WHAT IS A GRISTMILL?

A gristmill or grist mill is a building in which grain is ground into flour, or the grinding mechanism itself. In many countries they are referred to as corn mills or flour mills. Although the terms “gristmill” or “corn mill” can refer to any mill that grinds grain, the terms were used historically for a local mill where farmers brought their own grain and received back ground meal or flour, minus a percentage call the “miller’s toll” in lieu of wages. Most towns and villages had their own mill so that local farmers could easily transport their grain to be milled. These communities were dependent on their local mills as bread was a staple part of the diet.

Classical mill designs were usually water powered, though some were powered by the wind or by livestock. In a watermill, a sluice gate is opened to allow water to flow onto, or under, a water wheel to make it turn. In most watermills the water wheel was mounted vertically, i.e., edge-on, in the water, but in some cases horizontally. The millstones themselves turn at around 120 rpm. They are laid on top of the other. The bottom stone, called the bed, is fixed to the floor, while the top stone, the runner, is mounted on a separate spindle, driven by the main shaft. A wheel called the stone nut connects the runner’s spindle to the main shaft, and this can be moved out of the way to disconnect the stone and stop it turning, leaving the main shaft turning to drive other machinery. This might include driving a mechanical sieve to refine the flour, or turning the wooden drum to wind up a chain used to hoist sacks or grain to the top of the mill house. The distance between the stones can be varied to produce the grade of flour required; moving the stones closer together produced finer flour. (Wikipedia)

THE ALABASTINE COMPANY

The Alabastine Company of Paris Limited was founded by Melvin B. Church of Grand Rapids Michigan, a decorator and gifted inventor, who discovered that by grinding together plaster of Paris and glue, he could produce a wall paint that was described as “sweet, fresh, pure and healthful. He named his product “Alabastine”. In 1885, Church bought the gypsum mill and mines of Gill and Co., Paris. Church sold his interest in the company around 1900. Over the years The Alabastine Company continued to grow and expand. It changed its name to the Gypsum Lime and Alabastine Company and continued to have its plant and main office in Paris until 1959 when the company was sold to Domtar. The company was eventually moved to where the business continues to exist today, now under the ownership of Georgia Pacific. (At the Forks of the Grand by D.A. Smith and Herons and Cobblestones – Members of the Heritage Mines Society)

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APPS’ MILL

Apps’ Grist and Flour Mill, located on Robinson Road, just outside of Paris, was built in 1841 and purchased in 1858 by Charles and William Apps. The Mill was run by an undershot water wheel that was replaced by turbines in the 1920’s. The mill was very successful and was eventually taken over by Williams’ sons Alfred and Albert. The family ran the mill for almost 100 years until Whiteman’s Creek flooded during Hurricane Hazel in 1954, undermining the dam that diverted the water into the mill. After trying to keep the mill running with insufficient water flow for two years, the brothers finally closed the mill in 1956. Today Apps’ Mill is owned by the GRCA and is a conservation area and teaching center. (Picture courtesy of the GRCA)

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THE GERMAN’S LAKE MILL

In 1820, Lewis German and his family settled on Lot 12, Concession 1, which is now located just south of German School Road on the west side of Highway 24. Because the lands form a valley here, the area became known as German’s Hollow. Around 1845, George German, son of Lewis, set up carding machines in his stable to card wool into rolls, which were spun into yarn, knitted into socks or woven into cloth. This business soon became the chief industry in the neighbourhood. In 1860, George German built an up-to-date mill complete with new machinery, which was operated by waterpower. A large dam had been built across the creek top which formed a pond of about 15 acres. The pond is still visible from the highway today. (1852-2002 A Celebration by Ruth Lefler and Angela Files, Artwork courtesy of Flossie Buchanan)

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GERMAN’S WOOLLEN MILL – 1867

Located on the banks of the Grand River outside of Glen Morris, this stone mill was built by the German family in 1867. The wool was brought in to the mill where it was often woven into woolen blankets. The mill changed hands and was eventually closed in 1898 because of competition from larger mills nearby. The mill was turned into a lodge which was not successful and was sold again and used as a summer residence until 1944 when Canadian Pacific expropriated land from the owner and built a railway line through the property. The Township of South Dumfries eventually purchased the property from the owner. It was later sold by auction and is now privately owned. The mill lies in ruin along the “Rail Trail” between Glen Morris and Cambridge. ( Expositor Archives – sources Glen Morris Women’s Institute) (Photo by Mark S. Pomponi, )

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HAIGHT MILL, MOUNT PLEASANT

In 1820 Elijah Haight established a grist mill at the present site of the former provincial fish hatchery in Mount Pleasant. In 1911 the government expropriated this site as the first provincial fish hatchery. The park contained 20 acres, with six acres of spring-fed ponds stocked with rainbow trout. When the Ontario government no longer needed this area, it was acquired by the Brantford Township. Today this historical, recreational area is still part of the village of Mount Pleasant and has been historically designed by the Brant County Local Architectural Conservancy Advisory Committee. (1852-2002 A Celebration by Ruth Lefler and Angela Files, Photo courtesy of Linda Guest)

