Built 1840 (1840) Designated CP November 13, 1976 Area 4,000 m² | NRHP Reference # 73000181 Opened 1840 Added to NRHP 11 April 1973 | |
 | ||
Part of Middlebury Village Historic District (#76000223) People also search for Vermont Folklife Center, Frog Hollow, Middlebury College Snow Bowl | ||
The Frog Hollow Stone Mill, or just the Stone Mill, is a historic industrial building at 3 Mill Street in Middlebury, Vermont. Built in 1840, it is an important local reminder of the town's industrial past, and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973. It presently houses a restaurant.
Description and history
The former Frog Hollow Stone Mill stands on the south bank of Otter Creek, at a point where the normally north-flowing river bends to the west. The mill is located a short way west of downtown Middlebury. The building is four stories in height, and is built out of locally quarried stone laid in irregular courses. It is covered by a gabled roof. The main facade, facing south toward Mill Street, is symmetrical, with recessed loading bay entrances at the center of each level, flanked on each side by sash windows. A loading boom projects above the top level in the gable. The interior of the building, including some of its internal structural elements, reflect alterations due primarily to a history of fires with which it was plagued.
Industrial use of the mill site began early in Middlebury's history, with a grist mill built there in 1789. In 1812, the mill was converted to cotton textile production, and in 1835 the Middlebury Manufacturing Company was founded. The present building was erected in 1840, and underwent a number of ownership changes, fires, and other alterations into the 20th century. It was acquired by the town in the early 1970s, and is now in commercial retail use.