BOILING SPRINGS, Pa. (WHTM) -- The call came in to Cumberland County Dispatch on Jan. 29, at around 11 p.m. The Boiling Springs Mill Apartments, one of the most prominent landmarks in the town, was on fire.
The fire was put out, but not before the 238 year old structure was severely damaged. People are wondering about its future, and also want to learn more about its past. It might be of some comfort to know the building has survived fire before.
The early years of the Boiling Spring Mill intertwine with the Carlisle Iron Works, which was founded around 1762 by by John Rigble and Company. The colonies at the time were ruled by Great Britain, which viewed them as source of raw materials for British businesses. The Iron Act of 1750 encouraged Americans to make pig iron and iron bars for export to England, but prohibited them from making their own finished goods. This "buy from you cheap, sell to you high" policy extended to a lot of products beside iron, and was one of the seeds from which sprouted the American Revolution. But it did encourage the establishment of a lot of iron works, including the one at Boiling Springs.
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Boiling Spring Mill, c. 1880. Copied from a stereoview card that belonged to Albert Ege Craig. John N. Choate. This is one of the earliest known photograph of the mill. Photo ID # 37A-06-05 Courtesy Cumberland County Historical Society, Carlisle, PA. -
Boiling Springs Mill when operated by Simon P. Bagastow, c. 1900. He rented the mill from Jared Bucher who purchased the iron works in 1886. The 1897 date on the hoist likely denotes the year that major renovations were made to the upper floors after a major fire in 1896. Photo ID # 37A-06-10, courtesy Cumberland County Historical Society, Carlisle, PA. -
Rowboats on the Lake at Boiling Springs Park, c1909 Photo ID # 37A-10-24 Courtesy Cumberland County Historical Society, Carlisle, PA. -
Lake at Boiling Springs with the Old Mill Apartments, January 16, 1972. Jim Bradley. Photo ID # B2-C07-05-08 Courtesy Cumberland County Historical Society, Carlisle, PA. -
A view of Children's Lake with the mill in the background. -
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Around 1781, ownership of the iron works passed to Michael Ege, a well-known-and increasingly wealthy- ironmaster. (By the time he died in 1815 he owned not only the Carlisle Ironworks, but the Mount Holly Ironworks, the Cumberland Furnace at Huntsdale, and the Pine Grove Furnace.) The Carlisle Ironworks stayed in business until the 1890s.
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Around 1784, Ege had the grist mill built to produce food for his workers. At that time it was two stories tall, constructed of stone with walls three feet thick. It would serve as a mill well into the 20th Century.
In 1863 the Civil War came to Boiling Springs. The Confederate Army of Northern Virginia invaded Pennsylvania, in what came to be known as the Gettysburg Campaign. Confederate troops fanned out across the countryside, looking for supplies to "requisition." At Boiling Springs they hit the jackpot. The mill, owned at the time by a man named Cary Ahls, held 250 bushels of wheat, 600 bushels of corn and 30 barrels of flour. The Confederates took the lot.
In the mid 1870s the mill got a makeover, having a third and fourth floor added to the original stone structure. In 1886 Jared C. Bucher bought the mill at a sheriff’s sale. It would remain in the Bucher family until 1971.
In 1896 a fire ripped through the structure. Damage was severe, but the mill was repaired, and stayed relatively unchanged into the 21st century.
In the 1930s the Bucher family converted the building into apartments. Ten residents were in the building on January 29th when fire broke out. They were all evacuated safely, but for now the building is unusable. The two upper floors are severely damaged, but the original stone structure seems to be intact. We will have to wait to see if the current owners rebuild, and how much they'll rebuild.
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