Babcock State Park, West Virginia

This gallery presents pictures I took in October 2014 on a trip to Babcock State Park in West Virginia. The park is located adjacent to the New River Gorge National River, near Beckley, WVA. I took pictures in western Virginia as I drove up and then took pictures of the Glade Creek Grist Mill, which is located in the park. The mill was created in 1976 by combining parts and pieces from three mills which once dotted the state. The basic structure of the mill came from the Stoney Creek Grist Mill which dates back to 1890. It was dismantled and moved piece by piece to Babcock from a spot near Campbelltown in Pocahontas County. After an accidental fire destroyed the Spring Run Grist Mill near Petersburg, Grant County, only the overshot water wheel could be salvaged. Other parts for the mill came from the Onego Grist Mill near Seneca Rocks in Pendleton County. The Glade Creek Grist Mill still operates as a reflection of the more than 500 grist mills that operated in WVA at the turn of the 20th Century.