Mills of Washington County

Wheat Shocks by Joan Russell

Wheat Shocks
by Joan Russell

Numerous mills existed in Washington County since the arrival of the early settlers. Some mills were short lived; others have lasted as much as 200 years of continuous operation. The Resources of Tennessee, 1874 listed 52 flour mills in Washington Co.* These were mostly gristmills. No specific effort was made to identify other types of mills.

Mill Name

Approximate Location

Comment

Adams (Worley) Mill nr TN 107 & Painter Creek Rd.
Allison Mill Brushy Creek nr Watauga Also called Star Mill and White Star
B and M Milling Co. Limestone Leonard Bales and Johnny Mitchel operated the feed mill
Bashor Mill Broylesville Built abt 1860, 3 story frame with limestone foundation; another earlier mill used the foundation. Later known as Taylor’s Mill or Broylesville Mill.
Bashor (Henry) Mill Johnson City, Denny Mill Rd & Oakland Ave Built about 1840; still standing in 2007, but in poor condition; also called Knob Creek Roller Mill; used until 1951; currently owned by Dr. Donald Tarr
Bashor-Keys Mill Sulphur Springs, Pleasant Valley on Muddy Creek 1912 John C Bashor and wife sold to L.B. Bashor; 1916 LL.B. Bashor and wife sold to O.P. Keys and wife; 1912 converted to a roller mill; ran until 1945
Bean (William) Mill Flourville community on Boones Creek Built in 1790: helped establish Flourville
Bowman Mill Boones Creek, Flourville community Built by John Bowman abt 1799, passed on to his sons in 1838; still producing in 1880; also called Flourville Mill
Bowman (Dave) Mill nr Bowmantown Rd & Providence Rd. grist mill that served for over 100 yrs; 4 storied of hand made bricks in 1833 by Daniel Bowman
Brabson Mill (Horace Gray) nr Bowmantown Rd & Carson Creek Rd Built in 1811; later owned by the Williams and Squibbs; Horace Gray was the owner when it closed in 1990.
Brown’s (Jacob) Mill (Dr. Irwin) nr Treadway Trail & Bacon Br. Rd.
Brown (Vestal) Mill Limestone nr Probst Rd. at Greene Co. line The mill burned
Broylesville Mill (J. H. Taylor) Broylesville
Campbell’s Mill not on map Located on Clear Springs Rd., in Greene County, Tennessee
Carmichael-Taylor Mill nr Bowmantown Rd & Armentrout Lane
Carson (Courtney) Mill Carson Creek nr Armentrout Rd.
Carson (John Ross) Mill Big Limestone nr Mtn. View Rd. Was called Mill Creek, then Mill Brook and now Carson Creek
Charleston Mill nr Bowmantown Rd &Old Stage Rd
Cox Mill nr Elmer Walker Rd.
Cox (Harry) Mill Boones Creek
Cox (John D.) Mill Upper Dry Creek community Cox owned a cotton mill and flourmill
Deakins (Jim) Mill at Locust Mount
Dickison Bros. Mill Sulphur Springs, Pleasant Valley on Muddy Creek Formerly Bashor-O.P. Keys Mill; owned by Howard and Oscar Dickison; closed in 1956
Douglas Shed (Charlie Sproles) Red River, nr Sally Ford Rd.
Dove Mill Greenwood Dr. & Embreeville Rd.
Dungan (Jeremiah) Mill Watauga Rd. nr Carter Co. line Began operation in 1778; now operated by the St. John family
Dr. Morgan Mill Jeroldstown Rd & Tucker Hollow Rd.
Eureka Roller Mill Little Limestone Creek, Telford Purchased by W.A. Maloney in 1894, operated until 1986. Building burn 2002.
Flourville Mill Flourville community Built in 3 phases-1890-1894, 1930s and 1940s; 4 story frame building with pressed metal siding
Galloway Mill nr Floursville Rd.
Garber Mill (Campbell) (Robinson) Little Cherokee nr Garber/lamar Began in 1820s; still operating in 1988
Glendale Mill at Glendale Rd. & Blackley Creek Rd. Gristmill that ground corn
Graham (John) Mill Keplinger Branch nr Conklin Rd. Ground flour, meal and cattle feed; millrace still visible 2007
