Gaston's Mill - Beaver Creek State Park, Ohio
N 40° 43.618 W 080° 36.756
17T E 532715 N 4508520
Gaston's Mill was constructed around 1830 by Samuel Conkle. Operation ceased in the 1920s. It is now maintained as a museum by Beaver Creek State Park, Ohio.
Waymark Code: WMRA78
Location: Ohio, United States
Date Posted: 05/30/2016
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The local grist mill provided an essential service to farmers. The water powered mill stones ground the farmer's recently harvested crops of corn, oats and wheat into flour. Gaston Mill is the last of six water powered grist mills which once operated along Beaver Creek, between Elkton and Fredericktown.
Samuel Conkle started construction of the mill about 1830, on land that was then part of the Conkle family farm. On May 6, 1843, Jacob Conkle's will deeded the mill property to his son Samuel. In 1849 Samuel sold the land, water privileges and mill to James Gaston, the first of several owners.
Philander Gaston owned and operated the mill longer than any of the other owners, thus, the mill still bears his name. The mill was operated by water power until Mr. Gaston sold it in 1886. Then it was converted to steam power and eventually to a gasoline engine. The mill operated until World War I. Restoration work was begun in January, 1964 by the Columbiana County Forest and Parks Council under an agreement with the Columbiana County Historical Association. The building was straightened and beams replaced in the basement; part of the stone wall and chimney were rebuilt. The siding and part of the floors have been replaced and a new roof installed. The shingles for the roof were made locally in 1964 by an old shingle machine built in 1857 in Salem, Ohio. Most of the timbers and posts are original. Several new gears, wood teeth and a new log shaft for the water wheel were installed. Every effort has been made to exactly duplicate the original structure and machinery. Gaston's Mill is the only working water powered grist mill remaining in Columbiana County.
In 2003, the oak water wheel shaft rotted and broke. It was replaced with a steel shaft covered with wood planks to resemble the original construction. About that same time, the mill's shingled roof was replaced with a steel roof.
In June, 1974 the National Park Service recognized Gaston's Mill ... as an historic place and entered it into National Register of Historic Places.