Signs From The Past
Wilson's Creek
The surrounding young forest can tell us much. Agriculture has long dominated the landscape. Nearby, John Gibson's horsedrawn plow broke ground for an oat field. Later, tractors would shape and alter the countryside. In the course of this evolution roads and buildings emerged and later would disappear from view. Yet, subtle clues from the past remain to be discovered.
Directly in front of you is the trace of an old ditch. This is the millrace that carried water to the Gibson Mill. As it flowed downstream the millrace's water slowly gained elevation over the creek itself. At the mill the millrace was nine feet above the creek. the falling water provided the power to turn the mill's waterwheel. The entire millrace can be followed 3,862 feet upstream from the mill itself! Imagine... in an age before bulldozers and backhoes completing such a project assisted only by a shovel, your neighbors, and perhaps a mule or two.
Marker can be reached from Tour Road, on the right when traveling east.
Courtesy hmdb.org
