Enfield Falls Mill and Miller's House
Also known as: Treman House and Mill
Why it's listed
Near the western end of Enfield Glen in Robert H. Treman State Park, a Greek Revival gristmill and a millowner's house recall the vanished hamlet of Enfield Falls. Jared Treman bought the site in 1831 and probably built both structures in the late 1830s; family memory dates the mill to 1839. The mill is two and a half stories, with a water-powered turbine buried behind it and three sets of millstones for buckwheat, wheat and coarser feed grains. Most of its equipment survives. Milling drew other trades to the village, and later the nearby glen's scenery brought tourists. In 1916 R.T. Treman bought the parcel, and in 1920 he donated the surrounding lands to New York State as a park. The mill, which had stopped grinding the year before, was altered for visitor use, while the house became the superintendent's residence. The pair is valued as a rare record of early turbine milling and vernacular Greek Revival design.
Significance in brief: The buildings are small surviving remnants of the industrial hamlet of Enfield Falls and show its growth from a mill community into a tourist destination. Both are vernacular Greek Revival buildings, one residential and one industrial. The nearly fully equipped mill is a rare surviving example of early turbine-powered mill technology.
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 79001637, listed February 25, 1979. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | SW of Ithaca in Robert H. Treman State Park, Ithaca |
|---|---|
| County | Tompkins County |
| Listed | February 25, 1979 |
| Reference number | 79001637 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Architect / builder | Unknown (probably built by Jared Treman in the late 1830s) |
| Architectural style | Vernacular Greek Revival |
| Areas of significance | Industry, Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | The house is used as the park superintendent's residence. The mill ceased operating as a gristmill in 1917 and was altered in 1920 to give park visitors rest and shelter. Its machinery remains largely intact. |
| Acreage | 13 |
| Coordinates | 42.40115, -76.59033 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
National Register listing is honorary for a privately owned home: it does not by itself restrict what an owner may do with their own money, and it does not require public access. Restrictions come from local landmark or historic-district ordinances, which are separate (how they differ).
Owner-occupied houses are not eligible for the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit, which applies to income-producing buildings, but many states offer credits for homeowners. Listing also opens the door to preservation easements and to buying a plaque. Start with what listing means for homeowners, renovating a listed house and selling one.
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 79001637.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q5377302
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.