In regional New England parlance, a mill town is one that grew up around one or more mills or factories, usually on a river that was used as a source of power in the days before electricity.
Many of these towns were founded in the early to mid 19th century, when New England became a manufacturing powerhouse, along rivers like the Blackstone River, Merrimack River, or Androscoggin River. The classic example is Lowell, Massachusetts.
The term "mill town" can be complimentary or insulting. It is a compliment in that such towns have a good sense of identity and local history, with a personality that a modern suburb or "edge city" can't match. It is an insult in that the modern economy has often passed by mill towns, leaving many poor and growing poorer, full of huge but empty factories.
In England, the term mill town often refers to the historically textile-manufacturing towns of Northern England, particularly Lancashire (cotton) and West Yorkshire (wool).
