The Open House at Brinker's Mill located on McMichaels Creek in Pennsylvania was to be held today, Sunday October 3rd, 2004. Unfortunately, the storm known as "IVAN" did what nothing during the previous 204 years could do to it as a stone mill and as a log mill for at least another 37 years prior to that had done. During the weekend of September 18th & 19th, the fierce current above flood stage took the soil away about half the distance up the bank on the side of the mill facing up stream. That then left a large area of stone foundation that had never been exposed to the pounding current and at some point an area approximately 8 feet by 8 feet collapsed. Since that weekend, concrete highway dividers also known as Jersey Barriers were lowered between the original edge of the creek and the Mill to fend off the current, and the breach is boarded up somewhat since the water makes this very difficult. Almost looks as though the road department did the barrier work and if that is whom did this, I commend them for the help given to save this National Historic Monument. Obviously the Open House did not take place. The building is taped off limits due to the possibility of further water damage as the creek is now running through the entire bottom of the mill that wasn't meant to have water in it let alone "running" through it. I took 12 pictures outside of the Mill exactly a week prior to this damage and now have about 6 pictures after the flood. To think a Mill has stood here for more than 241 years and just before I have a chance to see it, a flood almost collapses it. Many people stopped in to see the Mill while I was there and many more were there as I went by later in the day. There was nobody on hand to ask about the future of the Mill, possible repairs, or if any historical items located in the bottom floor of the Mill were lost. I will try to locate someone in charge to ask questions of. Hopefully this wonderful piece of history can be repaired for future generations and I will attempt to do what I can to help. The surnames of those at the Mill, September 1763 are listed at the bottom of this e-mail. Cheers, Ken Ken Maxwell [email protected] -----Original Message----- Subject: Washburn, Silence & Jesse at Brinkers Mill PA 1763 For those that connect to Silence & Jesse WASHBURN of Northeast Pennsylvania............... In September 1763, 18 men and their families, Jesse WASHBURN being one, were "held up" for protection from the "savages" in Jacob BRINKERS Mill, located on McMichael's Creek, Northampton County Pennsylvania (present day Monroe County). An open house will occur at this OLD MILL on Sunday October 3rd, 2004 between 1:00 PM & 4:00 PM. It is advertised as being "operational". Located on Business Route 209 and Neola Road, Sciota, Pennsylvania (Hamilton Township, Monroe County) The Old Mill is about 15 minutes south of Rt. 80 or about 30 minutes north of Easton, PA. I just visited this Mill this past Saturday. A steel bridge immediately behind the Mill was restored in 2000, and a beautiful park setting surrounds the mill along the creek. My hope is to find the actual land Jesse & Silence WASHBURN owned along McMichaels Creek. The original LOG Mill was replaced with a stone mill in 1800. Citation [ Subject - Petition for soldier protection, Jesse WASHBURN Sr. ] Page 159 Petition of people at BRINKER's mill to Mr. HORSFIELD, September 1763 (page 183): Petioners: "the neighbors that are now living or rather staying here at this present time" Petition: for soldiers to be placed at the Jacob BRINKER's mill; the people have been driven from their homes, "to our desolate habitations," so they could use the mill and almost forgot their woes but now, every day they are exposed to "the unmerciful hands of these savages just at our backs;" only one-half have guns, barely one charge of powder or lead; only God protects us; please place soldiers at the mill Signed: George HARTLIEB Joh. Jacob STERNER John LEARN Johannes MARGRETS Jacob SCHMIDT Felix WEISS Jacob ZEWITZ Peter BOSELT Lorence RAMEE Peter HUSSSCHMITH Conrad JUNG [YOUNG] Jesse WASHBURN Michael BUCH Johannes MENNIER Johannes EIDGEIER Johannes KUNEL Bartel SCHEIBLE Jacob BRINCKER [end] The Mill is also known locally as the Fenner-Snyder Mill, the last families to own the mill while still operating. The information below is found on the Hamilton Township web site. THE OLD MILL AT SCIOTA, PA Brinker's Mill, a log structure, may have been built as early as 1729, according to a news feature in the Stroudsburg Daily Record for April 16, 1954. Jacob Brinker was listed on the tax rolls of Hamilton Township as early as 1764. The mill assumed prominence in 1779, when the Sullivan Expedition was dispatched by Congress "to chasten and humble" the Iroquois Indians. The Expedition left Easton on June 18; the mill served as a storehouse and advance post for this unit of some 4,000 men. From Jacob Brinker the mill passed into the hands of John George Keller about 1790. With the passing of time the log mill had deteriorated. It was replaced in 1800 by the present structure, built by Bernhard Fenner. The mill, with its overshot wheel, was a sophisticated operation for its day, producing various types of flour as well as feed for stock. The services of two separate millers were required. From the Fenner family the mill passed to a relative by marriage, George Snyder; then to Romanous Snyder; and from him to William Snyder. It ceased active milling operations in 1954. The mill was next acquired by Eugene Haller, who sold it to Karl Hope. In 1974 Mr. Hope and his wife presented it to Hamilton Township with the stipulation that it should be "held and maintained. for historical, cultural, and/or governmental purposes." The Hamilton Township Supervisors appointed an advisory body, charging them to make recommendations for restoration and future use of the mill. This body - the Old Mill Restoration Council, PO Box 285, Sciota, PA 18354 - meets on the last Wednesday evening of each month at the township building. Visitors are welcome. Some salient features of this mill are apparent at a glance - the architectural lines of its stone structure, for instance and the weathered two-part "Dutch" door. The interior is filled with old pulleys and other milling gear, though some of the original works were sold, years ago, for a restoration at the Jenny Mill at Plymouth, Massachusetts. (The office fireplace is a 19th century addition.) Other features may be less immediately obvious - like the fact that the mill dam is still intact, a condition true of few un-restored mills. Moreover, the flow of water entering the mill is strong enough to activate either an overshot or an undershot wheel. The mill was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in May 1976. To make the grade for such placement, tradition is by no means enough; one by one, hard facts and actual facets of history must be ferreted out, verified, and documented. Original ownership; subsequent chain of title; payment of taxes; the kinds of grain ground (this was both a "flouring" and a feed mill); local, township, and county maps, plus recorded property surveys; all references in early books and newspapers; old pictures -- all these were called for. (The earliest relevant picture discovered in this case is one of Henrich Fenner, born in 1801, a member of the family who rebuilt the mill in 1800.) State recognition of the historic importance of the mill came in 1975, when placement was granted on the Pennsylvania Register of Historic Places. To commemorate the occasion, a flag was presented and raised by the Sciota Minute Men in an appropriate ceremony on August 19, 1975. In 1989, Hamilton Township received a sizeable contribution from the Robacker Estate for the restoration of the mill. The Hamilton Township Supervisors engaged Gus Roof, a millwright, who restored the millworks to a working 1700's condition. Improvements that have taken place for the enjoyment of the public are: plexi-glass viewing windows placed in the main floor; a spiral staircase to the third floor; a walk-way to the basement level for the physically challenged; park benches were placed on the grounds; windows have been replaced; outdoor and indoor lighting was added; some of the stonework was replaced; an iron grate was placed at the archway at water level; the addition of the Clark property; and the donation of land from Anthony Greco and family. Ken Maxwell [email protected] (WASHBURN - Erna Jean, Russel Dearl, Reuben Daniel, James Daniel, Enoch, Caleb, Jesse & Silence)