The Wiscasset First Congregational Church Men's Fellowship heard an illustrated talk recently about the history and locations of tide mills by E. "Bud" Warren.

Warren is a well known local maritime historian who lives in Topsham. He is a member of the National Trust for Historic Preservation and President of the Board of Maine's First Ship, "Virginia." He is one of the initial organizers of the Tide Mill Institute. He travels widely, leads group tours, and lectures also on lighthouses on the coast of Maine.

Harnessing natural energy is a popular scientific pursuit. Energy from the sun and wind is getting a lot of technical attention these days. But did you know about another natural source here on earth that was used extensively throughout Europe in the Middle Ages?

It was used by settlers who came to America in the 1700s and 1800s, from England and France, but it is not used today. The answer is tidal energy.

Do you know what a tide mill is?  It is a special type of water mill driven by the rise and fall of the tide. 

A tidal river with a narrow inlet to the sea is suitably dammed by a stone embankment to make a reservoir. This is called a mill pond. The dam has a controlled opening to the ocean. As the tide comes in, it enters the mill pond through the opening which has a one way gate. This gate closes automatically when the tide begins to go out. When the tide is low enough the water held in the mill pond behind the gate is released to turn a water wheel. The energy of the water wheel can be used for many purposes but in early America it was used mostly to grind grain or saw wood.

The oldest known tide mill was located on the east coast of Ireland about 660 C.E.  In the 1800s there were at least 2000 such tide mills operating on the west coast of Europe and east coast of England. At the same time, the Atlantic coast of America had an estimated 400 tide mills, built from Virginia to Maine,  by the early settlers.

On the coast of Maine just between Cape Elizabeth and the Canadian border there were 55 tide mills. Some were here in the midcoast area, on Westport Island, Phippsburg, and Freeport where the remains of the dams can still be seen. These tide mills were built of rock and stone below the water line and of wood above.

Mill construction in Europe was usually all stone. The energy of the Maine mills was used mostly to saw wood for the lumber industry.