Murray's Mill Historic District

A ten-minute hop, skip, and a jump from I-40, the Murray’s Mill Historic District, in the rolling countryside of eastern Catawba County, nestles just as it was a century ago along the banks of Balls Creek. It’s perfect for an afternoon picnic or a quick leg stretch. A placid pond slips over a mill dam, and the 28’ waterwheel of this National Register Historic Site makes its slow way ’round. Nailed to a door-frame in the general store, an old coffee can catches bottle caps, and a porch swing awaits you out front, as does a chat with a friendly guide before beginning your tour.

Preserved intact are the 1913 mill itself, the 1890s Murray & Minges General Store, the 1880s Wheathouse, used as an exhibit gallery, the 1913 John Murray House, furnished to the period, and numerous outbuildings. Run by three generations of the Murray Family who closed operations in 1967, the picturesque structures and surrounding land form the last milling complex in the county, meticulously preserved and interpreted by the Catawba County Historical Association since 1980 when restorations began. Governor James G. Martin attended the opening ceremony in 1988.