“I didn’t want to see the mill go away,” Timm’s Mill owner David Wortham says of his decision to restore and reopen the old water-powered grist mill near Pendleton.
Photo by Milton Morris
Simplicity, it has been said, is the ultimate form of sophistication. We are told over and over to keep things simple—pure and simple. Less, they say, is more.
Nowhere does such wisdom ring truer than at a grist mill. At a grist mill, nothing is complex about the operation. A stone wheel, often powered by a waterwheel, turns on an axle against another stone wheel, pummeling corn into the fine grain of cornmeal or the coarser grain of grits.
And that’s pretty much it. It’s a far cry from engineered flavors or the meatless “meat” churned out of modern food labs, and anyone who’s tasted freshly ground grits or cornmeal will tell you that, just like fish right off the hook or tomatoes right off the homegrown vine, stone-ground corn is as good as it gets.
Although most rural communities once had a miller, there are only a few grist mills still grinding away in South Carolina. In search of authentic grits and cornmeal, I set off on a road trip to three water-powered Upstate mills. At each stop, I learned something else about simplicity. A grist mill operates the old and simple way because, well, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. And when you do things the old and simple way—passed down generation after generation—it means you have a story to tell.
Suber’s Corn Mill
Family traditions run deep at Suber’s Corn Mill in Greer. Owner Jim Suber is a fourth-generation miller, carrying on the business his great-grandfather began more than 150 years ago.
Photo by Milton Morris
Stepping into Suber’s Corn Mill on a Saturday when they are grinding corn is indeed like stepping back in time. A thin layer of cornmeal dusts everything in sight—the wooden floorboards, the grindstone, the sifter, the flour mixer, the rocking chair, the fishing pictures hanging on the wall, the whirring box fan in the window, the cast-iron wood stove, even the miller himself, Jim Suber.
“I believe it’s gonna start,” Suber says with a sly grin when I walk in just after 9 a.m. It’s an obvious joke because it—the mill—has been starting up for 150 years.
Suber—whose great-grandfather James Suber started a grist mill and whiskey still on the same branch of the Enoree River, Princess Creek—pulls a lever that opens the gates on the top of the hill. Water comes coursing down the creek, under the railroad tracks, and turns the waterwheel that powers the mill.
“Someone asked me how long they run,” Suber says about the 18-inch granite wheel at the heart of the works. “I said, ‘That’s 18-inch rock. I’ve been running it 60 years, and I wore only an inch off of it.’”
Suber’s son, Bryan, who works at the mill on Saturdays as a fifth-generation miller because he “can’t get away from it,” feeds 50-pound bags of corn into a bin. The corn is conveyed by metal cups to the grindstone, which is adjusted according to the desired product. For cornmeal, they sift off the bran, which is the tough but nutritious outer layer of corn, and save it to feed livestock. For self-rising flour, they mix the cornmeal with baking powder, baking soda and salt. For grits, they keep the bran in.
“If you don’t want that in your grits, run them in cold water,” advises Linda Suber, Jim Suber’s wife and Bryan Suber’s mother. “My mother-in-law used to say, ‘Swim it off!’”
Although the family business only grinds and sells to the public on Saturdays, they also sell their grits to local restaurants and farmers markets. And they still have loyal customers, like Greer resident Carl Dunham, who comes every weekend.
“It’s the only place you can get real cornmeal,” Dunham says. “It’s the real thing. It’s an institution. Not a quantity business, but a quality business because it’s a family business.”
Suber’s Corn Mill is located at 2002 Suber Mill Road in Greer and open to the public on Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. For details, call (864) 430-3675 or visit facebook.com/SubersCornMill.
Timm’s Mill
Timm’s Mill owner David Wortham began rebuilding the mill in 2001 with the help of friends and historical experts. “I had this vision that one day we could maybe restore it and make it work again.”
Photo by Milton Morris
Nestled in a shaded cove of gently rolling hills between Anderson and Pendleton, Timm’s Mill is a labor of love for gastroenterologist David Wortham, who bought the property in 2001 and began a two-year restoration project.
