The old Stonewall, VA sawmill has a new home in Halifax County.  Pictured is the Frick Model “O” sawmill purchased by the Halifax County Heritage and Antique Machinery Festival Committee. 

            Originally the sawmill belonged to Lyle Moore of Stonewall, VA.   Moore, his family and the Stonewall Tractor Club had hosted a tractor show on his property for many years.  When the tractor club decided to disband their show a few years ago due to age and health issues, they donated quite a few items to the Halifax County Heritage Festival Committee and offered the sawmill for purchase.  The Heritage Festival Committee decided the old sawmill should have a permanent home in Halifax County.

            Once the decision was made to purchase the sawmill, a group of volunteers from the festival committee met one Saturday in early 2009 at the Moore farm in Campbell County to dismantle the mill and haul it to Halifax County.  Over the next 18 months, with help from numerous volunteers and donations of material, funds and labor from Ronnie Jones of Jones Building Systems, Ken Morgan of Morgan Lumber Company, and the Building Trades class from Halifax County High School, the mill was set up and a shed was built to house it permanently at the Halifax County Fairgrounds. 

            The sawmill was built by the Frick Company of Waynesboro, PA, sometime in the 1920’s and is powered by a 1941 Case power unit.  The Frick Company built “O” and “OO” models which were some of the more popular sawmills used throughout our area from the turn of the last century with many still in use today.  These mills were referred to as “portable mills” since they could be taken down and moved to the logging site to saw lumber in the woods.  These mills sawed the lumber for many homes and buildings here in Halifax County.

            The old sawmill will be on display as a working exhibit at the Halifax County Heritage and Antique Machinery Festival May 6, 7, and 8 at the Halifax County Fairgrounds.