Boshell's Mill
Boshell's Mill | |
![]() Boshell's Mill in 1973, with the sawmill on the left side of the dam and the gristmill on the right. | |
Nearest city | Townley, Alabama |
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Coordinates | 33°51′17″N 87°26′51″W / 33.85472°N 87.44750°W |
Area | 4 acres (1.6 ha) |
Built | 1885–1903[2] |
NRHP reference No. | 75000329[1] |
Added to NRHP | May 30, 1975 |
Boshell's Mill is the historic site of a gristmill and sawmill on Lost Creek near Townley in rural Walker County, Alabama. The 4-acre (1.6 ha) site was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975.[1] It was recorded by the Historic American Buildings Survey in 1992.[3]
History
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3e/Boshell%27s_Mill%2C_Grist_Mill%2C_Bank_of_Lost_Creek_at_State_Route_124%2C_South_of_U.S._78%2C_Townley_%28Walker_County%2C_Alabama%29.jpg/220px-Boshell%27s_Mill%2C_Grist_Mill%2C_Bank_of_Lost_Creek_at_State_Route_124%2C_South_of_U.S._78%2C_Townley_%28Walker_County%2C_Alabama%29.jpg)
Boshell's Mill, one of several mills run by the Boshell family in Walker County, was started by William R. Boshell in 1885. It was initially a steam engine-powered sawmill only, with the creek used to transport logs to the mill. Boshell expanded the mill in 1901 with the addition of a dam built using locally quarried stone. It was completed in 1902. A gristmill was built on the opposite bank of the creek in 1903. Water turbines at each end of the dam supplied power to each mill.[3]
The Boshell family operated the mills until 1963. It was listed on the National Register on May 30, 1975.[1] A fire destroyed the sawmill building in 1976. Another fire destroyed the gristmill in 1986. The stone foundation piers and dam currently remain intact.[3]
References
- ^ a b c "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
- ^ "The National Register of Historic Places: Alabama Listings" (PDF). Alabama Historical Commission. Alabama Historical Commission. Retrieved August 2, 2012.
- ^ a b c "Boshell's Mill, Lost Creek at Alabama Route 124, 1.7 miles South of Route 78, Townley, Walker County, AL". Historic American Buildings Survey, Engineering Record, Landscapes Survey. Library of Congress. Retrieved August 2, 2012.
External links
- Historic American Engineering Record (HAER) No. AL-18, "Boshell's Mill, Lost Creek at Alabama Route 124, 1.7 miles South of Route 78, Townley, Walker County, AL", 6 photos, 1 measured drawing, 7 data pages, 1 photo caption page
- HAER No. AL-18-A, "Boshell's Mill, Water Turbine, Across Lost Creek at State Route 124, South of U.S. 78, Townley, Walker County, AL", 3 photos, 1 photo caption page
- HAER No. AL-18-B, "Boshell's Mill, Saw Mill, Bank of Lost Creek at State Route 124, South of U.S. 78, Townley, Walker County, AL", 7 photos, 1 photo caption page
- HAER No. AL-18-C, "Boshell's Mill, Grist Mill, Bank of Lost Creek at State Route 124, South of U.S. 78, Townley, Walker County, AL", 1 photo, 1 photo caption page
- Industrial buildings completed in 1895
- National Register of Historic Places in Walker County, Alabama
- Industrial buildings completed in 1903
- Grinding mills on the National Register of Historic Places in Alabama
- Watermills in the United States
- Grinding mills in Alabama
- Sawmills
- Historic districts in Walker County, Alabama
- Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Alabama
- Historic American Engineering Record in Alabama
- Alabama Registered Historic Place stubs