List of watermills in the United States Facts for Kids

Watermills are amazing machines that use the power of flowing water to do work! Imagine a big wheel turning because of a river or stream. This turning wheel then powers machines inside a building, often to grind grain into flour or to cut wood. For a long time, watermills were super important for communities across the United States, helping people make food and build homes.

This article shares a list of some cool watermills you can find in the United States, especially those that are still working today!

Working Watermills Across the USA

Many watermills are still working, showing us how people used to live and work. They are often historic places where you can learn about the past.

Alabama's Mills

Chandlers Mill, 45ft working water wheel & Gristmill, built in 1860 in Centre, Alabama, has a huge water wheel!
Kymulga Mill is in Childersburg.

Arkansas's Mills

War Eagle Mill in Rogers was built in 1832. It's still grinding grain today using an "undershot" water wheel, which means the water flows under the wheel to turn it.

California's Mills

Bale Grist Mill is located in Napa.

Connecticut's Mills

Main Sawmill in Ledyard, Connecticut.
Winthrop Mill in New London, Connecticut, was built around 1650, making it very old!

Georgia's Mills

You can find Historic mills of the Atlanta area.
The Old Mill at Berry College is in Rome.
Nora Mill is located in Helen, Georgia.

Illinois's Mills

Franklin Creek Grist Mill is in Franklin Creek State Natural Area, Franklin Grove, Illinois.
Graue Mill and Museum is in Oak Brook.

Indiana's Mills

Beck's Mill is in Becks Mill.
Bonneyville Mill in Bristol was built in the mid-1830s and still works from May to October.
Mansfield Roller Mill in Mansfield was built in 1820.
Metamora Grist Mill in Metamora was built in 1899 and restored in 1970. It makes high-quality corn meal.
Spring Mill State Park in Mitchell.
Stockdale Mill in Roann.
Bridgeton Mill in Bridgeton was started in 1823 and is still run by the same family.
Greenfield Mills, near Howe, is also family-owned and operating.

Iowa's Mills

Pine Creek Gristmill is in Wildcat Den State Park, near Muscatine.

Kentucky's Mills

Mill Springs Overshot Waterwheel at Mill Springs Park was built in 1877. It's powered by 13 natural springs and is thought to be one of the largest of its kind in the world, with a wheel over 40 feet tall! It's in Mill Springs.
Wisenberger Mill is near Midway.

Maine's Mills

Bog Mill in Buxton.
Dexter Grist Mill in Dexter was built in 1854.
Maine Forest & Logging Museum, also known as Leonard's Mills, has Maine's only working sawmill.
Morgan's Mills in Union, Maine makes wholesale grist mill products.
Scribner's Mills in Harrison, Maine is rebuilding an old "up-and-down" sawmill.

Maryland's Mills

Wye Mill, built around 1682, is the oldest continuously working grist mill in the United States! It even supplied flour to George Washington's army during the Revolutionary War. It was one of the first mills to use new automated equipment designed by Oliver Evans, which is still used today.

Massachusetts's Mills

Dexter Grist Mill in Sandwich was built in 1654 and fully restored in 1961.
Jenney Grist Mill in Plymouth was built in 1969 on the site of a 1636 mill.
Old Schwamb Mill in Arlington was built in 1861, but mills have been on that spot since 1684.
Old Stockbridge Grist Mill in Scituate was built around 1650.
Sturbridge Village grist mill in Sturbridge was built in 1939.
Wayside Inn Grist Mill in Sudbury was built in 1929 by Henry Ford.

Michigan's Mills

Pears Mill is in Buchanan.

Minnesota's Mills

Pickwick Mill in Pickwick was built in 1858.
Schech's Mill in Caledonia was built in 1876.

Mississippi's Mills

Sciple's Water Mill in Kemper County was built in 1790. The Sciple family bought it around 1840 and has kept it running ever since! This mill also used to process cotton and saw lumber until the 1950s.

