Bridgeton

History

Around 1823 a sawmill was built on the banks of Big Raccoon creek south of the Ten O'Clock Line by two men, Joseph Lockwood and Issac J. Sillman, for Joseph O'Niel and James Wasson. A buhrstone was added later to grind corn and wheat. Daniel Kalley and a James Searing would later buy the mill in 1837 from James and Mary Wasson for $1,600. Within a few several years a distillery was built but around 1845 the mill and distillery burned down. Here the story of the mill at Bridgeton splits between two different resources. One is from the Indiana Historical Society and the other is the paperwork submitted to the National Park Services for Bridgeton's application as an Historic District. The NPR version states that by 1848 the Owsley brothers and William Bean would replace the mill with a hewn log building to fill the need of a local mill. That same year a hewn log bridge was built to span the Big Raccoon Creek giving farmers to the north of town easier access to the mill. The Indiana Historical Society states that the fall after the mill was destroyed by fire that the townspeople staged a "frolic" to build a new log mill. Searing then sold the mill for $2,000 to James Mullikin and Dr. Henry T. Ketchem. Ketchum soon sold his share back to Searing and in 1851 Mullikin acquired complete ownership of the mill. Mullikin then, sometime before January 1859, tore down the mill and built a new one as well as a general store. Stones were installed for grinding corn as well as stones for wheat. In January 1859 William Beal purchased the mill and surrounding land but sold it to William Blaize in December 1860 for $8,000. In 1862 Ralph Sprauge would acquire the mill. The village applied for a post office in 1849 and the name was changed to Bridgeton. The original plat was recorded…

Most-observed species

• Tufted Titmouse

  Baeolophus bicolor (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  2,417
• Northern Cardinal

  Cardinalis cardinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  2,319
• Carolina Chickadee

  Poecile carolinensis (Audubon, 1834) · Aves
  2,063
• White-breasted Nuthatch

  Sitta carolinensis Latham, 1790 · Aves
  1,931
• Red-bellied Woodpecker

  Melanerpes carolinus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  1,904
• American Crow

  Corvus brachyrhynchos C.L.Brehm, 1822 · Aves
  1,856
• Downy Woodpecker

  Dryobates pubescens (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  1,805
• American Goldfinch

  Spinus tristis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  1,509