Along the Belmont-Waltham line is the Beaver Brook Reservation, which has two mill ponds and possible ruins of two mill sites.
The closest parking lot is on Mill Street, off (north) of Trapelo Road. The lower pond, Duck Pond, is visible from the parking lot. Near the pond is a kiosk with a map of the reservation.
There are two ponds and dams. Just below each of the two dams, there are mill ruins shown. The upper one is marked as the Kendall Mill, and the lower one is the Plympton Mill.
Not much information was found about these mills. A document on the Town of Belmont's site states:
"Beaver Brook was dammed up in two places to form Mill Pond and Duck Pond (originally Handyside Pond). A fulling mill was constructed
in 1662 by Thomas Agar and a gristmill in 1690 by Robert Rider [S. A. Drake, vol. I, p252]. As these original mills aged and collapsed, other mills replaced them, including J. S. Kendall’s grist mill (originally built in 1829), a saw mill and finally Plympton’s satinet
factory, which was destroyed by fire in 1848 [Betts, 1985, p.117]. The water that followed through Rock Meadow played an important economic role in the area."
The publication also had mentioned that this was, at the time, part of Watertown. Belmont was formed in 1859 from Watertown.
What's left is hard to trace, partially because of the vegetation and partially the condition of the ruins and probably alterations to the dams.
The dams themselves have likely been improved with relatively new gates. The dam to the lower pond is about 300 ft long and is earthen and stone and mortar. The millstone at the top might have dated back to the earlier mills, but also may have been imported from somewhere else. The dam to the upper mill is lower in height.
The site of Plympton Mill, located below the Duck Pond is accessible from a trail that branches off the trail going to the dam top. There is a lookout point with a good view of the Cascades, a waterfall through ledge and boulders. Below that should be where the ruins are. The path leads through more ledge and thick vegetation. The vegetation makes it very hard to see the foundation, and it was difficult to discern what was actual foundation. Evidence seen includes a depression that is either an old channel or part of a small room that led thick vegetation.
The site of Kendall Mill, located below the first pond, is near the dam itself. Unfortunately, thick vegetation here prevents viewing of the ruins directly. I attempted to view the ruins from downstream, but it did not provide any easier viewing. There are features that hint of a ruin; however, without the map marking the location, it could easily be overlooked.
It was summer at the time of the visit. Perhaps a visit in the winter would provide better views of the ground.
In the meantime, go to the park and explore for yourself and report back!
Source:
Town of Belmont Web Site (Public Document):
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visit link)
Mass. Department of Conservation and Recreation (Beaver Brook Reservation):
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visit link)