On this page you will find articles that take an in-depth look at various themes in milling and iron manufacture. They may also serve as the framework for a lesson or a series of lessons.

General

• Building Communities: The Medieval Roots of America's Freedom, Hudson
  The project "Building Communities" explores the medieval contribution in technology to colonial America. About the project.
• Gateway Essay: Colonial America and Medieval Technology, Hudson
  Article explaining how early America was a cultural and technological extension of the Middle Ages.

Milling

• Mills and Machinery from Medieval to Colonial Times, Walton
  A number of images and documents from the transitional period from the Middle Ages to the American colonial experience illustrate the mechanical toolkit with which the settlers had to work.
• Geography, Landscape, and Mills , Walton
  Lesson on mills and why they appeared where they did. The goal of the lesson is to have students explore their local surroundings for evidence of the once-common milling industry in every city, town, or even rural village.
• Millstone Prices in 1848/Prices of Millstones from Mr. Tyack, University of Virginia Archives, 1848
  Chart of prices, sizes and weights of millstones in 1848.
• Laws Regarding Watermills, Walton
  Text of and commentary on three laws from colonial America relating to the encouragement of the construction of waterwheels.
• On the Best Angles for the Sails of a Windmill, Josh Garnett, 1809
  1809 article on the best angles for the sails of a windmill.

• The Mills at Ephrata, Showalter
  Article on mills and the products of mills, which were central to the prosperity and survival of colonial communities such as that at Ephrata, Pennsylvania.
• Printing at Ephrata, Showalter
  Article on the Old World printing technology that was carried to Ephrata, Pennsylvania.

• Colonial America's Pre-Industrial Age of Wood and Water, Historic Bethlehem
  Article on the colonial economy and its technology.
• Perfection in the Mechanical Arts: The Development of Moravian Industrial Technology in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, 1741-1814, Stephen Cutliffe & Karen Huetter/Historic Bethlehem
  Article on Bethlehem's contribution to American technological development because of its early concentration of industrial technology.
• America: The Land of Opportunity -- Manufacturing in Colonial Pennsylvania: Bethlehem/Sample Teacher Resources/Lesson -- Upper Elementary-Middle School, Saxe
  Lesson plan on manufacturing at the colonial community in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.
• Oil Mill Industries at Bethlehem/Technology of the Oil Mill Industries, Historic Bethlehem
  Story of the oil mills at Bethlehem's Moravian community.
• The Grist Milling Process, Historic Bethlehem
  Article on the milling of flour in Pennsylvania. Explanation of how a grist mill works.
• The Bakery at the Moravian Community, Bethlehem, PA, Historic Bethlehem
  Story of the bakery at Bethlehem's Moravian community.
• The Significance of the Bethlehem Waterworks, Historic Bethlehem
  Article on the Bethlehem waterworks, the first pumped municipal water system in the colonies.
• Stronger than One Hundred Men: the Vertical Waterwheel, Historic Bethlehem
  Article on the critical importance of the vertical waterwheel to Western technology, specifically the community at Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.

• Grain and Milling in American Art - Winslow Homer (1836-1910), V. Ziegler
  Article on Winslow Homer's engravings on agriculture and life in the country.
• Pieter Breughel the Elder, Wheat Harvest, V. Ziegler
  Article on Pieter Breughel's pictures portraying the seasonal work of the peasants.

• Grottasongr: The Song of the Mill, Walton
  Text of the Norse sage poem, Grottasongr: The Song of the Mill.
• The Mill in the Bible, Walton
  Article outlining biblical references to mills.
• The German Miller on the Eve of Colonial America, Walton
  Text of Jopst Amman 1565 Book of Trades (Standebuch) article, Der Müller.
• The Colonial Poetry of Anne Bradstreet, V. Ziegler
  Article on the poetry of Anne Bradstreet on agriculture and milling.
• Mills and Millers in Old and New World Folksong, Banks
  Article on the references to mills and millers in Old and New World folksong.
• The Reeve's Tale and the Miller, V. Ziegler
  Middle English and modern English text of Chaucer's Canterbury Tales: The Miller's Description in the General Prologue, The Miller's description from the Reeve's Tale.

• Harvest Home: Grain Imagery in Moravian Hymns and the Mission to the Native Americans, V. Ziegler
  Article on the Moravians and their mission to the Native Americans, as well as the use of grain imagery in Moravian hymns.

• Fast Food in Medieval Europe, V. Ziegler
  Article on the portable and inexpensive foods in medieval Europe.
• Fast Food in Colonial America, Weinsteiger
  Article on the portable and inexpensive foods of colonial America.
• Getting Your Daily Bread-Breads in Medieval Society, Banks
  Teacher's Content Base Outline, Applying State Standards, and Activities, which can be used as a basis to generate specific lessons.
  
  Lesson plans for the following three in-depth articles on bread.
• All Bread Is Not Created Equal, Banks
  Article on the assize laws, regulating the production of bread and beer.
• English Bread Assizes from Reigns of Henry II to Edward II, Banks
  Original medieval assize documents, regulating the production of bread.
• The Flower of Wheat: Bread in the Middle Ages and Colonial Era, V. Ziegler
  Article about bread, its composition, changes, importance, and laws.

Iron Manufacture

• The Medieval Roots of Colonial Iron Manufacturing Technology, Weinsteiger
  Article on the medieval roots of colonial iron manufacture technology, the differences and similarities, and why colonial technology was a continuation of medieval.
• The Rise and Fall of Medieval Iron Technology, Eggert
  Article explaining how medieval iron technology improved on classical technology, how it was transferred to colonies, and how and why it died here.
• Iron Beginnings in America, Walton
  Article on the colonists' interest in and attempts at extraction of metals in the New World.
• Working at an Iron Furnace, Eggert
  Article on the people who worked at a colonial iron furnace.

• The Working World of the Smiths, Historic Bethlehem
  Article on the apprenticeship and duties on a smith in colonial America, specifically Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.
• The Blacksmith, Historic Bethlehem
  Article on the products of the blacksmiths at Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.
• The Locksmith, Historic Bethlehem
  Article on the duties of a colonial locksmith, particularly in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.
• The Tools and Trade Techniques of the Blacksmith, Henry J. Kauffman/Historic Bethlehem
  Article on the tools and techniques of the blacksmith.
• The Blacksmiths of Early Bethlehem, Charles A. LeCount/Historic Bethlehem
  Article on the smith in Bethlehem's economy, how to become and work as a smith, what the smith produced, and names of smiths in colonial Bethlehem.
• The Reconstructed 1750/1761 Smithy at Historic Bethlehem, Historic Bethlehem
  Article describing the smithy at Historic Bethlehem.

• Pat Lyon at the Forge: Portrait of an American Blacksmith, Weinsteiger
  Article on John Neagle's portrait of the blacksmith, Pat Lyon, and how it marked the change in status of the laborer in America.

• Phillip Freneau's "Elegy on the Death of a Blacksmith", V. Ziegler
  Text of and commentary on Phillip Freneau's poem, "Elegy on the Death of a Blacksmith."
• Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's "The Village Blacksmith", V. Ziegler
  Text of and commentary on Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's poem, "The Village Blacksmith."