The Medford Rum Distilleries
THE MEDFORD RUM DISTILLERIES
Rum manufacturing started in Medford in 1715 and continued until 1905. Four distilleries, owned mostly by fathers and sons, operated in the Medford Square area.
The first distillery, built in 1715 by John Hall, remained in the Hall family until 1801. It was located on the northern side of Riverside Avenue between Medford Square and River Street. (This location was chosen because of the clear spring water that rose from the ground there.) The Isaac Hall distillery stood on the east side of River Street, beside the cemetery. The Bishop distillery stood on Riverside Avenue opposite River Street near the Mystic River. The Blanchard Distillery, which stood near the corner of the Mystic Valley Parkway and Main Street, distilled anise-seed, snake-root, and clove-water as well as rum.
In 1824 Daniel Lawrence purchased the John Hall distillery which, by 1830, was the only active distillery remaining in Medford. Daniel's son, General Samuel Lawrence, was its sole proprietor from 1867 until it closed in 1905. General Lawrence never divulged his reasons for the closing.
From 1817 until 1893 the section of Riverside Avenue between Cross Street (Route #93) and Medford Square was known as "Distill House Lane."
Medford rum was a product of the triangular trade during the Colonial Era and continued as a hallmark of fine rum for nearly 200 years.
Medford Historical Society 1991
Submitted by @csixty4