Historic Bush Mill Sluice Gate - Scott County, Virginia - USA. - Historic Hand Operated Sluice Gates on Waymarking.com

James Culbertson built a grist mill in 1831 on Amos Branch outside Nickelsville. The land and mill later passed into the hands of Valentine Bush and his wife, Nancy Gose Bush, who moved to the area from Russell County. The Bush family added a water-powered sawmill upstream and a water-powered wool carding machine downstream. They also continued to operate the grist mill until April 1, 1895, when a fire broke out in the structure.


A mill race, millrace or millrun is the current of water that turns a water wheel, or the channel (sluice) conducting water to or from a water wheel. Compared with the broad waters of a mill pond, the narrow current is swift and powerful. The race leading to the water wheel on a wide stream or mill pond is called the head race (or headrace), and the race leading away from the wheel is called the tail race (or tailrace).

A mill race has many geographically specific names, such as leat, lade, flume, goit, penstock. These words all have more precise definitions and meanings will differ elsewhere.

The old dam and mill race are still in use to power Bush Mill during festival days. The dam is about twelve feet high by thirty feet wide and has two gates. One dams up the water to the spillway level and the sluice gate is opened and water flows along the mill sluice or race as they are called in the region. The sluice or mill race is a hand dug ditch along a mountain side to the water wheel at the mill about a quarter of a mile away.

Bush Mill is newly restored and operational with a 30' diameter and 4' wide metal wheel that generates approximately 30 horsepower at maximum operation capacity. The structure is listed on the Virginia Landmarks Register and the National Register of Historic Places,


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Name of Waterway.: Amos Branch Roughly when was the Waterway created?: 1831 Is this waterway working?: Working What is the condition of the sluice gate?: Excellent working order What is/was the water used for?: Other

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