Historic Grist Mill survives devastating flooding in Stony Brook

When teeming rain caused floodwaters to wash away Harbor Road in Stony Brook early last Monday morning, nearly emptying the adjacent Mill Pond, the 273-year-old Grist Mill next door withstood the storm.

The Grist Mill since its origin has served as a community hub for Stony Brook Village, at first for farmers looking to churn their wheat, and now as a still-operational historic site beloved by the community who came to watch the ducks and gain a sense of tranquility.

The storm toppled trees around the mill, and left just about 8 feet of mud at its base, but the ancient building has been ruled structurally sound.

The Ward Melville Heritage Organization operates the mill and owns the 11-acre T. Bayles Minuse Mill Pond and Park where it has stood since 1751. Organizers have vowed to restore the pond, and what they described as "the most complete working mill on Long Island." 

"At first, some people cried. They love this place," said Heritage Organization president Gloria Rocchio. "When it was first built, the mill was the center of business and there was not much else. It was occupied by the British during the American Revolution. It’s got so much history."

It is the fourth time that the dam holding the pond has been breached; it had been most recently in 1910. The first mill was built in 1699 before it was flooded and rebuilt in its current location, using the original beams.

"The bond between the mill and the pond is synonymous," said Rocchio, who is hoping emergency disaster funds can help rebuild the area around the mill. "I came here when I was little to feed the ducks, and many people come here with their grandchildren. It runs very deep."

Rebuilding after flooding

Once the rains stopped, the flooding left devastation in its path. The pond, which is supported by several natural springs into the lake bed, was littered with dead fish and sent turtles and birds downstream.

Volunteers helped clean up the lake bed last week, including collecting jewelry, clothes and exercise equipment from a home that partially collapsed on Main Street into the water. Curious visitors stood in a park across the street, gazing upon the lunarscape of the pond in the area that was also known as Tranquility Park.

At the Grist Mill, trees collapsed on the recently restored water wheel and the base of the wheel was buried in sand and mud. More than a foot of water also flooded the basement of the stone mill, leaving a layer of mud inside, but not affecting any of the mill’s mechanics.

But organizers say the fact that it's still standing is a miracle and they have not discovered any significant damage.

"I am amazed it is still standing for the amount of damage in the area. I can’t believe it’s still here," said the Heritage Organization’s facilities manager, Michael Colucci.

Access to the mill was cut off where the water breached the dam, just past a spillway and destroyed the bridge on Harbor Road before Main Street.

Although initial estimates said it could take years to rebuild from the damage, organizers said rebuilding Harbor Road and the dam must happen as soon as possible, not only to allow visitors to return, but to get the mill up and running.

"This is everything. The water coming off the wheel turns the mill and gears and belts move grains over the stones," Colucci said. "In order to have a working grist mill, we need the pond. In order to rebuild the road, we have to rebuild the dam."

Revolutionary War history

The Stony Brook Grist Mill was originally built in 1699 by Adam Smith, the son of Smithtown founder Richard "Bull" Smith, in an agreement with the Town of Brookhaven to use the land to construct the mill and pond, said Tara Ebrahimian, the Heritage Organization’s education coordinator.

During the Revolutionary War, the British occupied the mill and took the grain to feed troops at a church in Setauket, Ebrahimian said.

Throughout the 1800s, farmers took their grain to the mill to grind oats, wheat, barley and corn. A former miller brought practices from Europe and later, through the 20th century, it was used to make health food products to ship to at least 46 states.

Long Island became famous for its mills, spanning from Roslyn to Water Mill during the 1700s when wheat was processed into flour and shipped to other colonies and the Caribbean, said Jennifer L. Anderson, a Stony Brook University professor of early history.

Anderson said mills built on Long Island were more challenging to operate because they didn’t always have streams. Many mills turned to building ponds to turn water wheels. She said it created a sense of community when farmers would bring their wheat to be ground into flour.

"Just about every town on Long Island had a tidal mill or a windmill or in Stony Brook, it was powered by water in the mill pond, as an artificial way of harnessing water," Anderson said. "These really are such an integral part of the economic fabric of the emerging agriculture community and the first industry on Long Island. They really are one of the most significant forms of architecture we have from the Colonial period and speak to the daily lives of working people."

Michael Walsh, 64, of Water Mill, was a frequent visitor to the Stony Brook Grist Mill, showing the historic operation to his children when they were younger. He said he became fascinated with mills when he studied them while at Fordham University, noting Thomas Jefferson became famous for using the flour to make pastries.

"It’s a step back in time and a connection to an age that becomes real when you walk through the door," Walsh said. "My kids were always fascinated and would leave with a bag of cornmeal. It’s an incredible connection to the past when you can touch and feel implements of yesteryear."

By John Asbury

john.asbury@newsday.comJohnAsbury

John Asbury is a breaking news and general assignment reporter. He has been with Newsday since 2014 and previously worked at The Press-Enterprise in Riverside, California.