Burwell-Morgan Mill
Burwell-Morgan Mill
All four of our rides stop for refreshments at Burwell-Morgan Mill. Established in 1785, it is the oldest operable merchant mill in the Shenandoah Valley.
Back Roads Century riders are invited inside to view the Mill, at no charge. All cyclists with rider numbers will be exempt from the admission fee ($4.00) during the Century. Cycling shoes and cleats are okay, since the Mill's flooring is strong enough to withstand them. Head downstairs to the basement of the Mill and you'll see the mechanical gearing (pictured) as well as historical artifacts and information. This is a must-see attraction during your ride.
In the mid-nineteenth century the mill operated twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, processing more than sixty thousand bushels of wheat per year. The community of Millwood grew around this commercial center as related businesses were established, and by way of the seaports at Alexandria and Baltimore, mill products were shipped abroad.
Lt. Col. Nathaniel Burwell of Carter’s Grove built the mill to process and export wheat and corn from his own rich farmlands and those of his neighbors. He hired Brig. Gen. Daniel Morgan, the Revolutionary War hero, to oversee the construction and management of the mill. In 1785 the mill became operational, and under Morgan’s direction it flourished. It escaped the destruction that claimed many other mills in the Valley during the Civil War, and remained active through World War II.
The Clarke County Historical Association acquired the abandoned and dilapidated remnants of the mill in 1964. For seven years members worked tirelessly to restore the mill to its original condition, drawing solely on private donations and the proceeds from local fund-raising events. The mill is included in the Virginia Landmarks Register and the National Register of Historic Places.
In 1972 the renovated facility opened as a mill-museum, and it has since hosted thousands of visitors—among them school children, Smithsonian tours, historians, architects and mill enthusiasts.
Visitors marvel as the water rushes through the mill, turning the unusual interior waterwheel, just as it did in the eighteenth century. The wheel generates power to the massive wooden gears that rotate the two-ton French buhr wheels which, controlled by the miller, grind the corn into meal. Volunteers bag the meal as it floats down the wooden chute, and it is sold in the museum shop.