West Point Mill, Durham

A water-powered corn mill in United States.

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West Point Mill, Durham was built in 1778 by Abercrombie and Thetford. In 1786 it was sold to a Quaker named William Ansley who grew the mill lands to absorb the Sennett tract upstream (Sennett's Mill was the first mill built on the Eno). He later sold it to George Carrington in 1798. Under Carrington's ownership, the mill lands peaked at 1,000 acres. Herbert Sims acquired West Point Mill from Carrington in 1815. Under his ownership, the mill entered into its most prosperous era. Along with the grist mill was a sawmill, black smith's shop, oil mill, cotton gin, and a still. In 1839 a post office was established at West Point Mill. When Herbert Sims died in 1843, his second wife, Rachel Cabe McCown, and step-son, John Cabe McCown, took over mill operations. During the American Civil War, John Cabe McCown split ownership of the mill with William Lipscomb, who later becomes a mayor of Durham. Lipscomb buys the mill in full from McCown in 1875. W.J. Christian becomes the miller after Lipscomb in 1888. In 1909 Southern Pure Foods Co. buys the mill. In 1914 Hopkins buys the mill and eventually sells it in 1935 to the Southern Realty and Agency. In 1942 the mill ceased operations due to a devastating freshet that took out the dam. From this point forward the mill went into a state of disrepair until the Eno River Association and Friends of West Point led a 10 year struggle to save West Point from development. The City of Durham acquired the land in the early 1970s and started renovations on the mill in 1973 with help from professionals. The mill was open to the public once more in 1978.

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References

• Anderson, Jean Bradley, Durham County: A history of Durham County, North Carolina (Duke University Press, 1990)

Contributors

Kirsten Weaver, 2025.

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