Millwright's House

The most recent reconstruction at Historic Mill Creek, the Millwright's House, was opened in the spring of 2005 and includes a wide variety of exhibits which pieces together the life of the millwright.

The completed reconstruction of the Millwright's House at Historic Mill Creek.

The Millwright's House Reconstruction

The accurate reconstruction of the Millwright's House was only possible after years of scientific archaeology and site analysis. Archaeological features permitted park carpenters to reconstruct an accurate house with proper placement of doors, fireplace, forge, foundation lines, and overall building dimensions.

The artifacts discovered at the site helped explain what took place at this early 19th-century house.

The park team posing at the 2005 opening.

Millwright's Production Team At 2005 Opening.

A team of park professionals were responsible for the Millwright's House reconstruction and museum exhibits. Park professionals include carpenters, archaeologists, exhibit designer, interpreters, and conservator that collaborated to make the Millwright's House an added attraction to the park.

The Millwright's House during archaeological excavation. The fireplace ruin is at the far end of the image.

House Archaeology

After several years of archaeology and subsequent mapping of features and analysis of artifacts, the groundwork was created to establish an accurate reconstruction at the actual house site.

During archaeological excavations a wonderful fireplace and hearth ruin was uncovered. A larger hearth and fireplace was found on the west side of the house servicing the main room. Offset from this fireplace was a smaller forge to the south and facing east. Archaeological evidence suggests a smaller addition was constructed on the east end of the house for a small working forge and work shop. The ruins were in such good condition that they were conserved "in situ" and developed into an exhibit for the house.

The archaeological fireplace ruin ehxibit.

Archaeological Ruin Exhibit

The archaeological ruin in the Millwright's House was turned into a visual exhibit where in the first phase the visitor sees the archaeological ruin as archaeologists uncovered it and conserverators subsequently stabilized.

Millwright's family by the fireplace.

Millwright's Family At The Fireplace Ruin.

Through the use of lighting and a theatrical scrim of the Millwright's family, an image of the family by the fireplace is superimposed visually over the ruin and the visitor can better understand how the archaeological fireplace ruin would've looked like as a working fireplace in the early 1800s. As the family image fades away the viewer once again sees the archaeological ruin and what remains today. It is a very striking exhibit.

An exhibit cube with forge related artifacts from the east end of the house.

Artifact Exhibits

Throughout the house are exhibit cubes that contain archaeological artifacts that were found over the years at the Millwright's House excavation. The exhibits help show how archaeolgists use the artifact assemblage to analyze and interpret what activities and who might have lived in the house.

A view into the Millwright's House cellar.

The Root Cellar

Archaeologists found a root cellar to the house, a prime storage space for food and other goods. The cellar was incorporated into the house reconstruction, and the visitor can look down through the floor into a cellar period setting.

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