{"nrhp_refnum":"05000219","name":"Bisbee Mill","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"66 East St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Chesterfield","county":"Hampshire County","state":"MA","lat":42.37686193150003,"lon":-72.81877977671832,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2005-03-31","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Agriculture","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A three-level, wood-frame water-powered mill complex at 66 East Street in the hamlet of Bisbees, Chesterfield, Massachusetts. The original section dates to 1823, with additions made in 1855-1859, 1888, 1929 and 1954. It sits on a 2-acre property with a millpond, canals, and dam and earlier mill sites.","why_significant":"The mill preserves equipment for a gristmill, a woodworking shop and a blacksmith shop, driven by a turbine with shafting and belting that remain in place. It shows how the Bisbee family ran mill businesses over several generations, including whip butt manufacture for Westfield whip makers. The property also has archaeological potential from earlier mills, canals, and dams.","narrative":"Set beside the Dead Branch in the small hamlet of Bisbees in Chesterfield, Massachusetts, this mill is a composite wood-frame building that grew in stages from 1823. Two post-and-beam sections form the main block, with shed-roofed additions on the south and north added between 1888 and 1954. Inside, three industries share three levels: a gristmill, a woodworking shop that made wagon parts and whip butts, and a blacksmith shop. A 1919 vertical turbine in the wheel pit still turns shafting, pulleys and belts that once powered the machinery. The Bisbee family operated the mill across several generations, adding grain sales, lumber, a dairy farm, and electricity for the village in 1917. Whip butts were shipped to Westfield whip makers, and wooden tool handles went to farm implement firms. The grounds hold a millpond, canals, a dam site, and sites of earlier mills, which add archaeological interest. Since 1997 the property has operated as a museum.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Mid 19th Century: utilitarian","criteria":[],"status_note":"Operated as a museum by the Chesterfield Historical Society since 1997; the turbine is no longer operable.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:13:04.626288-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/63/7953/63795363/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/05000219.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/05000219/85a28a6bb1-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/05000219/85a28a6bb1-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","author":"User:Magicpiano","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:ChesterfieldMA_BisbeeMill.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">User:Magicpiano</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 4.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:ChesterfieldMA_BisbeeMill.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63795363","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bisbee_Mill","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4917205"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/hampshire-county/bisbee-mill-05000219/"}