{"nrhp_refnum":"09000709","name":"Slade Spice Mill","other_names":[],"category":"structure","location":{"address":"770 Revere Beach Parkway","address_restricted":false,"city":"Revere","county":"Suffolk County","state":"MA","lat":42.40522396100005,"lon":-71.01283502199993,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1972-06-30","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture","Commerce","Engineering","Industry","Military"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A tide-powered spice mill on Mill Creek, a tributary of the Chelsea River, at 770 Revere Beach Parkway in Revere, Massachusetts. A mill has stood on the site since about 1734, and the present three-story frame building dates from the rebuilding after the fires of 1901 and 1902.","why_significant":"The nomination calls it one of only two remaining tide-powered mills in Massachusetts and the home of the oldest producing spice company in the United States. It also has engineering value for its early horizontal turbine water wheels driven by tidal action. Its dam is credited with a minor military role in a 1775 naval engagement.","narrative":"Spices are still ground and mixed at this three-story frame mill on Mill Creek in Revere, a site first used for grinding corn about 1734. The present building replaced earlier mills that burned in 1885, 1901 and 1902, and some charred timbers appear to have been reused. Tidal water filled a mill pond behind a dam, then turned four horizontal wheels in the cellar that drove the millstones for about six or seven hours out of every twelve. The D. & L. Slade Spice Company began work here in 1827 under Henry Slade, and his sons later built the business around cinnamon and other spices. Tide power continued, combined with electricity, until about 1930, unusually late for this type of mill. It is described as one of two surviving tide-powered mills in Massachusetts. Remnants include cast iron gears, a wheel casing visible at low tide, and floors darkened by nutmeg oil. The dam also kept British warships from advancing up the creek in 1775.","period_of_significance":"18th, 19th and 20th centuries; specific dates 1734, 1823, 1827, 1902","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"Building described as in excellent condition and still used to grind and mix spices; the dam is deteriorating and no longer used for power.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:11:53.472034-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/50/7970/63797050/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/09000709.pdf"},"photo":null,"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63797050","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slade_Spice_Mill","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q28311522"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/suffolk-county/slade-spice-mill-09000709/"}