An additional virtue of the tub mill is that it doesn't require a dam or
"fall." It can be constructed by merely seating the horizontal wheel in the
path of a stream current.
Tom
----- Original Message -----
From: "Wilson, Donald L" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Saturday, July 07, 2001 10:20 AM
Subject: Re: tub mill
Barbara - The Oxford English Dictionary includes the following among the
definitions for "tub": [2nd ed., v. 18, p. 639] tub-wheel ... (b) a
horizontal water-wheel with spiral floats; = DANAIDE. Citation: 1858
Simmonds Dict. Trade, Tub-wheel, a peculiar kind of wheel to a water-mill.
From this I would guess that a tub mill could be a grist mill with a
tub-wheel. From a Google search on the internet I find reference to a Tub
Mill (painting) in Great Smokey Mountains National Park. There is also a
Tub Mill Run in Somerset County, Pa. Apparently there is also a mill at Old
Sturbridge Village in Massachusetts with a tub wheel. The village is
reconstructed to ca. 1810. See http://www.osv.org/ for a animated diagram
and description of the tub wheel. (Search for "tub mill" there, click on
choices then find (Ctrl+F) "tub") Here is part of the text:
The tub wheel in its simplest form is just a small undershot wheel mounted
horizontally on a vertical axle. This configuration was developed in the
early middle ages and was called a Norse wheel. Turned by the impact of a
stream of falling water striking its paddles, its efficiency was increased
somewhat by building a bottomless wooden tub around it. This tub harnessed
more of the potential energy of the water before the water fell below the
wheel.
The tub wheel is easy to build and maintain, and is fairly dependable. While
it is not very efficient and does not generate a great deal of power, its
relatively small diameter (usually less than six feet) allows it to operate
at moderately high speeds, often eliminating the need for gearing. Sometimes
it could be directly connected to the machinery it was to run. Small
neighborhood mills often made use of tub wheels in the 18th and 19th
centuries.
Hope these clues help you.
Don Wilson
Donald L. Wilson, Virginiana Librarian
Ruth E. Lloyd Information Center for Genealogy and Local History (RELIC)
Prince William Public Library System
Bull Run Regional Library, 8051 Ashton Avenue
Manassas, VA 20109-2892
(703) 792-4540
www.pwcgov.org/library/relic
-----Original Message-----
From: Barbara Vines Little [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
Sent: Thursday, July 05, 2001 10:22 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: tub mill
Does anyone where I can find a description of a tub mill ca 1815?
Barbara Vines Little, CG
PO Box 1273
Orange, VA 22960
phone/fax 540-832-3473 (evenings)
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