A very significant assets stands on the banks of the Wallkill River at Hamburg just below

the old Sharpsboro water falls: The Old Stone Mill. An iron forge grew on the important rapids

of the Wallkill River just before the river ends the rather steep slope and moves down its long

northward journey to the Hudson River. This forge served a role in the Revolutionary War, and the

Ford homestead alongside the river, owners at the time of the forge, has been reputed

to contain gold in its walls as a result of some of the work done. General George Washington’s

Continental Army is said to have camped nearby "for a season", and British General "Gentleman

Johnny" Burgoyne’s defeated troops were marched along the old King’s Highway (Route 94)

on December 3, 1777 on their journey to Virginia after their major defeat at the Battle of Saratoga.

Following the Revolution, a grist mill grew here to be a sizeable business, along

with a sawmill; with all three operations forge, grist, and saw mills taking advantage of

the great power of the Wallkill River. Later in time, as the railroads came into the area of

northwestern New Jersey, the grist mill grew in size and delivered to a regional area. The

milling was done on 4 levels, including one below ground, which could handle many kinds of

grain and various sizes of flour product. The grist mill grew in size to encompass a major role in local

milling and from which grew the great brand of Nabisco, along with their still-existing Wheatsworth

Cracker line, keeping the name alive through the centuries. Owners of the mill that had been here

were the Wheatsworth Flour Mill, Uneeda Brand, and National Biscuit Company. The Nabisco

name has been heralded and known the world over as a leader in its field of foods from grain; even

today. Talk is underway to get support by Kraft Foods/Nabisco to revive the waterwheel and grist

mill arrangement for depicting the way that flour was made in the earlier times of our nation.