PRESS RELEASE

For immediate release
August 20, 2002

Morley, NY --- After years of abandonment and disrepair, the rebirth of the Harison Grist Mill in Morley has finally become a reality for the Heritage Grist Mill Association. This month scaffolding and ladders went up around the mill to begin the stabilization phase of the restoration for the site.

The Harison Grist Mill was built in 1840 by prominent landowner Thomas Ludlow Harison who quarried stone for the mill right in Morley. Historians agree that the mill was constructed by J.P. Cummings, although the designer remains a mystery. Harison hired Rufus K. Jackson to run the mill from the start. The mill ran day and night from harvest and into the winter milling grist of oats, corn, barley and wheat. Daniel McKenzie was another early operator of the mill who was commissioned to do most of the iron work for the mill. McKenzie was a Scot living in Canada, and he eventually made Morley his residence. The mill survived nearly 100 years until it ceased operation in about 1935.

Research and the alliance with other mills and mill associations have afforded the group some experienced advice in historic preservation. Two mills in Ontario, Canada – Watson’s Mill in Manotick and the Spencerville Mill in Grenville County have been of particular interest. The Manotick mill is nearly a twin of the mill in Morley. Both mills have been transformed into community centerpieces and tourist destinations in southern Ontario. After a lengthy search for a mill-specific historical preservationist, the association hired Brad Hubbard of Spencerville to lead the team who is stabilizing the stone walls of the mill. Hubbard is an expert in mill preservation and has worked on several mills in his twenty three year career. He is well-known for the preservation of the windmill at Fort Wellington near Prescott, Ontario for Parks Canada.  Hubbard is a passionate advocate of safeguarding historic architecture.

The association sees an opportunity to develop a program so artisans and old fashioned tradesmen can apprentice with the preservationists during the initial restorative phases of the project. This program could potentially encompass masons, carpenters, forgers, black smiths, tin smiths and eventually millers. Ideally, such a program would be the catalyst for the educational mission of the Heritage Grist Mill Association before the doors open to the general public.

The restoration has become a labor of love for the handful of people rallying to preserve the mill. The not for profit Heritage Grist Mill Association, lead by Charlie LaShombe of Norwood, was created to oversee the project. Charlie LaShombe said, "We have been seeking private and corporate monies as well as public grants to restore the mill to working condition. And, we just received a generous contribution of vintage milling equipment from the Ag Museum in Jefferson County."

The Northern New York Agricultural Historical Society and Museum in Lafargeville donated a paddle wheel, complete with shafts and gears, which is a primary component to the conservation of the mill, and it complements the ever expanding inventory of donated period equipment the association has been receiving from individuals and organizations.

"It is the mission of the association to create a place for school children and tourists to experience rural industry of the 19th century.  The mill will eventually have a community room and gift shop of milled goods, specialty items and souvenirs.  The Harison Grist Mill will be a showpiece for the hamlet of Morley instead of an eyesore," Lashombe comments.

The Heritage Grist Mill Association can be contacted at 315-353-2297, or you can visit their new website at www.morleygristmill.com