Historic Chesterfield

With the advent of the automobile, demand for buggy whips began falling and the business turned to other wooden products. A decade later electricity arrived and the water turbine and 1400 feet of canal were discarded in favor of electricity. A single motor was installed to run the existing flat-belt driven equipment.

The grist mill ceased operation around the same time as electrification. The mill shifted to specialty molding and decorative wood until closing around 1960. After that, it served as a lumber warehouse until Bisbee Brothers closed in 1991. After that, the building was turned into a museum and donated to the Historical Society.

Today, the former gristmill is dedicated to preserving Chesterfield’s history of farming and manufacturing.