Mansfield

Sun. Jun 4

01:00 pm

-

05:00 pm

0.1 miles

Nestled in the historic Mansfield village of Gurleyville, on the banks of the Fenton River, the Joshua’s Trust Gurleyville Grist Mill stands today very much as it was when built in 1830. The fifteen-acre campus of field and forest includes not only the Stone Mill, but also the Miller’s Cottage, birthplace of Governor Wilbur Cross, whose grandfather and father were millers here.

The original grist mill and saw mill on this site, built in 1721, burned at some point, and was rebuilt in 1750. A ten-foot dam was built at this time, and was maintained for two-hundred years, until it washed out in 1959. In 1830 the Mill was rebuilt in native stone as you see it today. The mill originally had a breast wheel in the basement, then a large wooden wheel outside, and finally in 1872, metal turbines. The gearing in the basement dates to this time, and operated both the Saw Mill and the Grist Mill until mid-twentieth century. Heavy snows in the early 1950s collapsed the saw mill roof, and it was razed, leaving only the Stone Grist Mill. The water-powered mill operated until 1941, grinding corn and buckwheat for area farms, including the University of Connecticut College of Agriculture, until 1941 when a metal gear broke and could not be repaired because of the WWII effort. The miller left everything intact: the gearing in the basement, the leather belts to run the machinery upstairs, the square iron shafting, the millstones, the silk bolter, and even the ledger on his desk. Joshua’s Trust acquired the Mill, Miller’s Cottage, and 15 acres of forest and field in 1979.

Meeting Location Details

Roadside parking.

Click on the red map pin for the event address.