Missouri's Mills

Nebraska's Mills

Florence Mill in Omaha.

New Hampshire's Mills

Littleton Grist Mill in Littleton.
Sanborn grist and saw mill in Loudon, now called Sanborn Farm Mills.

New Jersey's Mills

Cooper Gristmill in Chester.

New York's Mills

Mill Dam Bridge (tide mill) in Centerport. A tide mill uses the ocean's tides to power its wheel!
Roslyn Grist Mill in Roslyn.
Stony Brook Grist Mill in Stony Brook.
Tuthilltown Gristmill in Gardiner.
Enfield Falls Mill and Miller's House in Enfield.
Water Mill (Water Mill, New York).
Mills at Green Hole in Claverack, NY, built in the early 1700s, are a fully working complex with a saw mill, cider press, blacksmith shop, and woodworking shop!

North Carolina's Mills

Mingus Mill

Dellingers Mill in Bakersville was built in 1867 and works seasonally.
Emmett Isaacs Mill in Surry County.
Gwynn Valley Mill in Brevard.
Linneys Mill in Alexander County, built in 1902.
Mingus Mill in Cherokee.
Old Mill of Guilford in Oak Ridge is a fully working grist mill. It was founded in 1767! Legend says British troops used the original mill before a big battle in 1781.
West Point Mill in Durham.
Yates Mill in Wake County.

Ohio's Mills

Lantermans Mill in Youngstown, Ohio.
Bear's Mill.
Clifton Mill in Clifton is one of the oldest grist mills still working!
Indian Mill in Upper Sandusky.

Oregon's Mills

Thompson's Mills in Shedd, OR, built in 1858, is now an Oregon State Heritage Site.
Butte Creek Mill in Eagle Point, OR, built in 1872.

Pennsylvania's Mills

Bohrmans Mill near Orwigsburg.
The Mill at Anselma (Lightfoot Mill) in Chester Springs.
Newlin Mill Complex in Concordville.
Shoaff's Mill in Little Buffalo State Park, Perry County.
McConnell's Mill in McConnells Mill State Park, Lawrence County, Pennsylvania.

Rhode Island's Mills

Carpenter's Grist Mill in Perryville was built in 1703.
Hammond Gristmill at Gilbert Stuart Birthplace in Saunderstown, Rhode Island was built in 1757.
Kenyon's Grist Mill in West Kingston has a current building from 1886, but the mill started way back in 1696!

South Carolina's Mills

Boykin Mill in Boykin is a working grist mill where meal and grits have been ground by water power for over 150 years.
Suber's Corn Mill in Greer was built in 1908. It was one of five mills in the area in the early 1900s.

Tennessee's Mills

Cable Mill at Cades Cove, Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
Falls Mill in Belvidere.
Pigeon Forge Mill in Pigeon Forge.
Rice Grist Mill in Rocky Top, Norris Dam State Park.
Gap Creek Mill at Cumberland Gap, The Olde Mill Inn Bed & Breakfast.

Virginia's Mills

Burwell-Morgan Mill in Millwood was built in 1782–85. It still grinds different grains using an indoor waterwheel.
Locke's Mill in Berryville, Virginia is a very old grist mill on the Shenandoah River. It grinds various grains, including organic ones, using water power.
McCormick Mill in Raphine, Virginia is on the Cyrus McCormick Farm.
Causey's Mill in Causey Mill Park, Newport News.
George Washington's Gristmill at Mount Vernon.
Kennedy-Wade Mill in Raphine.
Woodson's Mill in Lowesville.

Washington's Mills

Cedar Creek Grist Mill in Woodland.

West Virginia's Mills

Glade Creek Grist Mill in Babcock State Park, Fayette County.

Wisconsin's Mills

Beckman Mill in Newark, Wisconsin.
Cedarburg Mill in Cedarburg.
Concordia Mill in Cedarburg.

Images for kids

Mills at Green Hole - Mill complex

List of watermills in the United States facts for kids

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