Once upon a time

Down by the riverside - This photo in Sandy Williams' book, "Images of America - Hinsdale," is of Graue Mill from an 1874 drawing. "Built on the banks of Salt Creek at the site of an earlier sawmill, Frederick Graue completed this gristmill in 1852. The bricks were made of clay from the family farm and likely fired at Jacob Fuller's brickyard. The one-ton burrstones used to grind the corn and wheat were imported from France. Immediately successful, the mill remained Brush Hill's most important business for decades. The home visible on the right in this 1874 drawing was built by Graue in 1859 and occupied by the family for almost 90 years."