Wortham tells me that there was a Timm’s Mill as far back as 1780, a mile up Six and Twenty Creek from its current location. After a series of moves and setbacks, the mill ceased operations in 1970.
“I didn’t want to see the mill go away,” Wortham says, opening up a photo album with before-and-after pictures. They had to lift the waterwheel out with a crane to have it refabricated. “So, I started researching mills and realized there were not many remaining. There are very few. You can put them on one hand. And I had this standing building, and I had this vision that one day we could maybe restore it and make it work again.”
Like a justifiably proud father, Wortham is quick to point out two unusual things about his waterwheel, made by the famous Fitz Water Wheel Company. For one, it is set at about a 20-degree angle from the building so that the shafts and pulleys run parallel to the floor joists. Two, it has an internal ring gear.
If it all sounds a bit technical, it’s because such specialized knowledge is necessary in the world of mill restoration. In fact, Wortham points to the serendipitous fact that the Society for the Preservation of Old Mills (SPOOM) happened to host its annual meeting in nearby Clemson the year that he started his project.
He says, “We got a lot of exposure to different people,” who helped him learn the milling trade. One of the former millers at Hagood Mill even came down and took him through the process. “I’ve been blessed by some very kind, generous friends.”
These days, he grinds corn and sells to the public on Wednesdays, and he ships to various restaurants in the area, including the famous Clemson barbecue joint, The Smokin’ Pig. He also holds an annual Christmas party open to the public; it’s a celebration of the community that’s helped Timm’s Mill endure as one of the last functioning grist mills in the state.
And, as a gastroenterologist, he’s quick to point out something else: “Grits are good for your gut,” he says. “And you can quote me on that!”
Timm’s Mill is located at 150 Timms Mill Road in Pendleton. Although the mill is open most Wednesdays, visitors are encouraged to call or email ahead. (864) 261-3366, info@timmsmill.com. For more information, visit timmsmill.com.
Hagood Mill
Even with all the other attractions and events at Hagood Mill Historic Site, the old wooden grist mill is the centerpiece of the park.
Photo by Keith Phillips
On the third Saturday of every month, Hagood Mill Historic Site comes alive with musicians, quilters, blacksmiths, families touring the prehistoric petroglyphs museum and vendors selling everything from tacos to handmade leather goods, but the heart of this Pickens County park is—and always has been—the historic grist mill.
Powered by the picturesque waterwheel out back on Hagood Branch, the millworks inside the restored wooden structure truly feels like a beating heart when it’s running, what with all the wheels wheeling, pulleys pulling and chutes chuting.
During every third Saturday event, volunteers under head miller Alan Warner make sure the whole operation runs just as it would have 100 years ago. They repair belts and pulleys, keep everything clean, and heft 50-pound bags of corn into the hopper while narrating the history of the mill to interested visitors.
“What an opportunity to have something that old and that unique, to be able to run it, and for people to come see it and also buy the products that you’re making,” Warner says.
While they also mill wheat, rye, oats, barley and millet for sale on the first floor of the mill, old-fashioned yellow grits are the most popular item, and for good reason. They provide a literal taste of old South Carolina.
“There is a difference between stone ground and manufactured grits,” Warner says. “We’re taking the whole kernel of corn and grinding it. What you get is a product that includes the germ, and the germ has all the oils and nutrients in it and that’s what gives it a unique taste.”
Hagood Mill is located at 138 Hagood Mill Road in Pickens and operates every third Saturday of the month from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more on the park and its other attractions, call (864) 898-2936 or visit hagoodmillhistoricsite.com.
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Restoring Jones Mill—Built in 1861 and abandoned in the 1950s, historic Jones Mill near Fountain Inn is getting a new lease on life, thanks to a $1.6 million restoration effort.
Hagood Mill: Crafting a legacy—Watch the 2016 renovation of Hagood Mill’s historic waterwheel in this Pickens County Tourism video.
Hagood Mill Keeps History Alive—Join us on a walkthrough of the petroglyphs museum and the Third Saturday Folklife Festivals.