Lassiter Mill Site

Last week, I took some pictures at the old Lassiter Mill Site which is on my city's greenway route. The parks and greenways for the most part are along lakes, and streams that cut through the city and subdivisions. It's nice because you can walk on wooded paths and in some cases the trees shield the houses from view. I hadn't intended to write about Lassiter Mill, other than a brief mention in my blog, but when I started googling for a brief blurb to accompany the pictures, I found almost no information. One of the few extended discussions about the falls involved guess work which was partially incorrect.
There were much better pictures than I took on one site but no discussion of the history of Lassiter Mill. There was a brief, accurate mention of the history but it took one line from distant history and put it together with recent history which I suspect is why another site had some inconsistencies. The most information was contained on a site with NC waterfalls and that site even asked if anyone knew any more about the Lassiter Mill falls. The problem is none of the tid bits added up to the facts. I didn't see a place to add the information I had on that site. Therefore, in the interest of putting the whole story on the Lassiter Mill (Raleigh, NC, USA) out into the vast internet repository of information, I blew up my photo of the plaque above so I could type up the information. Now when someone is searching to find out more about this site, they will possibly arrive here. I wish the City of Raleigh's site had a write up because mine may have typos but at least I'm putting it out there for the curious. Also, since I am including the plaque photo, that can be clicked on too.
Without further fuss, I give you the Lassiter Mill Site write-up as transcribed by me hurriedly from the plaque: Fifty yards north on the banks of Crabtree Creek, stands the stone foundation of Lassiter Mill. The site originally known as the Great Falls of Crabtree is one of the oldest mill sites in Wake County. The first mill to be constructed here was by John Giles Thomas before 1764. Isaac Hunter was among numerous owners of the site, where successive mills were destroyed by fire, one in 1804 and another in the late 19th century.In 1908 Cornelius Jesse Lassiter purchased the land and built a grist mill. Using two forty horse turbine wheels to generate power, Lassiter ground wheat and corn, and later ran a lumber mill and a cotton gin. The site also became a popular retreat, as a picnic and swimming area for the residents of Raleigh. The Lassiter Mill remained in operation for 50 years until it burned in 1958. The Mill stone you are standing on was one of several used in operations of the mill. Located to the left of this monument stood the Lassiter Mill bridge. The bridge a 110 foot long, 15 foot wide, by 20 foot tall steel truss bridge, replaced an earlier wooden bridge. Originally spanning the Neuse River north of Raleigh the bridge was relocated to the Mill site in 1920. Condemned and demolished in 1984, it is thought to have been the last remaining steel truss bridge in Wake County.

A piece of the bridge is located to your right. Today the Lassiter Mill site is a part of the Capital Greenway system. Note - the piece of the bridge that the plaque refers to is the fourth photograph from the top of this post. All of the photographs in this post were taken last week at the Lassiter Mill Site. This was another of my photo journeys following a medical related appointment. I was on my way home from standard follow up on blood work at my rheumatologist's and it wasn't really an appointment other than with the needle to take a little blood.

When I was looking through my photographs at the Lassiter Mill site it occurred to me that the one above would have been a good one for the Blog Action Day on the environment. It says that high levels of PCBs have been found in carp, bass, and catfish from the waters here and therefore limit consumption to once a month. I don't know about you but I'm limiting my consumption to zero from those waters. However, I realize that doesn't protect me from fish I eat which is likely caught in waters that are just as polluted. If the packages of fish in the grocery store start to contain a warning like that, I'll stop eating them. Not logical at one level to wait on the grocery store label.