By: Sophie Nieport
With America having a special 250 th birthday, I’ve been inspired to highlight some history at Bear’s Mill. Even though the Mill has only been here for 177 of those 250 years, it is still one of the few historic gems still standing in our county that has been through most of America’s years.
So, the staff at Darke County Parks has decided to host a special history event at Bear’s Mill on September 26 th at 10:30am. Turning Stones and Timeless Tales: The Story of Bear’s Mill will be a one-time event, free and open to the public.
This event will cover 4 topics. The focus will be Bear’s Mill, but we will also be highlighting some of the other old mills that were built in the county from 1810 to around 1870. The first mill in Darke County was built in 1810 by Enos Terry. According to a newspaper article called Early Mills in Darke County by Frazer E. Wilson, the mill was called the Terry Mill and was located in the City Park “on land that extended from large pond in park to Ohio St. (Versailles Rd.) and from 4 th St. Bridge to Northern boundary of the park.” This article was the first of a series of eleven articles titled the same.
According to an obituary on findagrave.com, historian Frazer Ells Wilson was born in Ansonia in 1871 and died at the age of 86 in 1958. Beyond his newspaper articles mentioned above, he wrote 6 books and 3 pamphlets on Darke County History. Wilson was also active in many civic and political circles and operated a dry goods store in Dayton with his father. Most of the information given during our event regarding old mills in Darke County will be from Wilson’s material.
Another topic covered will include in-person tales about Bear’s Mill from previous owners Terry and Julie Clark. If you have never had the pleasure of meeting Terry and/or Julie or hearing some of their ‘early on’ stories about the Mill, you will not want to miss this! They feed off each other in their storytelling and often have two different versions of the same story. You may not know whose version is correct, but you are guaranteed to laugh.
The third topic will be the future of the Mill. Projects and upkeep are never-ending at a historic site. Be a part of our next journey in making this place even more spectacular for years to come.
The last thing offered for the day will be a full tour of the mill with the millers – old and new!
This event is free, but we do ask that you register online at https://darkecoparks.recdesk.com/Community/Program/Detail?programId=896 or call 937-548-0165.
