Click Here To Learn More About J. E. B. Stuart's Birthplace, Laurel Hill

Cockram Mill

Cockram Mill built circa 1885 in Meadows of Dan by Jesse Blackard used the headwaters of the Dan River to power his mill. W. A. Cockram bought the mill in 1921 and saw its heyday in the 1930s. The mill was restored in 1984. The mill was unique in that it used two turbine wheels instead of the usual overshot wheel to grind the grain, saw lumber, wooden boxes and even generated electricity. The Cockram Mill was added to the Virginia Landmark Register on October 16, 1990, and the National Register of Historic Places on December 6, 1990.

The Dan River Queen use to give rides on the Dan River damned up at Cochram's Mill.

Goblintown Grist Mill

    Preserving history is the job of us all. I do not believe it is our government’s sole responsibility to preserve our heritage. It is particularly good to see individuals in Patrick County doing just this. George Cox of Martinsville and his many friends have undertaken to preserve the Turner Store and the Goblintown Grist Mill on the banks of Goblintown Creek in the Elamsville section of the “Free State of Patrick.”

     In May 2004, George Cox showed me around the site talking about the 3000 pound mill stone recently lifted into place, a water course big enough to drive a car down the feed the outside wheel. Mister Cox, like me, spent many pleasant days with the late Ophus Eugene Pilson on history jaunts around the region.

     George’s brother, Jesse J. Cox, Jr., and Richard Edmonds, both deceased, worked on the project. Cox recalled fondly his late brother’s daily trips to the mill to feed the birds living around the structure. The very much alive Ronnie Haynes and Charles Norman continue to do projects within the mill. Ronnie is restoring a bolter a device used for separating chafe from the wheat. His family connections to the mill stretch back three generations. Clearly written on mill apparatus are his father and grandfather’s names.

     Virginia Landmarks Register staff called the application from the Goblintown Grist Mill “the best researched sights” they ever received. Last year the mill was placed on National Register of Historic Places.

    Turner’s Store built in 1902 stands nearby the mill. This historic treasure was not only a general store, but also the Goblintown Post Office. The building includes a fireplace from the Beaver Creek plantation in Henry County. A photo on the wall near the fireplace shows George and Irene Cox on their wedding day in 1948. As they were congratulated that day, we should congratulate and thank them today for preserving a part of Patrick County’s many faceted histories.

    Contact George Cox, 1038 Owens Road, Martinsville VA 24112-2238. 276.638.8959

Web site with writings by Irene Cox’s first cousin Jack Williamson.

The Goblintown Grist Mill was added to the Virginia Landmark Register and the National Register of Historic Places in 2004.

Click Here To Learn More About the Goblintown Grist Mill

The Rock Spring Plantation, Reynolds Homestead

The Reynolds Homestead was added to the Virginia Landmarks Register on November 30, 1970, and became a National Historic Landmark on December 22, 1977.

Click Here to Learn More About The Reynolds Homestead