Roslyn Grist Mill restoration underway, eyed as education center

Three hundred and nine years after the Roslyn Grist Mill first opened, Jaime Karbowiak, executive director of the Roslyn Landmark Society, stood on the top floor of the building and envisioned its future.

The mill, known for its rare Dutch framing, is in the midst of a multimillion dollar renovation. On Old Northern Boulevard stands a skeleton of timber beams and columns, which were recently installed. The renovation's second phase is expected to finish in the spring and also includes installation of the roof, shingles, siding, windows, doors and flooring.

Karbowiak hopes to turn the mill into an education center for young people, with interpretive historical exhibits related to Roslyn and Long Island's early history.

"A lot of kids, they’re glued to their devices. This is a real-life experience for them to engage and fully appreciate history," she said over the hum of water streaming from Silver Lake into Hempstead Harbor, which the mill overlooks. "When you can stand underneath it, and see it, it’s a different experience."

The first phase — stabilizing the structure and lowering it onto its new foundation — was finished in August 2023.

Built between 1715 and 1741, the mill was the first major industrial building in Roslyn. The mill served as the village's economic heart for more than 150 years, according to Howard Kroplick, the former North Hempstead Town historian. It was then a tea house from 1920 to 1974. In 1976, the mill was transferred to Nassau County and restoration plans were made, said Kroplick, who serves as co-president and chair of the landmark society’s executive committee.

But the restoration was bogged by a series of delays.

In 1986, the federal government listed the grist mill on the National Register of Historic Places.

In restoring the mill, the landmark society is also hoping to emphasize that the building can be a symbol of sustainable energy and model for the future as Long Island confronts the effects of climate change. The mill operated on hydropower, Karbowiak said.

"It’s important for everyone to learn about that at this point because of all the things happening in the world," she said. "Sustainable energy, that’s the path forward. So to learn about those things and how they relate to our modern times is extremely important."

The landmark society received $6.5 million in grants and contributions, including $1.95 million from the Gerry Charitable Trust. Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-Glen Cove) secured a $500,000 Save America’s Treasures grant, from a federal program that honors "premier cultural resources," according to the National Park Service.

On Tuesday, Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman filed a capital plan that includes $2 million for the grist mill restoration.

Nassau Minority Leader Delia DeRiggi-Whitton (D-Glen Cove), who represents Roslyn, said: "I am encouraged to see progress on preserving one of Nassau's historic treasures." She urged county officials to move swiftly in borrowing for the project.

Mary Studdert, a spokeswoman for majority Republicans in the county legislature, who control county funding requests, said she did not know when a vote on the borrowing would take place.

That funding would cover the renovation's third phase: Reinstalling the water wheel, the mill’s husk frame and the sluiceway. The Landmark Society hopes to complete that work by the end of 2026. The fourth phase, setting up the educational center, is expected to conclude by the end of 2027.

About 15 to 20 grist mills once dotted Long Island, Kroplick said. The Roslyn mill will be a valuable educational tool once the restoration is complete, he said.

"It tells a whole story about grist mills on Long Island," Kroplick said. "And how important they were to the early economy of Long Island."

By Joshua Needelman

joshua.needelman@newsday.com

Joshua Needelman covers the Town of North Hempstead for Newsday. A Long Island native and University of Maryland graduate, his work has appeared in publications including The New York Times and The Washington Post.