Colonial Mill

Front inscription

To the north is the site of a colonial-era grist mill, likely built by Benjamin Watson. He erected a mill on the east side of Long Cane Creek prior to receiving a 100-acre land grant in 1767. After the American Revolution the mill was operated by Andrew McComb, an Irish stonecutter and Loyalist lieutenant in the Long Cane Militia. John P. Kennedy and his brother Isaac later operated it.

Reverse inscription

The mill burned c.1865. Then-owner William K. Bradley rebuilt a 3-story brick building on the original stone foundation. It was part of a larger commercial and agricultural complex on both sides of the creek. Bradley’s son John E. rebuilt the mill again after an 1891 fire. It likely closed by 1907. Ruins remain of the mill and the nearby Long Cane or Bradley Mill covered bridge, built in 1892.