Montgomery County’s water mills were established in the 1700s with the settlement of the area, flourished in the 1800s as new forms of transportation increased fertility and wheat exports, and declined with the westward shift of wheat production, when demand for their services dwindled.
Although based on ancient technologies, they flourished during a time when several innovations in the process of milling were introduced. The old mills are a fine example of changing technology. They were not simply replaced by a better power source; they were also displaced by new transportation methods and westward expansion. This transformed their once-valuable locations among the farms into parkland, skirting busy suburban roads.
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