Draft:Old Masters Mill

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Old Masters’ Mill (also Masters’ Mill) is a historic grist mill in the unincorporated community of Loafers Glory, Mitchell County, North Carolina, United States. The mill stands on Cane Creek near the confluence with the North Toe River and has served the community variously as a grist mill and, in the early 20th century, as a small hydroelectric generating site. In the late 20th and early 21st centuries, the building was adapted for residential and short-term lodging use.[1][2]

Location and setting

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Loafers Glory lies at the intersection of North Carolina Highways 226 and 226A along the North Toe River. Mitchell County Historical Society describes the community as “close by” the distinctive Old Masters’ Mill and notes its position near the Cane Creek–Toe River confluence.[1]

Name and community role

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Local tradition holds that the name “Loafers Glory” dates to the late 19th century, when men waiting to have their corn ground would linger and socialize at the store and mill; the phrase was reportedly popularized by Jonathan Burleson around 1890.[3][4]

History

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Early 20th century milling and power

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By the 1920s, Masters’ Mill—operated by Bill Masters—housed an electric dynamo powered by the mill’s water wheel. Under the name Bakersville Milling, Light and Power Company, the operation supplied limited electric service to nearby Bakersville and Toecane during off-milling hours (typically evenings and nights), with early customers paying approximately US$1 per month.[5]

Fire and relocation

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According to county historical accounts, the original three-story mill burned in 1933. Masters subsequently rebuilt the facility on the opposite side of Cane Creek (its present location).[6]

Late 20th century to present

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With the decline of small rural milling, industrial operations ceased. The structure was later converted for residential use and eventually adapted as short-term lodging, retaining much of its historic industrial character while serving as a heritage attraction for visitors to the area.[2]

Disuse, disrepair, and adaptive reuse

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By the **1950s**, operations had fallen off and the mill was discontinued as an industrial facility (milling grind operations ceased).

During the **1960s**, the structure reportedly fell into disrepair, with neglect accelerating deterioration of the building fabric, dam works, and water infrastructure.

In the **1970s**, local lore and community posts claim the mill building briefly housed a **bar** — one reference mentions *Bonnie and Clyde’s* in Loafers Glory as a community business around that era. [7][8] Later in that decade, it was converted into a residence (or house) and gradually adapted as a lodging property in subsequent decades.

A flood in late 1977 is said to have damaged or destroyed the original dam structure; the dam was eventually **demolished or breached** after suffering flood failure, and much of the mill’s water control works no longer survive. [9][10] The *North Carolina Dam Removal Handbook* lists *Masters Mill (Loafers Glory) / Cane Creek* as a dam that has undergone a partial breach or removal in its history. [11]

Survival through Hurricane Helene and later storms

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In September 2024, **Hurricane Helene** brought heavy rains and flooding to Western North Carolina. Videos and imagery from Loafers Glory show significant water rise and damage in the region, though the mill structure itself reportedly survived without complete destruction. [12][13] The mill’s continued standing in the face of repeated high-water events is sometimes cited in local visual tours of Loafers Glory.

Architecture and site

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Historic photographs and descriptions depict a heavy-timber industrial structure adjacent to a small dam and falls on Cane Creek. The site’s water-power infrastructure—water wheel, sluice, and dam remains supported both grain milling and the early dynamo installation.[1][14]

Legacy

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Masters’ Mill figures in local narratives about Loafers Glory’s name and social history and is cited by county historians as the setting for Mitchell County’s first provision of electric light, illustrating the overlap of agrarian industry and early rural electrification in the North Carolina mountains.[15][1]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d Gunter, Rhonda (August 10, 2017). "Loafers Glory". Mitchell County Historical Society. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
  2. ^ a b "Old Masters' Mill — Historic, Riverfront Vacation Rental". OldMastersMill.com. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
  3. ^ "Loafers Glory". Mitchell County Historical Society. January 20, 2019. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
  4. ^ "Loafers Glory (gazetteer entry)". NCpedia. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
  5. ^ "The First Electric Lights for Bakersville and Toecane". Mitchell County Historical Society. August 3, 2020. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
  6. ^ "Toecane ~ The Commercial Center of Mitchell County". Mitchell County Historical Society. September 16, 2020. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
  7. ^ "Loafers Glory". Mitchell County Historical Society. August 10, 2017. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
  8. ^ "Old Masters Mill in Loafers Glory (From beroberts.com)". Retrieved September 26, 2025.
  9. ^ "November Rain: Remembering the Flood of 1977". Retrieved September 26, 2025.
  10. ^ "North Carolina Dam Removal Handbook" (PDF). Retrieved September 26, 2025.
  11. ^ "North Carolina Dam Removal Handbook" (PDF). Retrieved September 26, 2025.
  12. ^ "From Bakersville to Loafers Glory, NC Hurricane Helene". Retrieved September 26, 2025.
  13. ^ "Loafers Glory, NC Hurricane Helene". Retrieved September 26, 2025.
  14. ^ "The Space (property description)". OldMastersMill.com. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
  15. ^ "The First Electric Lights for Bakersville and Toecane". Mitchell County Historical Society. August 3, 2020. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
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