Two men on a mill : $b The story of the restoration of Baxter's MillCastonguay, A. Harold
Philosophy
Two men on a mill : $b The story of the restoration of Baxter's Mill
Castonguay, A. Harold
Flour mills -- Conservation and restoration -- Massachusetts -- Cape Cod; Flour mills -- Massachusetts -- Cape Cod -- History
I find that there is a small group of enthusiasts who are gradually
picking up and collecting all the old turbines they can find of ancient
vintage, so if one wishes to invest in the future, he might consider
picking up one of these old turbines which in a few years will be
extinct.
Another interesting site we visited was John Goffe’s Mill near
Manchester, New Hampshire. Having read with fascination George
Woodbury’s tale of restoring this mill, we were very anxious to
actually see it. Mr. Woodbury, a very learned gentleman, former
archaeologist and now author, had performed a most remarkable job.
Another mill, farther along the trail, was in Alstead, New Hampshire,
where Heman Chase was conducting a class in woodworking, the power
being supplied by an old refinished turbine. Mr. Chase, in addition, is
a land surveyor, a teacher of mathematics and the philosophy of Henry
George, as you can see from his letterhead.
At Weston, Vermont, at the Artists’ Guild, will be found a real old
mill where they are grinding corn and wheat and other grains.
Late the first night of this expedition, George and I holed up in a
modern motel somewhere in New Hampshire. I was not quite prepared
for George’s night attire. It seems he still wears an old fashioned
nightshirt, split up on each side, and I got a bit of a start to
observe this character climbing into bed with this on. George will deny
this, but he also had on an old night-cap.
Coming home we went to Monson, Massachusetts, and there found all kinds
of mill apparatus in various states of repair, gradually rusting out
and disappearing into the ground. I was a little sad to observe how the
owner was tenaciously clinging to his old way of life: his machinery,
tools, and all the things he had collected all his life. But how his
eyes did light up with enthusiasm when he learned we were attempting to
restore our own mill.
A tall, gaunt man, weather-beaten, with hands that had known many a
piece of machinery, he was a living figure of the old millwright and
gave us a great amount of information on the revolutions per minute and
various other facets of millwrighting.
Most of us think of antique things as so many curios and objects to
be placed in museums to be passed by, but we do not realize how much
better some of these things did work than the ones we buy today. For
instance, I have a small hand garden trowel, forged perhaps fifty or
sixty years ago, and it is much more practical than the new trowels on
sale in the hardware stores. I have often wondered why they couldn’t
make one like this rather than the ones on display but perhaps this
kind would last too long and the factory would go out of business.
We did not find on our pilgrimage a turbine suitable for us, but we
did find the brilliant foliage of the hills and mountains, the quiet
patience of the roads, and the beauty of the small towns of New England.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account