Oliphant Grist Mill at Smithville Village Greene - Smithville, NJ
N 39° 29.687 W 074° 27.605
18S E 546425 N 4371824
Although Smithville has been around since the American Revolutionary War, most of the community remained very rural until the 1960s when the Smithville Towne Center opened. It was then in 1964, this mill was moved to this site.
Waymark Code: WMGNF9
Location: New Jersey, United States
Date Posted: 03/24/2013
Views: 7
In my part of New jersey these things are getting harder and harder to find. This one is on its last legs after being moved here from Gloucester County. When new sources of power replaced these things, mills were eventually abandoned for easier ways to run equipment. Many mills just decayed where they stood which seems to be the case with this wheel. Storms, especially a September 1, 1940 storm, demolished the remaining mills as well as bridges and mill dams in our area. The last mill in Gloucester County was this mill, Oliphant's Mill, south of Swedesboro along Kings Highway. Samuel Morgan's will mentioned his grist mill. Samuel Oliphant purchased the mill in 1871. It operated until 1937. In 1964, the mill was dismantled and moved to Smithville in Atlantic County. There you may see Gloucester County's last standing mill reconstructed. It needs some help.
There is a marker near the wheel which reads:
WATERWHEEL
This is an Overshot Waterwheel
18 ft. In Diameter. It Has 54 Buckets
27 Buckets On One Side With A Pint
Of Water In Each Will Turn The Wheel.
The Wheel Travels About 5½ Revolutions
and 311 ft. Per Minute.