Gray Mill nr Oakland not on map; operated between 1870-1900
Grist Mill (McFall) Boones Creek nr
Hale (Buck) Mill nr Bristol Hwy, Knob Creek/Austin Springs community grist mill
Hamilton Mill Fall Branch, nr Ridge Rd.
Hartsell (Isaac W.) Mill nr Cherokee & Oliver Edwards Rd. gristmill; operated for over 50 yrs
Hyder Mill Austin Springs Rd. nr Watauga River
Kincheloe Mill Kendricks Creek, Harmony Rd.&Hunt Rd.
Maden (Lloyd) Mill Gray Built in 1913 owered by gasoline engine; became a feed mill
Maloney(W. A.) Mill Little Limestone, Telford, Telford Rd Also called Eureka Roller Mills (Telford Foundry)
Martin (Hacker) Mill Cedar/Ford Creek nr Gray Sta. Rd. Built by Dove family abt 1800; operated until 1924 by Alexander Isenberg followed by John Isenberg and sister Dolly Isenberg Campbell until 1940s; Theodore Hacker Martin operated it until 1951
Martin Mill nr Sulphur Springs Baptist Church Built in late 1800s, operated by JC Osborne; gristmill and sawmill; later remodeled to a roller mill that ground flour for White Lily Co. of Johnson City
Matthews Mill Little Limestone Ck & Glaze Rd. Building torn down in 2013.
Mauktown Mill nr TN 107 & Bill Mauk Rd.
May Mill Telford Rd & McCarty Hollow
Miller (Nat) Mill Cherokee Creek, off TN 81 at one time a cotton mill
Model Mill Johnson City, W. Walnut St. Later known as General Mills
Old Mill Behind Cannon house on Hominy Branch, Washington College
Osborne Mill Sulphur Springs, West Ridge Rd.
Paris Hilbert Mill Little Limestone nr Old St Rd 34
Peter Range-McAfee Mill Boones Creek
Range (Peter Sr.) Mill nr E. Oakland Ave & Knob Creek
Ruble Mill Keplinger Branch, Conklin community closer to the Nolichucky River than John Graham mill
St. John Mill 3191 Watauga Rd.; Barnes community Purchased from Henry Bashor by George W. St. John 1866; passed down to son and subsequent heirs; still in operation 2007
Scott (John) Mill Little Cherokee nr Oliver Edwards Rd. Supposedly the first gristmill on Cherokee
Sevier Mill Telford, New Victory
Simpson Mill Little Limestone nr Franklin Heights Rd.
Star Mill (Allison Mill, White Star Mill) Brushy Creek, 1 mi upsream from Dungan Mill dam; Barnes community Owners include Henry Bashor (the builder, bef 1860), James M. King & John T. Hodge (1876), Charles G. Lilly (1895), Landon C. Allison (1905), Dr. Preas (1912), Dr. Smathers (closed the mill)
Stevenson Mill Muddy Fork & Keys Dr.
Stunns Mill on Keplinger Branch or Nolichucky River; SW Conklin community On an 1828 Washington Co. map
Taylor (Charlie) Mill Sulphur Springs, Clear Fork, nr Shipley Rd. First turbine water wheel in Sulphur Springs. Also known as Walnut Grove Roller Mill
Taylor’s Mill Little Limestone nr Powell Rd.
Telford Mill Little Limestone, Telford, Old St Rd 34
Williams Mill nr US11E & Opie Arnold Rd. next to Lone Oak Hotel in Limestone Operated by Williams brothers, maker of Magnolia Flour

Contributed to the Washington Co. TNGen Web site by Margaret W. Hougland, Sep 2007. Many thanks to W. Eugene and Joyce Cox.

Sources:

Upper East Tennessee Section, Local Planning Assistance Office. Mill Locations, Washington County, Tennessee Map, Rev. 1986.

Washington Co. Historical Association, Joyce and W. Eugene Cox, eds. History of Washington County, Tennessee. Johnson City: Overmountain Press, 2001.

Watauga Association of Genealogists. History of Washington Co. Tennessee 1988 (out of print)

* Cited by Washington Co. Historical Association, Cox and Cox, eds. p. 786.

 

Brabson-Gray Mill Photo by Gordon M. Edwards

Brabson-Gray Mill
Photo by Gordon M. Edwards