The Wilmington Inn Blog: May Blog: History of Lake Whitingham & Mountain Mills

Part 3 of 5: History of Lake Whitingham & Mountain Mills

Greetings!

The official start to summer is almost here! As Vermont begins to slowly open, we hope everyone is doing well and staying safe. We have continued to make a lot of great refreshes as well as focus on a few changes working towards everyone’s health and safety at the Inn. We continue to wait to hear more direction on out of state visitor quarantine requirements, but hope to be open to all in late June!

In the meantime, feel free to check in with us! Say hi, visit our social media platforms to see what we have been up to, or give us a call to book that future reservation! We love what we do so much but do count on all of you for on continued success, we thank you so much for your support thus far and in the future.

Please also see the bottom of the newsletter with a great way to support the Inn and local business!!

See you all soon,

Megan and Charlie

Part 3 of 5: History of Lake Whitingham & Mountain Mills

Lake Whitingham

Before Harriman Reservoir flooded 2,200 acres of surrounding farms and woodland, the meandering, uninterrupted Deerfield River wound its sinuous way through this fertile valley. The river's power was harnessed in the late 19th century by the creation of Mountain Mills Pond as a holding area for logs floated down from Somerset Reservoir. This is where the town of Mountain Mills was founded in the early 1900's.

In 1923, Lake Harriman was created by the New England Power Company as part of its hydroelectric system. Fifteen hundred men labored for one year to provide hydroelectric power for the Northeast, including workers from surrounding towns, Nova Scotia, Maine, Prince Edward Island, as well as many Austrian Italians, Canadians, and some Native Americans from Maine. The Harriman Dam at the south end of the lake is named for Henry I. Harriman, engineer for the New England Power Company. The maximum depth of the reservoir is 185 feet.

In the early 1900s, the New England Power Company began intensive hydroelectric development of the Deerfield River along its entire length in Vermont and Massachusetts. A massive earthen dam was constructed in 1912-13 to create the Somerset Reservoir. Somerset Reservoir is the largest wild body of water in the state of Vermont. For many years it has been a special destination for canoeists, kayakers, and fishermen who seek a quiet, wild place to be on the water. Currently, there is no waterskiing or jet skiing allowed on Somerset Reservoir, and a 10 mph speed limit is in place.

Occasionally glimpsed by travelers on the Molly Stark Byway is a black tube that looks like a giant caterpillar crawling through the woods along the Deerfield River. This wood-staved pipeline conducts water from the Somerset Reservoir to the Searsburg Power Station, a small brick hydroelectric station (built in 1921) on the south bank of the Deerfield River near the Searsburg-Wilmington town line. Frequent travelers along the Molly Stark Byway will notice the seasonal drawdown of Harriman Reservoir in which the water line drops many feet and much of its coastline is revealed. This annual drawdown is now regulated to ensure the ecological health of local fisheries.

(excerpts from mollystarkbyway.org)

Mountain Mills

Mountain Mills was established in the 1900's as logging town located north of the Town of Somerset. The town of Somerset served as a logging beachhead into the southern Green Mountains. Old-growth spruce logs were driven down the Deerfield River, where they would end up in the sawmills of Mountain Mills.

By 1906, the lumber companies of the region recognized the need for better transportation facilities, to accommodate the increased demand. A network of 41 miles of track was devised to reach over 300 million feet of trees for logging.

Driven by the logging industry, the town of Mountain Mills was flourishing. The Deerfield River wound lazily through the valley, feeding its fertile crops. In the late 19th century, the town harnessed the river’s power with the creation of Mountain Mills Pond, a holding spot for logs coming down from the Somerset Reservoir.

By 1912, the Mountain Mills settlement included a railroad station, a store, post office, a six-bed hospital, brick office building, boarding house, row housing and water tower. In 1923, New England Power began developing hydroelectric power along the river. The Dam was built in a little over a year & the town of Mountain Mills was flooded. Three cemeteries were relocated and 14 miles of highways were discontinued. When the waters began to fill the lake, some residents of Mountain Mills had to hastily gather their belongings as the waters rose to their doorways to engulf their former homes and village. The submerged foundations of the mill and other buildings can occasionally be seen when boating.

(excerpts from an article in Sentinel Source)

Last chance to get a free T-Shirt with purchase of Wilmington Inn gift certificate

Purchase a gift certificate* to the inn & you will receive a free T-Shirt to support Wilmington!

Please also know that shirts are being printed by a local woman owned business right here in Wilmington, so you support TWO small businesses with this purchase!

* min purchase of $100 to receive shirt- shipping included

Click here to purchase!

Stay Smiling!