“It will never be the same.”

Before long, the old Libbey Mill will come down, and we will probably be hearing that phrase again. It’s a mantra that accompanies change everywhere, and it is usually uttered with an unnecessary sense of despair.

Just look around. Things are not the same. Our part of the Androscoggin Valley has undergone drastic change since the early days of Auburn and Lewiston, and for the most part, we have reaped great benefits.

Would we say today that the great projects that harnessed the Androscoggin’s power should be undone? Gulf Island Dam is probably the single greatest agent of change in our region’s history, and the best example of the mirror meanings of “never be the same.”

Can you imagine being a farmer on the banks of the river who learns the project will forever flood his land? Now imagine how things would be today without the electricity that huge power plant generates for us.

“Never be the same,” in both cases, can have extreme implications.

The Libbey Mill is much more than a landmark that’s destined to disappear from our skyline. A look at the history of just this one structure shows the roller-coaster effects of change on our community and our society.

First chartered as The Lewiston Falls Cotton Mill Company, its looms started up in 1846 under ownership of the Lewiston Water Power Company and later the Franklin Company. It was 46 feet wide, 102 feet long and five stories high, but over the years, it underwent some expansions.

After initial success and then a mostly idle period from 1884 to 1893, the mill was purchased by W.S. (Winfield Scott) Libbey and Henry M. Dingley. Under their leadership, exceptional changes came to Lewiston and surrounding areas.

Libbey and Dingley replaced the mill’s water-powered machinery with electric motors. Before long, they were building Deer Rips Dam on the Androscoggin River to generate more power. That was in 1902, about 20 years before the big Gulf Island Dam was built.

Electrical power led to Libbey’s development of the area’s Interurban Line of trolleys that eventually disappeared as automobiles took over the roads.

The descendants of W.S. Libbey worked with me a few years ago to document that remarkable man’s life. Even the Libbey home on Main Street in Lewiston has seen change. With renovations to the grand old house and modern expansion behind it, the property is now the headquarters of Androscoggin Home Care and Hospice.

About seven years ago, Kevin Juskewitch of Lewiston sent me more information about many of the Libbey Mill’s later products – the Golden Fleece woolen blankets and other brands for hotels and institutions.

They included the Viking, Trojan, North Cape, Polar, Sunshine and Touraine.

The building’s most notable physical features were the two towers where stairways of peg construction took the workers to the upper floors.

Juskewitch described Scott Libbey’s ornate office. He said it had a painted ceiling, tiled floor, brass fixtures, mahogany woodwork with gold-foil decoration, and a broad fireplace with a massive mantle.

There also was an opera house in the mill, and the last performance at that venue was not so long ago. L/A Arts presented Doug Varone and Dancers in a program called “A Momentary Order” on Oct. 3, 1992.

Soon after, fires at the old mill sealed its destiny. As Juskewitch said, “Once the mill is gone, there will never be another one like it.”

It will “never be the same,” but there will be something else that could enhance our community just as much or more.

Dave Sargent is a freelance writer and an Auburn native. You can e-mail him at [email protected].