If you happen to be traveling on SR 315 during the days of winter when the leaves are off the trees, you might notice what looks like an old stone castle nestled in the woods on the east side of the Olentangy River, north of Hyatts Road. What you're actually seeing are the stone walls of an old mill.
The original mill on this site was built in the 1840s and was what was commonly called a grist mill that ground corn and other grains into meal or flour using the flowing waters of the Olentangy River to turn a set of pulleys that could be used to grind. In 1848 that mill was sold to George Beiber and his son James. After his father's death, James purchased about 100 additional acres of land around the mill and erected a new, 3.5 story stone mill on the north side of the older frame mill. This mill also included a saw mill. However, the new mill's construction costs proved unmanageable for James to handle and he lost the entire site when it went up for auction at the Delaware County Court House in the late 1880s. After that it was operated by a number of different individuals, but none successfully. There were many problems associated with the river and being able to construct and maintain a damn that could provide a constant water supply.
In the early 1900s a fire destroyed the older frame mill and the newer stone mill was partially destroyed in the fire. Since that event the mill has been abandoned, but not forgotten. Over the years the Olentangy River floods and recedes, leaving the lower section of the mill being covered over with mud and debris. Although visitors are not permitted on the site which is owned by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources. Plans are to restore the building at some point in the future. Some measures have been taken to preserve and stabilize the structure as it now stands. Future plans will be dependent upon funding.
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