On this race near to but east of his house, he added a large corn mill which faced the Reading Road or Turnpike. The miller’s house is still standing across from Pottsgrove Manor. This maize mill would become known as Potts’s Upper Mill. Grain was brought by wagon on the turnpike which passed its front door. At the same time, near the river, where the race entered it, Potts initially built a refinery forge, which he called Pottsgrove Forge. This forge refined the pig iron made at Potts’s Warwick Furnace in Chester County into wrought iron, which was sold to local blacksmiths. The water power provided by the dam and race turned the water wheels to grind the grain at the upper DY-FTA30T mill and blow the bellows to heat the pig iron at the forge and to work the trip hammer to remove impurities. Although they also ground corn and wheat for local farmers like the smaller gristmills in the area did, most of the un-milled grain they used was purchased outright. Read more...