Gish Mill is situated along the south bank of Glade Creek in Roanoke County’s town of Vinton. The oldest portion of the building is a circa 1846 three-story brick structure. Originally relying on water-power to turn its millstones, the operation converted to an electric power roller mill in the 1910s. With much of its milling equipment intact—although its overshot water wheel no longer exists, the mill demonstrates how grain was processed into flour and feed for livestock. The three-story central block enabled gear shafts and conveyor belts to connect vertically through the different levels and to utilize gravity in the efficient processing of the grain. The handmade bricks of the 1846 mill as well as the concrete construction of the 1930s grain-bin addition reflect the eras in which they were built as well as the desirability of fireproof construction for the highly volatile milling process. The simple, multiple frame and concrete additions constructed between ca. 1930 and 1955 include grain bins and elevators, loading docks, additional storage rooms, and retail spaces that indicate the mill’s increased production during the mid-20th century. The Gish family sold the mill in 1867 to Isaac W. Vinyard, and in 1911 the mill became Vinton Rolling Mill, named for the community that arose around it. Gish Mill ceased operation in 1982, operating as a retail feed and seed store until closing in 2015. The Town of Vinton purchased the property at that time.
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
Programs
DHR has secured permanent legal protection for over 700 historic places - including 15,000 acres of battlefield lands
DHR has erected 2,532 highway markers in every county and city across Virginia
DHR has registered more than 3,317 individual resources and 613 historic districts
DHR has engaged over 450 students in 3 highway marker contests
DHR has stimulated more than $4.2 billion dollars in private investments related to historic tax credit incentives, revitalizing communities of all sizes throughout Virginia