Rock Creek Park in Northwest Washington in Washington, District of Columbia — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)

Machine in a Stone Box

Rock Creek Park

— National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior —

Machine in a Stone Box Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Allen C. Browne, December 7, 2014

1. Machine in a Stone Box Marker

Inscription. Peirce Mill represents the beginnings of the Industrial Revolution in America. For centuries, small water-powered mills had ground grain into flour, using human labor in every step of the process. This 1829 mill, on the other hand, was a mechanized marvel, incorporating the latest labor-saving technologies pioneered by American inventor Oliver Evans. Water turned the wheel, which spun a shaft that drove gears, belts, a grain elevator, and a variety of machines. Assisted by gravity and a single miller, the mills machinery automatically turned grain into flour.

Erected by National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Industry & Commerce. A significant historical year for this entry is 1829.

Location. 38° 56.424′ N, 77° 3.101′ W. Marker is in Northwest Washington in Washington, District of Columbia. It is in Rock Creek Park. Marker can be reached from Tilden Street Northwest west of Beach Drive Northwest, on the right when traveling west. At Peirce Mill in Rock Creek Park. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Washington DC 20008, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Pierce Plantation (within shouting distance of this marker); The Peirce Family Estate (within shouting distance of this marker); Orchards, Fields, Gardens, Pastures

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(within shouting distance of this marker); Herring Highway (within shouting distance of this marker); Peirce Still House (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Rock Creek's Mills (about 300 feet away); Peirce Mill (about 400 feet away); Springhouse (about 500 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Northwest Washington.

Also see . . . "The Unofficial Oliver Evans' National Historic Site". Peirce Mill, Rock Creek Park, Washington, D. C. by T.R. Hazen. (Submitted on December 18, 2014, by Allen C. Browne of Silver Spring, Maryland.)

Photographed By Allen C. Browne, December 7, 2014

2. Machine in a Stone Box Marker

Photographed By Allen C. Browne, December 7, 2014

3. Machine in a Stone Box Marker

Breastshot Wheel image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Allen C. Browne, December 7, 2014

4. Breastshot Wheel

Close-up of photo on marker

Machine in a Stone Box image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Allen C. Browne, December 7, 2014

5. Machine in a Stone Box

Close-up of diagram on marker

Photographed By Allen C. Browne, December 7, 2014

6. Breastshot Wheel

As water drops over the wheel its momentum and weight provide power equivalent to 30 pulling drafthorses. Close-up of diagram on marker

You are Here image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Allen C. Browne, December 7, 2014

7. You are Here

A dam diverted water from Rock Creek into a headrace, which channeled the water to the mill's waterwheel. Water returned to Rock Creek via a tailrace. Close-up of map on marker

Photographed By Allen C. Browne, December 7, 2014

8. Tailrace

Photographed By Allen C. Browne, December 7, 2014

9. Peirce Mill

Photographed By Allen C. Browne, December 7, 2014

10. Peirce Mill

Oliver Evans image. Click for full size.

Photographed By W. G. Jackman

11. Oliver Evans

Engraving by W.G. Jackman (Wikipedia) -- Modified by ACB.

Photographed By Oliver Evans

12. Plate ⅩⅩⅼ

From The Young Millwright and Miller's Guide by Oliver Evans, 1795

Plaque in the South Gable<br>B<br>I • P<br>1829 image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Allen C. Browne, December 7, 2014

13. Plaque in the South Gable
B
I • P
1829

B here may stand for ‘Betsy’ (Betsy and Isaac Peirce, 1824) or ‘Built’ (Built by Isaac Peirce, 1829).

Credits. This page was last revised on January 30, 2023. It was originally submitted on December 18, 2014, by Allen C. Browne of Silver Spring, Maryland. This page has been viewed 472 times since then and 8 times this year. Last updated on October 21, 2018, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13. submitted on December 18, 2014, by Allen C. Browne of Silver Spring, Maryland. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.