William
joined the enterprise in 1954, and his son Billy got involved
when he was about 13 years old. At one time,
water-powered mills where a farmer could haul in his grain to be
stone ground were fairly common along the creek, but Linney’s is
the only one left.
The building
never was very fancy, and it shows its age. An assortment of
pieces of corrugated metal, brick-patterned asphalt siding and
composition board cover the exterior walls.
Inside, the wood floors
have been worn smooth by years of walking and sweeping. The
stones that grind the grain are encased in a metal cabinet, and
a hopper above feeds the corn into the grinder.
In the main storeroom, a
counter with drawers, an old chair on casters and a wall covered
with notes, pictures and newspaper clips functions as both
office and sales center.
Simple white shelves along
the back wall hold the mill’s products, self-rising and plain
stone ground cornmeal, white and yellow grits, fish breading and
ready-to-use pancake mix. A few other items, including honey and
buckwheat flour from other regional operations, fill the rest of
the space.
Pictures
provided by
Photography by Lonnie Webster |
Linney's Mill
