STEWARDS MILL
by Michael Edd Bonner
reprinted with permission
The following are extracts from Mr. Bonner’s article published in the “History of Freestone County Texas”, First Edition 1978, published by the Freestone County Historical Commission, pp. 150-152 {Notes in ellipses are mine.}
Stewards Mill is a small community about ten miles north of Fairfield, Freestone County, Texas. At one time it was one of the most important communities in the state because it supplied an essential service to early day “Texians”….
The date of the earliest settlement in the area known as Stewards Mill is uncertain. It is primarily situated in the H. Awalt and J. James surveys, one of which dates from December 22, 1826. There was most certainly a settlement in the area prior to when Washington Steward, a native of Abbeville, South Carolina, migrated to Texas.
Washington Steward was a miller; his profession was to grind corn into meal or wheat into flour. The site he selected for his grist mill was on a small stream. This site is near the present Stewards Mill Store in Freestone County. Washington Steward selected the site on the spring branch for several reasons; he had come through the backland to the north but decided to settle where he found an abundance of wood and water. The untamed character of the area may be seen in the following account by his granddaughter, Mrs. John (Anna Wells) Watson: “My mother (Nancy Victoria Steward Wells) {Note, daughter of Washington Steward. Born in 1845, she would have been 7-8 when they came to Texas in 1852. lcw} was just a girl when they came to Texas. When the Indians they met saw her long, blonde hair, they tried to buy her. After that, she was told to keep her hair covered all the time for fear the Indians would steal her”.
Although the first building at Stewards Mill was Washington Steward’s home, about this time other settlers arrived in the vicinity….{Note, according to descendent Jerry Richards, who lives on land originally owned by Washington, he first built a log cabin across from the store. Three logs from that cabin remain on the property. Later on, Washington built a finer home on a hill behind the store. This story was told to me by Jerry Richards, Sep 2002 lcw}
The first business establishment in the community was the mill, owned and operated by Washington Steward. At that time, it was reputed to be the only grist mill between Dallas and Houston. Both flour and corn meal were ground there, and people came from great distances to obtain this service. At first, the mill was powered by water pouring over its large paddle wheels. Later, steam provided the energy to turn the grinding stones.
Miss Mattie Lake, a Stewards Mill native, recalled the following common sight as seen from Washington Steward’s home on the hill in back of the mill. “We watched Negro and white, boys and men, ride up on, usually, mules. A large sack bulged with corn. The corn was returned to them by a man, covered white with meal, and placed into position on the mule. The meal was taken home to provide the ‘staff of life’ for the family”.
This mill operated for many years until it was burned by “Yankees” during the Civil War. Most likely these so called Yankees were raiders or outlaws. The mill was rebuilt as soon as possible. At the death of Washington Steward, his son, Jeremiah T. Steward, operated the mill. Washington Worth Steward, Sr., Jeremiah T. Steward’s son, ran the mill for several years…..
NOTE: The mill in the border is NOT a picture of Stewards Mill. It is of a mill built around the same era in Pennsylvania. If anyone has a picture of the mill, I would love to have a copy. :-)