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HARLEY GRIST MILL – 1870

The Harley Grist Mill was located near the corner of Middle Townline Road and Concession Road 10 on the same property as where the Harley Train Station once stood. Photo courtesy of Jim Havens

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HATHAWAY MILL – WHITEMAN’S CREEK BURFORD

Built prior to 1881, the original Hathaway Mill was one mile north of Burford on the west side of the road. The mill burned down and a new mill, somewhat larger also burned. It is thought that this is a photo of the second mill. The Hathaway’s owned mills in Burford, Woodbury, and Paris. The house on this property has been occupied by the Ruth Havens family since 1944. (Photo courtesy of Jim Havens)

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Howell Mill – 1839

One of the first known mills in the Onondaga area was built by William Howell on his farm on Concession 3, Township of Onondaga. With financial backing from Reverend Hamilton Biggar, Howell built a saw mill, a dam and brought in machinery to run his business. The saw mill was one of the first in the district and had a capacity of producing 50,000 feet of lumber a month. During that time the railway industry was in its infancy and the mill cut the ties used in construction of the railway line east of Brantford. Howell would never live to see the completion of the railway, having died nine years earlier at the young age of 33.

Local folklore attributed to the mill, is that during a cholera epidemic, the mill made coffins for the victims of the outbreak. The locals would come up the creek within shouting distance of the mill and so not to infect anyone else, would shout how many coffins they required that day. The mill workmen would build the required number of coffins and float them down Fairchild’s Creek.

The Howell saw mill remained in almost continuous operation until the wooden dam broke in the spring of 1916 at which time the mill was torn down. A grist mill was built in its place but it too has disappeared. There are no known pictures of either mill.

M. MALCOLM & SON CUSTOM WOOLEN WORKS AND COOPERAGE

The M. Malcolm & Son Custom Woolen Works was owned by Marcus Malcolm along with his son George. The mill was located just east of the Village of Scotland and was very successful. The company manufactured raw material into cloth, both wholesale and retail. Besides carding wool, the company also manufactured barrel staves in the cooperage which can be seen on the left hand side with the woolen works on the right. Warner and Beer, History of Brant County 1883 as transcribed by Bill Bowman Photo from the private collection of Florence Brown

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ONONDAGA SAWMILL – CIRCA 1850

Pictured here around 1912, is an early Sawmill that was located on the farm of Alfred Dixson near Mulligan Road and Big Creek Road. It operated from the 1850’s and it is thought that is was later moved to the farm of William Cowie. (Picture courtesy of Eric Reeker)

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PENMAN’S NO. 1 MILL

This early 20th Century postcard depicts the Penman’s Limited Clothing Company No. 1 Mill on West River Street in Paris. The building still stands today but is being turned into affordable housing units. (Courtesy of the Paris Museum and Historical Society)

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PENMAN’S NO. 2 MILL, CIRCA 1935

Pictured are a number of workers in the sewing department of the Penman’s No. 2 Mill located on Willow Street in Paris. Penman’s produced hosiery, undergarments, sweaters, socks, knitted fabric, Long johns etc. (Photo courtesy of the Penman’s Employee Collection, Paris Museum and Historical Society)

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MOUNT VERNON MILLS

Thomas Perrin built the Mt. Vernon Mills pictured here, sometime after the . Perrin moved to Mt. Vernon or originally called Checkered Sheds after operating a successful grist mill located in Mt. Pleasant. During the War of 1812, Perrins Mt Pleasant mill was burned to the ground by American General Duncan McArthur during one of his raids of the area. Perrin rebuilt the mill but eventually sold his interest and moved to Mt. Vernon. Artist rendering from Tremaine’s Map

E. PITTS & SON – SIDE VIEW

This is a later picture of the E. Pitts & Son Flour, Feed and Seeds Mill (Previous known as Marvel Flour Mills) with their signage in full view. Photo from the private collection of Earl Pitts

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PITT’S MILL – PARIS

Once known as the Marvel Flour Mill, The Pitt’s Flour and Seed Mill, was located along the in downtown Paris, where the War Memorial is located today. The Royal Hotel can be seen in the background. The mill was powered by a one cylinder Natural Gas motor. This picture was taken some time after 1912 after the partnership with George Tate was dissolved and Edward and George Pitts ran the business. (County of Brant Public Library – Photo from the private collection of Earl Pitts)

