Owner: Jacob Vandever, Thomas Lea
Industry type: Flour mill, Saw mill
Location: Augustine site
Active dates: c. 1682-1770
Summary: In 1682, William Penn's deputy, William Markham, gave Jacob Vandever permission to build a grist mill on the Brandywine in exchange for a half-bushel of wheat annually. The mill, which became known as the "old high roof mill," was built on the north side of the Brandywine near plots of land later owned by Benjamin Ferris and Isaac Jones. It is unknown what happened to Jacob Vandever's operation, but it is believed that Thomas Lea later built a mill on this site, possibly in 1757.
Various people held stock in Lea's mill and an adjoining saw mill built in 1770, including Israel Gilpin, George Evans, William Chaney, Jacob Broom, Vandever's descendants, and someone named Welsh or Landers.
Citations: Zebley, Frank R. Along the Brandywine. Wilmington: William Cann, Inc., 1940.