State

The Old Mill Keeps oil Turning AI4D treasure hunters kc»ep on searching for the silver and gold which Simon IH.xon is alleged to have buried near the structure. «»/ LULA M. WEIR This is Dixon’s Mill, buill in 1751 and located in Alamance County. Some stirring scenes were enacted within the neighbor¬ hood of the old structure. THE old mill-wheel keeps turn¬ ing. Dixon's mill in Alamance County. Back in 1 7 Г» 1 Simon Dixon came t<> North Carolina from Pennsylvania ami settled in what is now known as the Cane Creek or Snow Camp see. tion. If there is another mill operat¬ ing in this state that is older than the Dixon mill. I haven’t heard of it Bike many other ancient structures, its time-worn timbers and weather- eraeked stone chimney harbor many quaint legends, traditions and reenl- lections that help to give it a tinge of immortality. Been in Three Counties The old mill has operated in three counties; yet it always lias occupied the same spot. Originally it was lo- rated in Orange County. Afterwards. Chatham was formed from a part of Orange. Eater on. when a further change took place in county bound¬ aries, tile mill suddenly found itself in Alamance. Simon Dixon was the original set¬ ter in what today is largely a com¬ munity of Quakers, or Friends. 11 is first step was to build u house for his family and he fashioned a comfortable dwelling out of native stone. About the same time he also decided to build я mill, which has proved to he a land¬ mark that never has passed from the Dixon family. The big mill-stones used for grinding purposes were brought down from Pennsylvania. Simon Dixon is said to have liecn the miller at the memorable time in history when Cornwallis and his Brit¬ ish troops invaded that section of North Carolina and sought to take possession of the mill, together with its stores of wheat, corn and flour. The miller could not he found, how¬ ever. and a squail was detailed to try their hands at the work of grinding the grist. But. for some mysterious reason, the great wheel refused to budge when the water was turned on. The Hcdeoats worked and swore lustily, but to no avail. Despite all their efforts, the wheel could not lie made to move. It was learned afterwards that shrewd Simon, when he learned that the British troops were approaching, had clamped the rocks of the mill to- gether. In other words — to use mil¬ lers’ parlance — he had let down the “lightering stick" which placed the two stones closely together, thereby preventing their turning. Took Possession of Property Failure to operate the mill, however, iljil not mean that Cornwallis and his men went hungry while they were making headquarters at Simon Dix¬ on’s home. They forced the family to take refuge in n small hut. close by. while they, themselves, took complete possession of the house. A check-up on. the diet of the Britishers shows that eighty-four beeves were slaughtered, the flesh being cut up on the benches of the little Quaker meeting-house. Bloodstains on the benches remained visible for years ; as a matter of fact, until the church-house was razed. It won in this same section that the late Joseph M. Dixon, who became Governor of Montana and later Secre¬ tary of the Interior in the Hoover ad¬ ministration. was ream!. Professor Zeno II. Dixon, retired school tone her. whose service and influence in mould¬ ing the lives of the youth of North Carolina for more than half a century can never be accurately estimated, is also a lineal descendant of Simon Dixon. Another the Dixon dates back •sting story relates to lv treasure and also • Cornwallis invasion The Dixon’s were Qaaki that section , ns It t lie present neutrals, an time, d this iirt toward tl the British a le war s well The story i s that by Ф lint d fi the Proprietors a title to a vast n and ••kings nldiers . He continues to be at The Quakers were attitude on their p was recognized by as the Americans. Simon Dixon, wh energy had early I -on of land, tucked all of his g silverware into long wool > when lie heard that the liritisl were approaching his place, buried it beside "a tocky branch run¬ ning toward the rising suii," accord¬ ing to word which has been handed down through the generations. The British knew something of Simon's financial status and when he refused to disclose the hiding place of the treasure, they resorted t*> torture. But they were unable to make him reveal his secret. Whether it was the effect* of the brutality of the Cornwallis forces that caused Simon s death less than three weeks after their evacu¬ ation of the place is not definitely known. The search for the hidden treasure has continued at intervals throughout the years. Men have dug deep in the earth in that section, hoping to dis¬ cover the treasure. Divining rods and other devices have been used. Special¬ ists in the art of locating buried ireas- .„I ni a In¬ ly ure have been empli with the same futile results: the end of the rainbow continues elusive. If the Dixon gold is ever discovered. nf the finder will come into posses.1 a tidy sum. Of late, though, efforts to find the gold and silver have been of a rather desultory nature