In 1830, Joseph Forsyth partnered with Ezekiel and Andrew Simpson to construct the first sawmill at Arcadia. The dammed up water passed through the sluiceway to the waterwheel and powered the open-air mill.

The absence of walls allowed wind to pass through and carry the sawdust out of the mill. All of the moving machine parts were housed on the bottom floor, which freed up floor space for laborers to maneuver around the moving saw blades on the second floor. By 1835, the sawmill was producing 250,000 feet of processed lumber every year. Soon, the site expanded to include a second sawmill for planing and lathing wood.

Forsyth and the Simpsons soon advertised their mill could “furnish bills of Lumber entire for building, including frame, planed lumber for finishing and shingles for a roof." Today, the outer frame of Arcadia’s first sawmill can be seen along the northern bank of Pond Creek.

Credits and Sources:

Information courtesy of UWF Historic Trust