Mill Creek: The Power of Water

Mill Creek: The Power of Water. Rolling Hill Park. , Mill Creek gets its name from the active mill industry that flourished here from the 1790s to the 1870s. The mills adapted to suit a changing market place. During the early 1800s, a growing mill industry produced paper, grain, guns, and powder. In the 1850s, cotton yarn became the predominant product. The mill industry declined during the 1890s. Large automated factories were built along railroad lines and the smaller scale mills could no longer compete. In 1893 Mill Creek had a disastrous flood. The dams along the creek were destroyed and never rebuilt., The Barker Mill , The existing industrial buildings along Mill Creek adjacent to the park boundaries are known as the Barker Mill. It is the longest-lived mill on the creek. The parcel of land on which it is located was part of the original patent granted by William Penn to Robert Jones to establish the Welsh Barony in 1682. It is believed that Benjamin Brooke built the first mill around 1794 either to produce powder or manufacture armaments. From 1808 to 1861 the Nippes family operated a mill to manufacture rifles. During the War of 18 12, they supplied rifles to the United States Government. In 1881 the mill was sold to William Booth. The cornerstone on the existing building reads "Wm Booth Roseglen Mill 1886." It produced carpet and rug yarn. The name Barker comes from Thomas A. Barker who bought the mill in 1923. He and his sons carded and spun wool there until the 1950s. In the 1970s the building was renovated for more modern uses: light industrial, offices, and artisan studio space., The Ruins , Visible along the floodplain of Mill Creek are large stone ruins that once housed mill workers. The mills themselves generally employed about 6-10 workers. The census of 1850 indicates predominant populations of laborers, mill workers, and local craftsmen in the Mill Creek area. Workers were housed on the property in tenements that could accommodate several families. There are two sets of major ruins along the floodplain of the park. This ruin was the three-story stone mill workers tenement pictured at left. Samuel Lehman Smith, a mill owner, constructed it between 1837 and 1840. Nearby is a root cellar., The other ruins, downstream closer to the Barker Mill, consisted of two buildings. One was a single unit that housed one family or several workers. The other was a double unit that housed two families. Both contained crafted stonework, heavy fireplace lintels, and attached kitchens. They date from the first quarter of the 19th century., The stone ruins are being stabilized through the efforts of the Township's Board of Commissioners. For your own safety and for the preservation of these cultural resources for future generations, please do not climb on them.