Cocke's Mill House and Mill Site
Also known as: Coles' Mill; Johnston's Mill
Why it's listed
Beside the Hardware River in southern Albemarle County, a small stone miller's house and the ruins of a gristmill mark a once-busy flour-making site. The mill was built around 1792 for James Powell Cocke to serve his Edgemont plantation. It was a three-story frame merchant mill on a stone foundation measuring fifty-one by forty feet. The miller's house followed after 1820. It is a three-bay fieldstone cottage on a high basement, with original Federal woodwork, a boxed winder stair and cedar shakes beneath later slate. The mill closed in the 1930s and probably burned in the 1940s, but its foundations, millrace and cut stone arches remain. The house was renovated in 1988-1989, when a Victorian wing was replaced with a new frame addition. The site was listed because few mill complexes survive in a county that once had more than sixty mills, and because stone miller's houses are rare there. Only one other stone miller's house is known to stand in the county.
Significance in brief: The complex is a rare partially surviving mill site and a reminder of flour milling, once the county's most important industry. The house is one of only a handful of original miller's residences in Albemarle County and one of only two built of stone. It is also a well-preserved early nineteenth century stone residence in an area where nearly all houses were brick or frame.
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 90001828, listed December 6, 1990. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | VA 712 N of jct. with VA 719, North Garden |
|---|---|
| County | Albemarle County |
| Listed | December 6, 1990 |
| Reference number | 90001828 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | ca.1820s-1930s |
| Architectural style | Colonial |
| Areas of significance | Industry, Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | The miller's house is in good condition and used as a single dwelling, renovated in 1988-1989 with a new frame wing. The mill burned, probably in the 1940s, leaving stone foundations, millrace and arches in good condition. |
| Acreage | 13 |
| Within district | Southern Albemarle Rural Historic District |
| Coordinates | 37.90742, -78.61581 (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 90001828.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q14712195
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.