84-Lanca*ter Fanning, Saturday, April 12, 1997
Art and Donna Bert stand In front of the Clear Springs Mill that they restored recen
tly. The three-story mill with a mansard roof was built In the Second Empire architec
tural style during the 1880 s.
Clear Springs Mill Restored
LOU ANN GOOD
Lancaster Farming Staff
DELLSBURG (York Co.) In
the 1800 s, Clear Springs Mills was
the hub of the local community.
The three-story mill in the Second
Empire architectural style buzzed
with the buying and selling of
grains. It was a meeting place for
rural neigbors and a place to grind
a wagonload of com or pick up a
bag of freshly ground flour.
Then the fabric of American life
changed. Business dwindled and
the mill was silent for 30 years.
About three years ago, Donna
and Art Bert purchased the mill,
which vandals, rodents, and
weather had damaged. The Berks
transformed the mill with the goal
that it become again a center of
activity.
Inside and out, the mill has been
restored and was opened for busi
ness last year. While the mill does
not exactly duplicate the milling
practices of the past, it still grinds
flour—ls different whole grains,
to be exact.
A Meadows Mill with an 8-inch
grinding stone is used to transform
organic grains into fine powdery
flour.
“It doesn’t grind as fast as the
old type, so we want people to call
ahead whenever they want large
amounts of flour,” Donna said.
Part of the Berts’ intentions for
the mill is for it to be a place where
visitors can leam about history.
The Berks enjoy giving lours of the
mill and take the time to show visi
tors the race below the first floor.
Although the mill stream has been
diverted since the mid 19505,
when the slate constructed a high
way about a quarter of a mile a
away, the lower part of the mill has
been retained to show how the
water ran over the water wheel to
provide water power to grind
grams,
As much equipment as possible
has been retained to give the mill
an authetic ambiance, but much of
the mill’s iron and steel fixtures
had been sold for scrap metal dur
ing World War 11. The remaining
equipment was sold during a 1980 s
auction before the Berts purchased
the mill. Since then, they have
replaced pulleys, hooks, and some
other authetic fixtures.
Redoing the bam uncovered
some surprises such as the cigar
sign. When removed, it revealed a
hole to the exterior. Inside a mill
er’s desktop was the handwritten
scrawl, “Chas quit chewing tobac
co 1882.”
In addition, the Berts have been
fascinated by the trek of people
who years ago either worked or
shopped at the mill and stop by to
tell memories.
These little tidbits of informa
tion add human intrigue and
helped lighten the work of hand
scrubbing the walls and floors of
the three-storied mill. The interior
wood was thoroughly scrubbed by
Donna. It’s hard to believe that the
wood had once been covered with
cobwebs and served as a home for
raccoons and other wildlife.
While the Berts focus a lot on
the historical significance of the
mill, freshly-ground flour is only a
small part of the mill's offerings.
For sale are red clay pottery,
pewter, yellow ware typical of the
19th century, heirloom seeds,
fleeces, hand spun and dyed wool,
handpainted frakturs, whittled and
carved folk pieces, wild flower
plants.... “anything associated
with 19th century folk art,” Donna
said.
Donna’s large bam loom stands
in one comer.
“Ideally, I’d be weaving while
the shop is open,” Donna said.
“But her facetiously-spoken com
ment exposes the fact that work is
so time consuming that she has
little time to devote to weaving
rugs and linens to be sold at the
shop. Instead she relies upon other
weavers to provide some of the
handiworks for display and sale.
The exterior required 60 gallons
of paint to restore the original col
ors of mustard-colored boards with
red bam trim.
The couple share a love for the
historical and did most of the resto
ration work themselves.
The ruins of the saw mill are
situated next to the grist mill.
‘Td love to save the sawmill,
but it’s past the point of restora
tion, it would need to be entirely
rebuilt,” Donna said.
“It’s frustrating to have more
ideas and plans than we have time
and money to implement them,”
she said.
Donna grew up in Ohio, and Art
in California. They attended the
nearby Messiah College, where
Donna studied behavior science
and earned a teaching degree while
Ait studied business administra
tion. In the 19705, the couple mar
ried and renovated an old vacant
farmhouse a few miles from the
mill.
“We both grew up in families
who appreciated historical things
and antiques. We often visited old
farmsteads and were concious of
our ancestors,” Donna said.
While the Berts enjoyed fixing
up their farmhouse, the idea for
purchasing a mill wasn’t a long
thought-out plan.
“It sort of began when a friend
and I attended the sale of a mill in a
different area and I remembered
this old mill.”
Donna stopped by the business
across the street to inquire about
the status of the mill. The business
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Collectible reproductions in iron, tin, woodenware, hand
thrown pottery, handwoven textiles, and other 19th century
art is available at the mill, in addition, the Berts hold numer
ous events throughout the year featuring 19th century
handicrafts and tasting parties featuring whole grain
breads and summer grain salads.
As Community Hub
Freshly ground whole grain flours are available for home
bakers. More than 14 different organic grains are stone
ground while customers watch.
owner was a descendant of the for
mer owner. Although she was told
the mill was not for sale, a few
months later, Donna received a
call with the offer to sell the mill.
“I panicked.” Donna said. She
turned down the offer. But the
seeds of possibilities sprouted as
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she and Ait, who owns a restaur
ant, discussed the mill. They
thought of turning it into a restaur
ant or a bed and breakfast But
eventually the best plan seem to be
to use the mill as a showcase for
the handiwork of that era.
“We feel good that we saved a
bit of history that otherwise might
have been lost,” Donna said.
“Through restoring this, we’ve
learned so much about the milling
business and that time period.
“It’s been an enjoyable adven
ture finding out the history, hear
ing the stories of people who
remember the mill when it was in
operation, and the creative sense
involved in finding items to sell in
the shop.”
Some of the upcoming events
offered at Clear Spring Mill
include a wildflower walk on the
grounds with a botanist on April
12; hand spinning, weaving, and