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RIVER STREET – 1899

This view of River Street (Grand River Street) in Paris shows the businesses as they looked one year before “The Great Fire” of September 1900. The fire burned over half of Downtown Paris on both sides of River St., including all the businesses shown here. Here you see the “New Paris Roller Mill” owned by W.H. Meldrum where the devastating fire began. Also seen here are the Post Office, P.H. Hamilton Bicycle Shop, Alex Rose Pork Shop, Chas. Banks Bicycle Repair store, Pat Buckley Hardware, R.L. Murrays’ Tailor Shop and P.L. Scott’s Drug Store. (Artist’s Rendering and write up courtesy of Wayne Wilkinson of Paris – copies available at the Paris Museum and Historical Society)

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ROLLER MILLS - PARIS

In 1822 William Holmes began clearing the swamp to build a plaster mill in downtown Paris. The mill was completed in 1823 which he called the Roller Mill. Holmes sold the plaster mill to Hiram Capron in 1828. Capron built an addition to the original building between 1829 and 1830 and opened a grist mill. The Mills changed hands several times but remained in operation for many years. Pictured here Circa 1890, the mills were located on the west side of Grand River Street North where the County of Brant office stands today. The Mills were destroyed in the great fire in September of 1900 that wiped out a large portion of downtown Paris. The source of the fire started in the Roller Mills. (Photo courtesy of Wayne Wilkinson)

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E.A. SMITH FLOUR MILLS LTD.

In 1823, Job Loder built saw and grist mills on the northwest side of Malcolm’s (McKenzie) Creek on Lot 10, Concession 1 in East Oakland. Later David Secord bought the mills and in 1855 built a new grist mill on the south side of the creek. A cider mill was installed in the basement of the mill. Several people owned the mill until 1897 when Edwin Smith purchased the operation. Over three generations many changes were made – animal feed was mixed on a custom basis, the Smiths produced their own brand of feed and in 1962 the name was changed to E.A. Smith Flour Mills Ltd. The production of rye flour became one of the largest in Ontario.

In 1988, members of the Smith family closed the doors on the mill for the last time, culminating 91 years of milling by the Smith family in Oakland Township – another legacy. (1852-2002 A Celebration by Ruth Lefler and Angela Files, Photo courtesy of Edwin and Ferne Smith)

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BRANT FLOUR MILLS LTD - EAST OAKLAND

In 1988 Smith’s Mills changed ownership and was renamed “Brant Flour Mills Ltd.” The mill continues to be modernized. The grain dryer and load out bin for by product have recently been added. Daily mill capacity is approximately 40 tonnes with 9000 tonnes storage capacity for rye.

This mill is the largest rye flour mill in Eastern Canada.

(1852-2002 A Celebration by Ruth Lefler and Angela Files, Photo courtesy of Uwe Storjohann)

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SNOWBALL MILL

This photo from approximately 1907, shows the Snowball Mill located on Main Street in St. George. Construction was begun in 1869 by William Snowball for his new grist mill with milling underway by 1871. It was powered by 2 – 10” waterwheels by water brought in by 500 feet of 48” flume pipe. In 1872 Snowball leased the mill to Bruce Wood who finally purchased the mill from Snowball for $9,000.00 in November of 1876. Wood modernized the mill in 1885 adding steam power. The flour mill changed hands several times and continued in operation for many years. The pond was filled in during the 1950’s after a young boy tragically drowned. The mill is still a familiar site in St. George with it being converted in 2008 to a restaurant and veterinary clinic. (From the book – St. George by Douglas A. Mannen – available through the South Dumfries Historical Society)

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VIVIAN’S MILL

On November 7th, 1814, near the end of the War of 1812, Malcolm’s Mills were burned to the ground by the Americans. Later, these mills were rebuilt with the help of financial compensation from the government. In 1835, John Vivian, who had arrived in Oakland from England, rented Malcolm’s Mills. In 1836 Vivian married Sarah Malcolm, John’s daughter and in

To obtain permission to use photos, please contact the named source. 1840 purchased the mills. The mill closed on December 1st, 1967 after 160 years of milling on the site. The Vivian family operated the mill for more than 125 years. The mill was still using water power when this photo was taken. The water can be seen exiting the mill after going through the water flume and over the waterwheel. (1852-2002 A Celebration by Ruth Lefler and Angela Files, Photo courtesy of Jim Havens)

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WOODVALE MILL – CIRCA 1826

Originally called the St. George Lower Mill, it is believed to have been built by Hon. William Dickson about 1826 and passed through several owners until William Wood bought the mill in 1875. The mill was bought by William’s father and later by his brother David. The mill was used until 1906 when the business was amalgamated with Brant Flour Mills Limited which was owned by William Wood and his brother David. A wooden water flume can be seen in the foreground which brought water to the mill for power. The mill was run by an overshot waterwheel until in 1882 it was replaced by a twenty four foot high by ten foot wide Little Giant waterwheel which was a much more efficient power source. Pictured here about 1908 the mill was torn down in 1909. (From the book – St. George by Douglas A. Mannen – available through the South Dumfries Historical Society)

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