Snapshot of the Day: Where is the Water in the Mill Race?

Taking a stroll past the and the today, everything might seem normal.

Well, except that the mill race itself is bone dry.

The manmade stream, which branches off from the Paint Creek in Goodison, was dug by Needham Hemingway in 1835 to power his gristmill. In 1876, William Goodison bought Hemingway’s mill, expanded it and installed modern machinery. The mill was operational until 1941.

The mill race, which runs parallel to the Paint Creek for about a half mile, usually has some moving water, but today, it's completely dry; in fact, the mud on the bottom of the mill race is already beginning to dry out and crack. 

"It's part of the planning and design for the dam removal," said Clinton River Watershed Council Education and Stewardship Director Michele Arquette-Palermo.

The mill race won't be dry forever, though. The Clinton River Watershed Council is planning to remove the dam entirely while still maintaining the mill race's water flow.

For now, however, the mill race remains empty.

Anne Vaara, executive director of the council who is leading the in Goodison, was out of town and unavailable for comment Thursday.