design, shaped by its residential surroundings. The complex is also tied to the regional silk industry and its labor history.","narrative":"Two red brick silk mills stand side by side at the corner of Seneca and Clewell Streets in Fountain Hill, Pennsylvania. The Lipps and Sutton Mill was begun in 1886 in a T-shaped plan, and the Warren Mill followed in 1895. Designed by South Bethlehem architect A. W. Leh and built by contractor J. Stewart Allam, the Lipps and Sutton building was scaled down to suit its residential neighborhood, with its height kept low and its brick walls set with pilasters, corbelled dentils, and small corner turrets. Leh's turrets are regarded as his signature. The Lipps and Sutton Mill is said to be the first silk mill in Bethlehem, and the complex reflects the rise of silk production in the Lehigh Valley, which became the second most important silk region in the United States by 1920. The buildings also reflect the regional silk industry's labor history, including a 1910 strike at the plant. The Warren Mill continues to operate as a textile mill.","period_of_significance":"1886-1937","architect_builder":"A. W. Leh (architect); J. Stewart Allam (builder)","architectural_style":"Vernacular; Queen Anne influence","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"The Warren Mill is still operating as a thread mill; the Lipps and Sutton Mill was renovated beginning in 1991.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-haiku-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.1-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 17:11:37.189831-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_PA/93000356.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/93000356/2288655b0f-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/93000356/2288655b0f-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Shuvaev","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lipps_%26_Sutton_Silk_Mill_01.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Shuvaev</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lipps_%26_Sutton_Silk_Mill_01.JPG"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71995614","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lehigh_Valley_Silk_Mills","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6518863"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/pennsylvania/northampton-county/lehigh-valley-silk-mills-93000356/"}