2004

A plaque was placed at the site of the old Hemminger Grist Mill.  All that remains is the stack.  The site is located along Route 982 near the Fire Station. 

JOSEPH KITHCART built a saw and grist mill on this site about 1790.  He had the first mill here.  The gristmill was a log structure.  The present mill (where the stack is) and the house that sits directly across Route 982 was built by JOSEPH ANDREWS about 1853.  The mill had both water and steam motors.  You can still see the long mill race leading to the where the stack is.  ANDREWS was succeeded by EMANUEL MASON, then by ISAIAH COUGHENOUR, then by C. A. EBERSOLE, and in October 1880 the mill was owned by JAMES ALEXANDER LONG.  He sold it to ELIAS HEMMINGER of Somerset County on March 31, 1882.  In the early 1900's Hemminger sold the mill to JOSEPH SPAUGY.  It was then known as the "Spaugy Mill" and up until the 1980's the road was called "Spaugy Mill Road".  It is now known as Keefer Road.  The mill closed in the 1930's after Mr. Spaugy passed away in 1931.  In a 1937 ad in the "Connellsville Courier" it lists the Spaugy Farm / Mill for sale as being, "Spaugy's along the main road between the Country Club and Mount Vernon Park.  87 acres, 8 room brick house, Barn, Store. $3,500.  What a deal!  Also at this mill SOLOMAN E. SWINK opened a General Store in January 1881.  It is the big building on the same side of road that the brick house sits, but across from it.  Also, about 1820 JOHN STONECKER made pottery there which carried on until about 1832.

2015

In December of 2015 a new plaque was placed on the old mill stack honoring ALL of the people who once owned and operated the mill.