Virginia Department of Historic Resources Virginia Department of Historic Resources
For additional information, read the Nomination Form PDF
VLR Listing Date 06/08/2006
NRHP Listing Date 08/30/2006
NRHP Reference Number 06000754
Built into the side of a low hill at the foot of Jones Mountain, Graves Mill in Madison County includes a three-story frame gristmill, two-story frame miller’s house, and one-story frame barn. The mill was built circa 1798, probably on the foundations of a 1745 mill, and was owned and operated by the Thomas Graves family for over 100 years. Used as a corn and flour mill, but also housing blacksmith’s and cooper’s workshops at one time, it still retains many of its mechanical features. The miller’s house, constructed circa 1850, incorporates the circa-1792 Thomas Graves School, moved from its original location on the property when the house was built. The complex is important in the economic history of Madison County, but equally in its social history. Thomas Graves operated the private school where many children were educated, and the mill served as the first voting precinct in this area of the county, northwest of the town of Madison. The original voting booth is still preserved in good condition inside the mill.
Many properties listed in the registers are private dwellings and are not open to the public, however many are visible from the public right-of-way. Please be respectful of owner privacy.
Abbreviations:
VLR: Virginia Landmarks Register
NPS: National Park Service
NRHP: National Register of Historic Places
NHL: National Historic Landmark
Updated: November 4, 2021
