I saw the photos of the old (mystery) mill that was listed as being west of Jonesville and a request for the name and some history. I believe I can provide some history and the former name but I don't know the name it goes by today. The mill is located in Long Hollow between Pennington Gap & (east of) Jonesville and on some topographical maps the area is listed as Collier's Mill. The reason for that is the mill belonged to my maternal grandfather, Wright Collier from 1923 until his death January 18, 1963. I believe the land and the mill was sold to the Williams family (of log cabin fame) shortly after that date. I'm including some photos of the original mill and one photo of a newspaper clipping with some data concerning the ownership of the mill. Another photo is from the autumn issue, 1992, of the Blue Ridge Digest, page 13 advertising Old Virginia Hand Hewn Log Homes, Inc. In addition, I've included a photo taken May 26, 2001 of the mill as it now looks. I remember as a child enjoying the grinding of corn in the old mill, hearing the rumble of the mill stones and smelling the dry, unique smell of the corn. A mill race was dug to divert water from the stream that flows in front of the mill to the mill wheel and I always enjoyed watching the water get diverted to the wheel and watching it begin to turn. As a young child it was a special treat to be able to see all that going on. At one time my aunt Hazel Collier ran a small store out of one corner of the mill and she had the very first telephone I ever saw. She also sold kerosene from a square metal tank on the porch of the mill. All this was in the late 1940's. The house was located across the road from the mill (behind the photographer). I can provide the county road numbers of the two roads where the current mills sits. Unfortunately, I don't have them with me at the moment.
(edited for brevity)| Collier Mill Historical Photo | Log Home Digest Photo | Another Modern Picture of the Collier Mill | Another Collier Mill Historical Photo |
