LEAD the Way

A young father LEADS his LITTLE one

 across the narrow swinging bridge at Kenan's Mill.

Linking to ABC Wednesday

 (depicting the Letter L)

Across the Creek

Here is a look at the back of Kenan's Mill. The 1860's gristmill 

sits above Valley Creek, and this view is from the bank

 by the swinging bridge near the charcoal kiln. 

The mill operated until the 1970s, then was restored 

years later and is operated by the Selma-Dallas County

 Historic Preservation Society. Cornmeal was ground here

 during the recent Selma Pilgrimage. 

Linking to Our World Tuesday and Tuesday's Treasures

Watching the Waterfall

My three-year-old grandson was fascinated by the waterfall at Kenan's Mill.

 Recent rains power-pushed Valley Creek over the spillway,

 creating a great roar as the water headed toward the Alabama River. 

 The 1860's working gristmill was open during Selma's Historic Pilgrimage, and

visitors could purchase fresh cornmeal and tour the rest of the park.

Linking to Our World Tuesday

Spring Cleaning at the Mill

A student from Illinois State University walks the fence line

 along Valley Creek at Kenan's Mill as she helps pick up limbs

 following recent storms. She was one of 40 members of Students Today

 Leaders Forever (STLF) who spent spring break traveling to several towns

 for community service.  The spring cleanup will improve the park grounds

 in advance of the 41st Historic Selma Pilgrimage March 18-19.

Linking to Good Fences

I is for ILLINOIS STATE

Forty-one students from ILLINOIS STATE University spent this morning

 cleaning the grounds of Kenan's Mill

 prior to the Selma Pilgrimage next weekend.

Afterward, they enjoyed a tour of the mill by Sylvia Smith

 of the Selma-Dallas County Historic Preservation Society. 

The students participated in a nine-day, six-city tour through

 Students Today Leaders Forever (STLF), and Selma was their fifth stop.

 Andie Williams, one of five core leaders, said STLF combines community service

 with tourism during spring break, and they chose both cities and small towns to visit.

 This year's tour included Memphis, Hattiesburg, Miss.; New Orleans,

 Navarre Beach, Fla.; Selma and Atlanta. 

While in Selma, the group visited historic sites such as Brown Chapel AME Church

 and the Pettus Bridge, then stayed at St. Paul's Episcopal Church

 where they were served breakfast this morning.   

Linking to ABC Wednesday

where the letter of the week is "I."

 

The Pony Truss Bridge

The old, iron bridge (The Pony Truss Bridge) at Kenan's Mill is in need of repair. 

The former route of Summerfield Road has been used as a foot bridge

 to cross Valley Creek at the park. Now, if you want to get

 from one side of the park to the other, you must cross 

the swinging bridge by the mill.

 Funding is being sought for the renovation.

Linking to City Daily Photo Blogs and Signs, Signs 

A Very Ugly Scarecrow

It's fall festival time around here, and I don't believe we will see a scarecrow

 any uglier than this one! That straggly black hair atop a bright orange 

pumpkin head should be sufficient to keep the crows out of the corn!

Linking to City Daily Photo Blogs and Our World Tuesday

K is for Kenan's Mill Painting

Alabama Plein Air artists painted scenes at KENAN'S MILL 

during the Selma Historic Pilgrimage this past weekend,

 and here is a beauty by Jack Kidd. 

Many plein air paintings sold at the Selma Art Guild's

 Wet Paint Sale Saturday, but some are still available 

this Friday and Saturday from 12-4.

Kenan's Mill is an 1860's gristmill that stayed in business more than a century,

 producing stone-ground grits and cornmeal. The mill is open to the public

 during Selma's Historic Pilgrimage in March and for the Kenan's Mill Festival

 in early November.

 The Kenan's Mill park can be rented for special occasions.

 It includes the mill, mill house, covered stage, swinging bridge

 across Valley Creek, brick charcoal kiln and barn area with restrooms. 

Linking to ABC Wednesday where the Letter of the Week is "K"

and City Daily Photo Blogs    

Iron Bridge over Valley Creek

The old iron bridge over Valley Creek looks a bit rusty, but it's still reliable.

 The bridge is located on the Kenan's Mill property. 

Linking to Friday Fences and City Daily Photo Blogs

Corn Grits

What could be more rural AND more southern than stone-ground grits?

Corn grits are sold at Kenan's Mill during special events such as the 

Kenan's Mill Fall Festival and  Spring Pilgrimage. Maintaining a mill like this

 is quite a job, and the creek doesn't always flow so swiftly.

 But it's  an historic site worth saving and an ongoing project

 of the Selma-Dallas County Historic Preservation Society. 

Linking to Rural Thursday and City Daily Photo Blogs  

At the Water's Edge

When crossing the swinging bridge at Kenan's Mill, you might catch the reflection

 of the 1860's building at the edge of Valley Creek, especially when the sky is blue!

Linking to City Daily Photo Blogs, November Theme Day "At the Water's Edge"

and to Rural Thursday

The Libba Buchanan Barn

The Libba Buchanan Barn is a charming addition to the Kenan's Mill park near Selma.

 The property, which was owned by the Kenan family,  includes the barn

 (where restrooms are located), the mill, miller's house and a nearby kiln.

 Kenan's Mill will be open during the annual Selma Pilgrimage March 16-17,

 and visitors can purchase freshly ground cornmeal and grits. 

Posted at Barn Charm

An Old Millstone

An old millstone serves as an outdoor "sculpture" at Kenan's Mill near Selma.

The mill was built in the 1860s and is opened a few times a year for public tours.

Touring Kenan's Mill

Visitors to the Kenan's Mill Festival on Saturday tour the interior and hear how cornmeal was made. This mill was built in the 1860s and ground meal until the 1970s. It was restored by the Selma-Dallas County Historic Preservation Society, and the grounds can be rented for special events at reasonable rates.  

More photos on the Kenan's Mill Facebook page!

Tomahawk!

You never know what lies beneath your feet or mower! Robert Gordon found a tomahawk while mowing the grounds at Kenan's Mill,

and now it's on display.

Valley Creek at Kenan's Mill

Valley Creek rushes over the dam at Kenan's Mill, an 1860's grist mill that opens to the public during the Historic Selma Pilgrimage and Kenan's Mill Fall Festival.

(Click on the photo for a larger view.)

Kenan's Mill in Color

Spotlights cast a colorful glow on Kenan's Mill after dark last Saturday night. The mill and its grounds were used for an outdoor wedding reception. To your left, notice the strings of lights along the swinging bridge across Valley Creek.

Gifts for the Guests

Guests who attended the wedding reception at Kenan's Mill received stone-ground goodies straight from the mill! (Click the photo to view a larger version.)

Elegance at Kenan's Mill

Wow! Kenan's Mill has never been so elegant!

The historic 1860's gristmill and its grounds were the setting Saturday for a wedding reception. Chandeliers sparkled from tree limbs. Tables were decked with white linens, and a Motown band from Tuskegee provided music from the bandstand.

Plus, the weather cooperated! After a week of high humidity and intermittent storms, Selma awoke to a cool nip in the air and a northwest breeze. It couldn't have been more perfect!

You can see the mill in the left background and the bandstand in the right background.

Click on the photo for a larger view.

Top of the Kiln (Skywatch Friday)

There's a 19th Century brick charcoal kiln at Kenan's Mill, and if you step inside and look straight up, you can see the sky through the trees.

Thanks to the Pilgrimage hosts at the mill who suggested this idea for a photo.

Today is Skywatch Friday, so click on over to www.skyley.blogspot.com.