"When highways were no wider than today’s bridle paths, the first good roads were built to the mills. Where there was a mill site, there was a nucleus for a town."
Eric Sloane, "The Mills of Early America"
Chapter 3: The Mills that Helped Survive the Community
The mills in the Wissahickon Valley Region were operated for nearly 200 years, and relied solely on the Wissahickon Creek and the springs that gave power and energy to run the mills. These mills provide necessary resources for people within the community and even for people from outside the community: grist mills produced grain for food; saw mills cut timber to make lumber for shelter; fulling mills produced fabric for clothing and blankets.
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To learn more about the Wissahickon Creek and Trails, visit the Wissahickon Trails website.
Grist Mills
From the grist mills found in the Wissahickon Valley Region, they were considered the most widely used mills for providing grain and producing flour to families in the area.
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The earliest grist mill built in America was in Jamestown, Virgina in 1621.
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Examples of Grist Mills in the area:
Saw Mills
Saw mills work similar to how grist mills work, but it was used to cut logs into lumber using large bandsaw blades. They were used during the American Revolution and the Civil War for producing supplies for the soldiers.
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The earliest saw mill built in America was built in Maine on the Piscataqua River in 1623.
Examples of Saw Mills in the area:
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Clover Mill (Grist and Saw)
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Mather Mill (Grist and Saw)
Fulling Mills
Fulling mills were not as common as grist and saw mills since it involved cleaning and thickening wool to produce blankets and clothing. They were also used during the American Revolution and the Civil War for producing supplies for the soldiers.
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The earliest fulling mill built in America was in Rowley, Massachusetts by John Pearson in 1643.
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Example of Fulling Mills in the area: