Madison Historic Sites
Paper Mill Trail
Tucked alongside the banks of the Hammonasset River, not far from the edge of Green
Hill Road, lies a little-known portal to Madison’s past. On property owned and
maintained by the Madison Land Conservation Trust, the Papermill Trail begins at the
eastern side of Fawn Brook Circle, just yards north of its junction with Green Hill Road.
Through a sun-dappled forest dominated by beech and oak, this mostly easy blue-blazed
trail winds past the ruins of a paper mill that once harnessed the power of the
Hammonasset River. Now the river slides lazily by this site, close by the Green Hill Road
Bridge.
In the nineteenth century, sometime around 1865, a stone dam was built here, creating a
huge lake of sorts within this upper portion of the Hammonasset River. The collected
water was then directed through a narrow stone sluice, which created the energy to turn
iron turbines within the wooden mill building. Local farmers sold straw to the owners of
the Cooper Paper Mill, and steam-powered machinery processed this raw material into a
pulp. The pulp was pressed out into large sheets of coarse “strawboard” that was
primarily used to manufacture shipping boxes for other industries. This product,
according to research noted by the Madison Conservation Land Trust, was commonly
used in the period between the earlier era of rag-based papermaking and later papers
made from wood pulp. At one time, the steep south-facing embankment to the north of
the trail edge, just above the ruins, was apparently used as a drying area for the huge rolls
of damp paper that came off the presses. Historic records indicate that a drying house was
here as well
According to the documents collected at the Charlotte L. Evarts Memorial Archives,
records of the 1880 U.S. Census reveal that eight local men worked at the mill in that
year. Zenas Cooper is listed as a paper manufacturer; Ralph Goddard is listed as a paper
seller; and George Brannan, Pat Corrigan, William Cranker, Carelton Grave, and Joseph
and Warren Ackley are recorded as employees.
The mill closed around 1890. Sometime after the turn of the twentieth century, its
machinery was removed and sold, and its building was salvaged for use in Madison’s
reincarnation as a resort community. Beams and siding from the wooden mill were
recycled in the construction of two cottages built on Middle Beach Road. The stone dam
was partially removed, and the huge millpond drained downriver toward Long Island
Sound.
Today, this mill site is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Much of the
stone headrace (the sluice that directed water into the mill) remains apparent on the
eastern bank of the river, in Madison. Some fieldstone footings are apparent; these are
imbedded with some threaded iron rods, which may have supported machinery. Also
remaining on the Madison side are parts of the tailrace, through which water was
conveyed away from the industrial site after use. Two deep pits indicate where paper pulp
vats may have been located in two mill buildings. On the western side, in Killingworth, a
good portion of the dam and other stonework remain. The dam remnants are 14 feet high,
20 feet long, and six feet wide.
When the paper mill closed, this site was used for a lumber operation, and the old
stonewalls that lace the second-growth woodlands here indicate that this area was at one
time cleared land, used for pasture or agriculture. The Papermill Trail continues past a
small pebbly beach at the riverside, which provides access for anglers and waders, and
then winds for another mile or so into the woods along the river. Along this route, hikers
can imagine the tranquil millpond in this wide-spreading flood-plain area of the river.
Here two are two new dams created by Madison’s very busy resident beavers. A large
beaver lodge is a highlight of a journey along this path, as are the evident logging
activities of these industrious creatures. Mallards nest in the marshy shallows of the flood
plain at the river bend, and other native and migratory bird life is abundant. An
observation point on a short loop trail, which traces the knob of the mostly red-cedar
uplands, offers some great river views—from late autumn to early spring, at least. Some
large sycamores tower at the riverbank, and in spring, the wildflower display is lovely—
but be sure to take only memories and leave only footprints.
Directions: From Durham Road (Route 79) in Madison, head east 1.6 miles on Green
Hill Road, traveling 1. miles, toward Killingworth, to Fawn Brook Circle. Take a left
onto Fawn Brook and park at the side of the road immediately after that turn. A white
Madison Land Conservation Trust sign marks the trailhead. Please respect the forest, the
river, the trail, and other hikers. Stay off the ruins, keep dogs leashed, and pack out all
your trash. The trail is open dawn to dusk year-round. For more information, check the
Web site of the Madison Land Conservation Trust, where the trail map is available on a
printable pdf.
Other NRHP Sites:
Allis-Bushnell House
Jonathan Murray House
Shelley House
Meigs-Bishop House
State Park Supply Yard
Madison Green Historic District
Ninevah Falls
Tuxis Island
Samson’s Rock
Hand Academy
West Cemetery
Hammonasset Cemetery
Madison Post Office
E.C. Scranton Library
East River Reading Room
Indian Rock Shelters Trail
Hammonasset State Park
Rockland Preserve and the Charcoal Mounds
Meigs Tower
Deacon John Grave House
Madison Grange
First Congregational Church
North Madison Congregational Church
Bauer Farm
West Wharf
East Wharf
CCC Camp Hadley
Lumber Mill Site on Bailey Trail South
Old West Side Cemetery and Donnelly Memorial
North Madison Bog Iron Works
Indigo Woods Sawmill Trail
Lake Hammonasset Indian Cave Trail