Haviland-Davison Grist Mill
Why it's listed
Grist Mill in East Rockaway, New York, dates to about 1689, soon after the Town of Hempstead granted Joseph Haviland permission in 1688 to build a mill on the Rockaway swamp stream. Power came from the tides. The building has a T-shaped plan made up of the original core and three later additions. The original section keeps a hand-hewn six-post frame with incised Roman numeral marks, large girts and joists, and cross bracing near the former millstone bay. A sawn-timber extension followed in the early to mid nineteenth century, then a north wing and a turn-of-the-century wing, the latter rebuilt after a 1990 fire. The Davison family owned the mill from 1818 and later moved it to a lumber yard as a storage shed. Threatened by development in 1962, it was bought by the village, moved to Memorial Park in 1963, restored, and opened as a museum in 1964. Its significance rests on its early timber framing and its record of changing use.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the mill is significant under Criterion C for architecture. Its original section keeps a massive hand-hewn six-post timber frame typical of First Period (pre-1720) construction on Long Island. Later additions show how the mill changed in use over time. It is also tied to local commerce, having been one of the region's earliest mills.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 98000352, listed April 21, 1998. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | Jct. of Wood and Denton Aves., East Rockaway |
|---|---|
| County | Nassau County |
| Listed | April 21, 1998 |
| Reference number | 98000352 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | c. 1689 - c. 1900 |
| Architect / builder | unknown |
| Architectural style | Colonial: Post-medieval English |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Operated as the Grist Mill Museum since 1964 in a municipal park; the 1990 fire-damaged Section D was reconstructed. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 40.64647, -73.66322 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
For an income-producing building, listing (individually or as a contributing building in a district) is the gateway to the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit on qualified rehabilitation costs, often stackable with state credits. Work claiming the credit must follow the Secretary of the Interior's Standards and be approved in advance.
Listing does not restrict a private owner acting without federal money or permits; where federal funding or licensing is involved, Section 106 review applies.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 98000352.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q5683931
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.