"Little Stewart"
by Amy Shockley, guest writer One summer day when my husband was using the riding mower, a phone call came for him. In those days we...
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"Grist from Abbott's Mill"
Not the same old grind!
Welcome to a unique blog about the history of Ainsworth Abbott's Old Mill, and other old mills in Delmarva. It's also full of great stories about the nearby flora and fauna.
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"Susan the Rabbit"
by Amy Shockley, guest writer To me, one of the most delightful sounds in nature is the wooshing of gentle winds through evergreen trees....
Buzzard Love: The Story of Ruthie
By Amy Shockley, guest writer Dedicated to Nora, (of Abbott’s Mill Nature Center) who didn’t laugh at me. I am about to ask you to...
The Jolly Miller
The Jolly Miller There was a jolly miller once lived on the river Dee; He danced and sang from morn till night, no lark so blithe as he;...
No title...
I've said before that Mary Oliver is one of my favorite "outdoorsey" poets. Here's another of hers that I like. Apparently it has no...
Time off during the Holidays
I'm taking a break from writing posts for this blog. I may, however, re-post a short poem that I find, now and then. I wrote a poem in...
Who was William M. Hendricks ??
As I said last week: On May 6th, 1919 Wm. Hendricks sold the mill to Ainsworth Abbott and Joseph J. Smith for $7,000. Mr. Hendricks...
Here's the ABBOTT'S MILL ownership trail.
I’ve been researching details about as many of the previous owners of Abbotts Mill as I can find information on: Back in the late 1700s,...
Who built the FIRST water-powered mill?
It appears that the first ever written mention of a water-powered mill may have been by the Roman architect and military engineer Marcus...
This post is going to be different.
I’ll get back to Abbott’s Mill next week, but last Saturday was Veteran’s Day and yesterday, Nov. 16th, was my father’s birthday, so I...
When was Water first used to power a Millstone?
I’ve been wondering just when water was first used to power a mill. I knew that the first water-powered mill in America was built in...
Visit the Mid-Atlantic Grain Fair with me
I volunteered to represent the Mid-Atlantic chapter of SPOOM, (the Society for the Preservation Of Old Mills) at the 2023 Mid-Atlantic...
The Oliver Evans System in use at Abbott's Mill
(Here's the whole article that I didn't finish last week.) So first, let’s settle just who Oliver Evans was. Oliver was born on Sept. 13,...
The “Oliver Evans System” in use at Abbott’s Mill - I
So first, let’s settle just who Oliver Evans was. Oliver was born on Sept. 13, 1755 in Newport, Delaware. At the age of 16 he was...
Flour Making Procedure at Abbott’s Mill
Now that you have an understanding of how cornmeal was produced at Abbott’s Mill, you can forget all that because white flour is made in...
Corn into Cornmeal at Abbott’s Mill
Before I explain the corn milling processes at Abbott’s Mill, I should briefly explain what the “Oliver Evans System” is. Delaware native...
Exactly who was Ainsworth Abbott?
The last owner/operator of Abbott's Mill, Ainsworth (nmi) Abbott, who operated it for over four decades, was born on June 22, 1885 in...
Ainsworth Abbott's HUGE Semi-Diesel Engine
In 1925, almost 100 years ago, and not long after Mr. Abbott bought out his partner, he must have realized that his waterwheel didn't...
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