Welcome back to National Parks and other public lands with T!
The historic Red Mill has become a popular site for photographers to take pictures because of its picturesque location on the Raritan River in Clinton, New Jersey. The Red Mill is four stories and was built around 1810 as an industrial mill.
Built by Ralph Hunt on family land, the Red Mill was initially part of a wool processing plant. Hunt also built the stone building (now an art museum) across the river as part of the plant. By 1820, Hunt’s business had failed due to competition from foreign cloth imports.
Hunt lost his holdings on both sides of the river. The mill and other properties passed through several owners, taking on different roles with each successive owner. It became a peach basket factory, a textile mill, and a grist mill.
None of those businesses worked, with each new owner defaulting on their loans. In the 1840s, the bank split the property into the mill and a quarry. The mill continued to change owners and purpose regularly and ceased operations entirely in 1928.
The quarry was somewhat successful and operated into the 1960s. In 1965, the mill and quarry were converted into a museum.
Over the next decade several outbuildings were moved to the site or reconstructed to create a museum village. After we toured the mill with a docent, we were able to explore the odd assortment of outbuildings on the grounds. There are quarry village buildings, a one room schoolhouse, carriage houses and a log cabin built by volunteers to resemble the childhood home of a local revolutionary war hero.
Location: 56 Main St, Clinton, NJ 08809
Designation: National Register of Historic Places
Date designated or established: 1/8/1974
Date of my visit: 11/12/2016
