"The Mill on the St. Mary's River" Great Mills by grandmaR

Great Mills Trading Post is the white building on the left of the road. Dyson's lumber is on the right hand side behind the hill, and Holy Face church and Little Flower School are behind me on the left.

Great Mills Post Office with inset of mail truck

The community of Great Mills dates back to the 1600s when a 'great mill' was built at the headwaters of the St. Mary's River in the late 1600s. The post office was not established until 1800.

Great Mills now is a small community (Latitude: 38.236N Longitude: -76.497W) at the intersection of Great Mills Road (Maryland Route 246) and Point Lookout Road (Maryland Route 5). There is a Great Mills High School (enrollment about 1900 - home of the Hornets) and a Great Mills Pool (recently built).

There is also a Catholic Church (Holy Face) and associated parochial school (Little Flower) on the hill above Great Mills, along with the Dyson lumber company. See the Great Mills tip for the history of this church.

There used to be a Dyson Gulf Station at the end of Great Mills Road, but the main gas station there now is a large Sheetz. Behind the gas station on Old Great Mills Road is another church, the Chief Cornerstone Assembly.

Other businesses in Great Mills include Chesapeake Appraisal ServiceTubman-Douglas Head Start Center -
Superb Paving, Inc.
A & M Glass Co. - also in Leonardtown and Hughesville
Hughesville Commercial Properties
Data One Communications, Inc.
Tip-Top's Auto Detailing, Inc
Hickory Hills East Townhomes
Paws Rehabilitation,
AmeriClean Carpet Care
Eve'a'lution Micro Spa,
S & W Enterprises
Triple “T” Services and
Skiver Sports

Bridge in Great Mills

The Great Mill stood until 1817 when it was destroyed by a flood. Great Mills is still subject to flooding - the creek under this bridge (the big SUV is on the bridge which is just past the sign) would swell and cover the road. There was also a lot of flooding in the vicinity of Great Mills Trading Post which is near the intersection of Flat Iron Road and Indian Bridge Road.

Another mill, Cecil's Mill, was established in 1810, less than a mile upstream from the Great Mill. This mill was originally called Clifton Factory. It was bought by the Cecil family in 1882 and remained in the family until 1975 when the mill and the store associated with it were donated to the St. Mary's County Historical Society. It is now on the National Register of Historic Landmarks.

• Pros:Has the only "Holy Face" church in the country
• Cons:Subject to flooding
• In a nutshell:Cecil's Mill Town