The Readyville Mill is the sole vestige of what was once a flourishing industry on the Stones River in Middle Tennessee. Dating from the 1870s, the current Readyville Mill is a three-story building with an open fourth-story attic. In the early 1900s, the mill supplied the area with electricity, making Readyville one of the first rural villages in Tennessee to possess electric lights. Other products included ice, corn meal, refined flour, whole wheat flour, buckwheat flour, and lumber.
Mill History
1766 Uriah Stone explored current Readyville area; Stones River named after him.
1802 Mary & Charles Ready setteled Readyville area.
1811 Ready offered land for Rutherford County seat; post office built.
1812 Ready built GRIST MILL; cut channel from Stones River for water wheel.
1829 Ready built home known as The Corners, which still stands.
SAW MILL added, DAM and RACE built
MILL BURNED-DATE AND CAUSE UNKNOWN
1859 Charles died; daughter Jane & husband Peter Talley continues operation with their son, Frances.
1878 Robert Carter rebuilt building standing now
FLOUR MILL added
1889 W. B. Hayes bought Mill; worked with son, Sam, and Arthur McFerrin. Sam lived in the house across the race; currently a rental house.
SAWMILL added
1900 ICE PLANT built.
1918 ELECTRICITY Readyville had electricity before Murfreesboro (plant bought by TVA in 1937.
TOP FLOOR added to Mill; 4th floor added to provide more height for the gravity-dependent milling operation,
MACHINE SHOP over the millrace south of Highway 70S built.
1930s CORN MEAL, FLOUR, LUMBER, ICE, ELECTRICITY, MACHINE SHOP operated at this site.
935+ Leslie & George Justice bought 3.75 acre mill site; sawmill sold; TURBINES installed; grinding stones replaced by steel rollers for white flour.
1970 Mary & Gerald Flipse bought Mill; GRINDING STONES from another mill added to provide corn, whole wheat, buckwheat operations; French burr stone form Marne Valley.
1973 Mill placed on National Register of Historic Places Marie & Wilfred Carignan purchased Mill.
1977 Mill sold to George Reel & Wayne Epperly.
1980s Mill stopped running.
2006 Mill bought and in process of being restored. Update and pictures soon to come.
Tomm Brady, current owner
of the Readyville Mill, is working hard to restore this wonderful place back to working condition.
The mill site consists of 3.9 acres on the East Fork of the Stones River. The mill is 1.5 miles from scenic Highway 70S 12 miles east of Murfreesboro.
http://parq.org/
photos taken 2-28-08
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I lived at the Readyville Mill for a while in 1975 and worked and played there on and off until it's closure in the early 80's and would like to take the opportunity to thank Tomm Brady, the current owner, for his continuing efforts to restore this wonderfully historic place. It holds a lot of memories.
My girls and I spent more than a few hot summer days at the swimming hole behind the dam.
The famous or infamous "Goat Roasts" of the late 70's were held there; hundreds of people, good music, many kegs of beer and barbecued goats.
The mill store was one of the first natural foods businesses in the middle TN area.
A local moonshiner got his corn ground there and paid the bill in trade; "shine" buried in an oak keg for a year, it was the best I ever had.
Hopefully the restoration will continue and the mill returned to it's former glory.
Kenny
also see companion video:
"Inside Readyville Mill"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xKEm89k1pVw
more local photos and videos
http://brysonsdozerservice.blogspot.com/
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Flour mill tourby namamillers21,317 views
Enjoyed many good times in the 50's swimming and fishing this area as a young lad. Happy to see this bit history preserved. I wish they could restore the little dam and make a park out of it.
Charley (Butch) Stone
cjstone777 1 year ago
Makes me so proud to be from these parts..shame idiots vandalized it. Miss the swimmin hole, too.
victoryvegas1600 3 years ago
Beautiful! Nice job!
heyitsMILLERTIME 3 years ago
Kenny,
This is super!!!
When you asked to take a few pics, I had no idea you were doing a video. Please come again so I can thank you in person.
I would love for you to do the inside of the mill.
Again thanks so much,
Tomm
ReadyvilleMill 4 years ago
Huh...neat! That history is really interesting. :)
~LauraG.~
DannyPhantom3599 4 years ago 2