Despite the Covid-19 pandemic that crippled work on so many projects worldwide, restoration work at the Van Wyck-Lefferts tidal gristmill in Huntington, N.Y., has made impressive progress during 2021.
In a November 1 letter to friends and supporters of the project, Richard Hamburger, president of the Van Wyck-Lefferts Tide Mill Sanctuary, describes the accomplishments for the year. These include completion of extensive dam repairs and the replacement or repair of damaged building components, including the roof. (During this work, some old wooden gears were found to be still operable!)
The work was funded by grants from The Nature Conservancy and the Robert David Lion Gardiner Foundation along with individual donations.
The president’s report indicates that much more remains to be done. The organization has goals to repair a bulkhead protecting the mill, implement a plan for vegetation on the dam surface that will withstand salt water, and develop a program to share this site’s remarkable history and technology with the public.
To learn more about the restoration project or make a donation, visit huntingtontidemill.org. The group also seeks volunteers to help with the ongoing planning and restoration. The Van Wyck-Lefferts tide mill is the best preserved 18th century tidal gristmill in the country known to remain in its original location. Tide Mill Institute records indicate that it is one of only two remaining U.S. tide mills with gears, millstones and equipment. (The other is Poplar Grove Mill in Mathews County, Va.)
2021 Van Wyck-Lefferts mill restoration photo album, courtesy of Van Wyck-Lefferts Tide Mill Sanctuary, Inc. (Click to enlarge).
thanks for sharing details and photographs of the excellent restoration work at the Van Wyck- Lefferts Tide Mill. Are considerations being made for the forecasted rising sea levels due to global warming in this low-lying area?