Mount Rock Mill / Gault's Mill / Yelk's Mill
Lancaster Co. | Pennsylvania | USA
Watersource: Headwaters of Pequea Creek.
Mount Rock Mill / Gault's Mill / Yelk's Mill
From the intersection of Pa 10 and Pa 340 at Compass in Chester Co, Pa., go west one mile, crossing into Lancaster Co. on Pa 340, turn right at Cains on Churchtown Rd. Go 2.5 miles to Wanner Rd., turn left and go 0.3 miles, then turn right on Jacobs Road and procede 2-2.5 miles, turning left on Cambridge road. The mill is near the Pequea Cr. on Cambridge Road.
The very early three-quarters of the rear portion of the mill is original to the 1734 mill built for William & James Gault by Robert Haines. Another name associated with the building of the mill is Isaac Haines.
The original 26'X 40' stone grist mill and saw mill was added onto the front, probably when the ownership passed from Gault to John Robinson in 1839. Nathaniel Rambo, a Gault so-in-law bought the mill in about 1860 and kept it through 1864.
M.M.Stolzfus had the mill in 1870, after Martin Oberholtzer and Thomas Griffith had a short stint in 1869. Surprisingly, Martin Oberholtzer was again the owner in 1875.
Henry Yelk operated and owned the picturesque mill from 1893-99. The mill closed in 1930 under the millership of Horace Yelk. The flour, grist and saw mill had a long headrace supplying a turbine to produce 8 barrels/day.
The 30 foot tailrace returned the water to Pequea Creek about 6.5' lower in elevation from where the headrace started out from the dam.
In 1994, the oldest standing mill in Salisbury Twp. was in good condition, used for storage or vacant at times. It was still in good shape structurally in 2006 when the pictures was taken. GPS: 40° 4.08' N 75° 58.07' W ele 617/188 meters Baltimore Quadrangle