Clinger-Moses Mill Complex facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Clinger-Moses Mill Complex
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Clinger-Moses Mill Complex, February 2011
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 Location in Pennsylvania
Location in the United States
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| Location | South of Chester Springs on Pine Creek Lane, West Pikeland Township, Pennsylvania |
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| Area | 9.4 acres (3.8 ha) |
| Built | 1764, 1801, 1860 |
| NRHP reference No. | 80003454 |
| Added to NRHP | July 17, 1980 |
The Clinger-Moses Mill Complex, also known as Clement's Mill, is a really old and interesting group of buildings in West Pikeland Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania. This special place includes the spots where two mills once stood, a stone dam, a mill house, a stone bank barn, and other smaller buildings. It's a great example of how people lived and worked a long time ago!
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Discovering the Clinger-Moses Mill Complex
Imagine a place where people used to grind grain into flour or cut wood for building. That's what a mill complex was all about! The Clinger-Moses Mill Complex is a historic site that shows us what these important places looked like. It covers about 9.4 acres of land.
What is a Mill Complex?
A mill complex isn't just one building; it's a whole group of structures that worked together. Usually, there's a mill building itself, which uses water power to do work, plus homes for the mill workers or owners, and barns for animals or storage. This complex has all of that!
A Look at the Buildings
The Clinger-Moses Mill Complex has several cool buildings to explore:
- The Grist Mill: One of the main buildings was a three-story grist mill. A grist mill is where farmers brought their grain, like wheat or corn, to be ground into flour. This particular grist mill was built in 1860. Today, it's no longer grinding grain; it has been changed into a home. It's a tall building, four stories high, made of strong fieldstone. Fieldstone means it was built using natural stones found in fields.
- The Saw Mill: There was also a saw mill here. A saw mill is where logs were cut into planks of wood. The original saw mill building is gone, but a five-bay, frame house has been built on its old foundations.
- The Main House: The main house at the complex was built in 1801. It's a 2 1/2-story home, also made of fieldstone. It has a sloped roof, called a gable roof, and a two-story section at the back. This was likely where the mill owner or manager lived.
- The Bank Barn: You'll also find a stone bank barn. A bank barn is a special kind of barn built into the side of a hill. This design makes it easy to load hay or grain into the upper level from the ground, while animals can enter the lower level from the other side.
- Other Buildings: Around the main structures, there are also other smaller buildings that were part of the complex, helping with daily tasks and storage.
History of the Mill
The buildings at the Clinger-Moses Mill Complex were built at different times, showing how the site grew over the years. Some parts date back to 1764, while the main house was built in 1801, and the grist mill in 1860. Each building tells a part of the story of how this area developed and how people used the natural resources, like water from Pine Creek, to power their work.
Becoming a Historic Place
Because of its important history and well-preserved buildings, the Clinger-Moses Mill Complex was added to the National Register of Historic Places on July 17, 1980. This means it's recognized as a special place that's worth protecting and remembering for future generations. It helps us understand the past and how people lived and worked in Pennsylvania centuries ago.
