Warrenville in DuPage County, Illinois — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

Site of Julius M. Warren’s Saw Mill and Warrenville’s Grist Mill

Photographed by Sean P. Flynn, February 6, 2026

1. Site of Julius M. Warren’s Saw Mill and Warrenville’s Grist Mill Marker

Inscription. Site of Julius M. Warren's saw mill
1835-1857
and
Warrenville's grist mill
1847-1879
1880-1897

Erected 1983 by Warrenville Historical Society.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Industry & Commerce • Settlements & Settlers • Waterways & Vessels. A significant historical year for this entry is 1835.

Location. 41° 49.271′ N, 88° 10.393′ W. Marker is in Warrenville, Illinois, in DuPage County. It is on Batavia Road north of Main Street, on the right when traveling north. The marker is on a stone near the entrance into the parking lot for Warrenville Grove Forest Preserve. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Warrenville IL 60555, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Greater Chicago.

It is also in the American Midwest

and on the Great Lakes.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture

and also the Northwest Territory.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within

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walking distance of this marker: Gathering at the Gristmill (within shouting distance of this marker); A Dam Struggle (within shouting distance of this marker); Recipe for a River (within shouting distance of this marker); Jackson Street (about 700 feet away, measured in a direct line); Third Street (about 700 feet away); Fourth Street (approx. ¼ mile away); Big Woods Road (approx. ¼ mile away); Albright Building (approx. ¼ mile away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Warrenville.

Regarding Site of Julius M. Warren’s Saw Mill and Warrenville’s Grist Mill. According to histories of the area, the grist mill was owned for at least part of its history by members of the Warren family, including descendants who sold it to the DuPage County Forest Preserve in 1923. A fire destroyed the first gristmill in 1879; its replacement was destroyed by another fire in 1897. It was never rebuilt. The original dam was torn down after the mill's closing, later replaced in the 1930s by a concrete dam built by the Civilian Conservation Corps. That dam was taken down in 2012, but its remnants are still visible.

Also see . . .
1. Warrenville Women’s History Wednesday: Philinda Hale Warren Fowler.

Photographed by Sean P. Flynn, February 6, 2026

2. Site of Julius M. Warren’s Saw Mill and Warrenville’s Grist Mill Marker

This bio of Philinda Fowler, one of the sisters of Warrenville's founder Julius Warren, includes a look at the saw mill and grist mill that once stood at this site along the West Branch of the DuPage River. Her husband, Alvah Folwer, co-owned the business that built the gristmill alongside Julius Warren's sawmill.

Excerpt: "Like all of the Warren brother-in-law’s, Alvah Fowler was also a businessman. In 1847 he went into business with his son-in-law Warren Smith, another well-respected businessman in the area. The Smith, Fowler and Company store at the corner of Third Street and Big Woods Road (now Batavia and Warrenville Roads) opened and offered residents another option for dry goods and raw materials much needed in the growing community. The newly formed company also established a gristmill to compliment the Colonel’s sawmill in the bend of the DuPage River that would become Warrenville Grove. Milling was a tough business though and just three years after the gristmill opened, the men sold it, just one of the many times the mill would change hands. The mill would find its way back into the Warren family, when in 1897 William Manning,
Photographed by Sean P. Flynn, February 6, 2026

3. Warrenville Grove parking lot
The grist mill marker is on the right side of this photo.
Philinda’s great-nephew, acquired the property. William’s son, Ralph Manning, sold the property to the Forest Preserve in 1923. The Smith, Fowler and Company store was eventually sold to Harry Knell and then John Petit."

(Submitted on February 9, 2026, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.)

2. Warrenville Grove. A history of the preserve is near the bottom of the page.

Excerpt: "Over the decades the site housed two gristmills and a sawmill, each subject to repairs due to floods or ice damage. There were even fires in 1879 and 1897, the result of friction-generated heat from the gears’ nonstop operation. The mill lost in the 1897 disaster was the last. The District acquired its first 42-acre parcel in 1923, making Warrenville Grove one of the District’s oldest preserves. Additional parcels were acquired in 1960, the 1980s and 2000s."

(Submitted on February 9, 2026, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.)

Historical photo of Warrenville’s Grist Mill image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Sean P. Flynn, February 6, 2026

4. Historical photo of Warrenville’s Grist Mill

The photo, from the Warrenville Historical Society, is printed on a nearby historical marker.

Site of Warrenville grist mill image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Sean P. Flynn, February 6, 2026

5. Site of Warrenville grist mill

The small bridge next to the marker in this photo goes over a manmade channel, called a millrace, which powered the grist mill. The West Branch of the DuPage River runs in the far background.

Credits. This page was last revised on February 9, 2026. It was originally submitted on February 6, 2026, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois. This page has been viewed 56 times since then. Photos: 1. submitted on February 6, 2026, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois. 2, 3, 4, 5. submitted on February 9, 2026, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.