Rocky Hill in Capitol Region, Connecticut — The American Northeast (New England)
Bulkeley's New Corne Mill
1680-1830
Photographed by Conrad Ward, May 25, 2025
1. Bulkeley's New Corne Mill Marker
When Gershom Bulkeley was granted an additional 150 acres west of Lower Dividend Pond, he relocated his grist mill, or "corne" mill as it was called, upstream in a hollow just below the waterfall. He used the natural outcropping as part of a new dam he built which created "Upper Dividend Pond."
In the 1750s, his descendants added a ships bakery to his mill site where a variety of bread and biscuits were baked for vessels sailing from the Rocky Hill Landing at the riverfront to the West Indies and other foreign ports. Gershom Bulkeley's grist mill remained in the family for five generations, a span of more than 150 years.
When the mill passed out of the family, about 1830, a Mr. Russell manufactured axes here for a short time. Later, Leonard Welles and Alfred Wilcox carried on their business here, until Wilcox was killed in a mill accident.
Joseph Jory, an English blacksmith, produced the first "Never Slip" horseshoe at this site in 1866. A year later he sold his invention to a firm in Boston for ten thousand dollars. Eventually, C. E. Billings constructed a new building replacing the old one. This building was used mainly for drop forgings. The remnants of the drop forge operation can still be seen. A small corn mill was still in use nearby.
(photo caption) Billings Manufacturing
this page online
Dividend-Rocky Hill's First Industrial Complex, by June Cooke
Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Industry & Commerce. A significant historical year for this entry is 1866.
Location. 41° 38.775′ N, 72° 38.042′ W. Marker is in Rocky Hill in Capitol Region, Connecticut. It can be reached from Old Forge Road. Located in Dividend Pond Archaeological District. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Rocky Hill CT 06067, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in the Connecticut River Valley, in Greater Hartford, and in the Knowledge Corridor. It is also in the American Northeast and in New England. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region, North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once Hartford County and also one of the original Thirteen Colonies.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Bulkeley Mill Dam (within shouting distance of this marker); C. E. Billings Manufacturing Co. (within shouting distance of this marker); An Historic Timeline - Dividend Pond Archaeological District (within shouting distance of this marker); Welles & Wilcox Manufacturing (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Reverend Gershom Bulkeley's Corne/Grist Mill (about 600 feet away); Butler and Sugden Shear Factory (approx. 0.4 miles away); Butler and Sugden Dam and Sluiceway (approx. half a mile away); Butler Grist Mill (approx. 0.7 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Rocky Hill.
Photographed by Conrad Ward, May 25, 2025
2. Bulkeley's New Corne Mill Marker
Credits. This page was last revised on June 4, 2026. It was originally submitted on May 31, 2026, by Conrad Ward of Guilford, Connecticut. This page has been viewed 8 times since then. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on May 31, 2026, by Conrad Ward of Guilford, Connecticut. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.
