A pair of single piece stones, made of local volcanic andesite, from the Alpha flour mill, New Plymouth.
The cider mill stone at the same site is unrelated, but at some time in the past the stones were placed together, and noone wants to separate them now!
Signboard
says:
The Alpha Flour Mill
This was the site of the first flour mill to operate in Taranaki. It was built and originally owned by Richard Rundle and Samuel Oliver and began
operating in February 1844.
The mill was three stories high, with vertical board-and-batten cladding and a
breast-shot waterwheel. During the 1860's it was converted to a timber mill and,
in 1873, began producing bone meal. It was probably demolished in the early
1880s.
The dam to provide water for the wheel was made using the large rocks nearby as a
base. Several cavities, excavated for the dam's braces, may be seen in them. In front of the sign are two of the original millstones from the Alpha Mill.
They are unusual made from local volcanic andesite rock.
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