Barretts Mills
Why it's listed
Barretts Mills is a former milling village on Rocky Fork Creek southeast of Rainsboro, Ohio, next to a Long Truss covered bridge. The surviving buildings include a tall, gambrel-roofed frame gristmill dating to 1862, a frame sawmill moved about 100 feet from its original position, a largely intact woolen mill, and the large frame house built by Captain David M. Barrett after the Civil War. Barrett, a state representative and longtime superintendent of the Boys' Industrial School, led the construction of the new mills near the site of the oldest mills in Highland County, where Jesse Baldwin had built a gristmill in 1805 and 1806. The gristmill began with a wooden water wheel and buhrstones and was later converted to a turbine-powered roller mill able to grind 24 barrels of flour a day. It operated until 1957 and has since been restored. The woolen mill produced cloth until 1896. The complex illustrates a once-prominent Ohio industry.
Significance in brief: The nomination presents the gristmill as an example of how Ohio's milling industry evolved during the 19th century, from a water-wheel mill with buhrstones to a turbine-powered roller mill. The site is also tied to the oldest mills in Highland County and to Captain David M. Barrett, a prominent local citizen. The complex once included carding, fulling and woolen mills as well.
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 72001024, listed December 26, 1972. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | CR 1A and Rocky Fork Creek, Rainsboro |
|---|---|
| County | Highland County |
| Listed | December 26, 1972 |
| Reference number | 72001024 |
| Resource type | District |
| Period of significance | 1862 and later (19th century) |
| Architect / builder | Captain David M. Barrett (builder of the mills and house); earlier gristmill built by Jesse Baldwin, 1805-1806 |
| Areas of significance | Commerce, Invention |
| Level of significance | State |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Gristmill closed in 1957 and has been restored to working order with turbine power; sawmill lacks its machinery and needs repairs; woolen mill is intact but unrepaired and its machinery is gone; Barrett house is in good repair. Plans call for restoring the mill buildings for public opening. |
| Acreage | 9.5 |
| Coordinates | 39.20207, -83.38711 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
This is a historic district. Buildings within its boundary are either contributing (they add to the district's significance) or non-contributing. Owners of contributing income-producing buildings can claim the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit; homeowners should look at state credits. National Register districts impose no design review by themselves; a local historic district ordinance, if one exists, does (the difference explained).
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 72001024.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.