Well before this time period: (1971).
Mills all over New England...where multiple machines were employed to do the same job in a "gang"...before electricity..and afterward, a central power source transported power to overhead
"Line Shafts", which transferred their rotational power
Down to the machines on the floor below via leather belts. The excelsior mill at Wolfeboro Falls had "Line Shafts" providing power to the
Knives shaving wood off the logs.
NB