{"nrhp_refnum":"76001207","name":"Aurora Steam Grist Mill","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"Main St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Aurora","county":"Cayuga County","state":"NY","lat":42.75423197200007,"lon":-76.70383914499996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1976-07-30","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Industry","Commerce","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A three-and-one-half-story rectangular stone mill on the shore of Cayuga Lake on Main Street in Aurora, Cayuga County, New York, built in 1817 for Roswell Tousley, with Junia Curtis as builder/architect.","why_significant":"The mill is considered a typical example of early mill architecture in upstate New York and is believed to be one of the first steam-powered mills west of the Hudson River. It worked briefly as a mill before Tousley's finances collapsed. It later served as a grain warehouse and shipping point for merchant Edwin B. Morgan, who became a prominent businessman and philanthropist.","narrative":"Built in 1817 on the shore of Cayuga Lake, this three-and-one-half-story stone mill was commissioned by Roswell Tousley, a blacksmith and inventor who settled in Aurora in 1806. Junia Curtis is credited with building it and designing its steam engine. The mill is believed to be among the first steam-powered mills west of the Hudson River, and local residents viewed it with skepticism. Tousley could not pay the construction and machinery costs, and the engine was removed in 1819. By 1832 the building belonged to the Morgan family. Edwin B. Morgan had the lake dredged so canal boats and steamers could dock beside it, and used it to store grain bound for New York City. Morgan later became first president of Wells Fargo, co-founder of American Express, and a supporter of Wells College. The building survived an 1838 storm that destroyed other lakefront structures. Wells College bought it in 1944, and it has stood unused since then. Its roof partially collapsed in 1974, but the walls remain sound.","period_of_significance":"1800-1899","architect_builder":"Junia Curtis","architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"Unoccupied and unused since Wells College bought it in 1944; the roof partially collapsed in 1974, though the walls were described as sound and restoration plans were underway.","vacant_flag":true,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:50:39.789656-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NY/76001207.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/76001207/95a6ada59d-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/76001207/95a6ada59d-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","author":"Doug Kerr from Albany, NY, United States","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Aurora_Steam_Grist_Mill_May_09.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Doug Kerr from Albany, NY, United States</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 2.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Aurora_Steam_Grist_Mill_May_09.jpg"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"80002595","name":"Aurora Village-Wells College Historic District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/new-york/aurora-village-wells-college-historic-district-80002595/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75316685","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aurora_Steam_Grist_Mill","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4822610"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/new-york/cayuga-county/aurora-steam-grist-mill-76001207/"}