Very soon folks driving by the St Vrain mill will notice significant construction at the Mill, so we would like to take this opportunity to tell everyone in Mora what’s going on.
The St Vrain Mill Foundation has received a grant from the New Mexico Historic Preservation Division (HPD) for the repair and restoration of the St Vrain Mill gables. This grant, along with additional St Vrain Mill Foundation funds, is enough to completely rebuild both the north and south gables.
The south gable is intact but nearly all of the sheathing boards are missing and will need to be replaced. The north gable is in far worse shape; much of the framing will need to be replaced as well as some of the sheathing. All four cornices will be rebuilt, and new, period reproduction
window sashes will be installed. The work will take four to six weeks and once it is done, the St Vrain Mill will be wind, water and, equally important, bird proof. The contractor is Knutson Construction, Sapello, NM.
Even with the gables restored, there will still be much to be done. Both the east and west walls need to have the cracks repaired, the large windows (eleven of them) have been rebuilt, and the metal roofing will need to be replaced with in the next few years. So still a lot to be done before the Mill can be used as a cultural heritage center or similar community purpose. But it has been here in Mora now for 155 years, and a few more years to get it restored to its former glory should be well worth the wait.
Thank you Merl Witt for the amazing summary of the progress on the restoration for our little piece of Mora history, we want to make sure the community stays informed about the progress of our “Valley of the Mills”.
Authors Merl Witt / Paulina Alarcon