McNeel Mill

McNeel Mill

Operating from 1865 to 1945, the McNeel Mill has been restored to its former glory and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

History

Located next to Stomping Creek and today’s U.S. Route 219 and West Virginia Route 39, the first mill was first constructed by Valentine Cackley and his brother John who had moved from Philadelphia in 1778.(1) The Cackley Mill was the settlement’s first gristmill; a separate sawing apparatus was added onto the mill in 1808. Water to operate both the grist and saw mill was fed from a spring on McNeel Run. The Cackleys later sold their mill to Sampson Matthews who then sold the land the mill was on to Isaac McNeel. Isaac McNeel later built a new mill downstream from the original mill. Work began on the new mill just before the Civil War in 1861, however, it was not completed until after the war had ceased in 1865.(1) Similar to the Cackley mill, it operated by grinding cornmeal, cracked corn, and buckwheat.

In 1921, a large, steel water wheel was added.(2) Previous to that, the mill was powered by a much smaller, wooden turbine. An engine house located next to the mill once provided power during times of low water.

During the height of the mill, Mill Point was a bustling town, with multiple mills, a black smith, post office and a store operating. A railroad once ran adjacent to the mill that connected the Warn Lumber Company with the virgin timber that was being logged from Cranberry Mountain.(2)

In 1935, a flash flood nearly washed out the platform that held the millstones at McNeel’s Mill.(1) It washed out Stamping Creek and made channeling water through the wheel difficult. The flood also damaged the original mill constructed by Cackley, which was being operated then by the Hogsett family. The foundation was washed out and with a year, the structure collapsed into the creek. Before its demolition, it was a wool-carding machine for making wool yarn and batting for quilts.

Unable to continue operations due to modernization. McNeel’s Mill closed for good in 1941.(1) It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on September 9, 1985,(1) and was extensively restored with the help of the Pocahontas County Historical Society and the state’s Division of Culture and History.(2) A new water wheel was installed, replacing the one installed in 1921.

A guide for the mill when it is open for tours, Matthew Tate, has been working with the mill’s owner, Lanty McNeel, and the Historical Society, to eventually have the mill and its wheel back in operation.(2) A new roof is being prepared, with help from the State Historic Preservation Office and the Snoeshoe Foundation.

Gallery

Sources