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Suber’s Corn Mill today, I imagine, still looks much as it did when Walter Hillary Suber, known as Hillary, built it in 1908. The old wooden waterwheel has since

been replaced with a steel one, and the original “visiting room” on the side has been torn off and rebuilt. There’s even a fresh coat of white paint on the outside. But when you step through the door of the mill now, you feel like you’ve entered past times. Located in the very heart of Greer where once it was surrounded by vast swatches of untamed land dotted with family farms, the old mill, now encircled by neighborhoods, commerce, and industry, has a heart of its own that continues to beat. Still going strong today after 100 years, Suber’s Corn Mill is owned and operated by Jim

Suber’s Corn Mill100 Years of Heart

w ritten by SHERIL BE NNET T TURNER

photographed by KRIS DECKER

Suber, great-grandson of Hillary, along with his wife Linda. The Suber name in this area can be traced back to civil war veteran, James Ashfield Suber, who, after receiving a land grant for 500 acres, built a corn mill off of South Buncombe Road behind where the Mitsubishi plant sits today. “Back then,” Jim explains, “you didn’t buy land. They gave you land if you were strong enough to keep it because this was Indian territory.” James in turn gave his son Hillary and new wife Linnie 100 acres of this land where they built their home, still standing today. Later Hillary would purchase a piece of adjoining land along the creek where he would build his own mill, Suber’s Corn Mill. “I’ve only been here 50 years,” Jim says with a twinkle in

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Suber’s Corn Mill100 Years of Heart

his eye, “so I can only tell you the stories I’ve heard about the old days. Farmers would drive their wagons of corn to the mill and spend the day visiting while it was being ground. It was a real social event and a chance to catch up on local gossip. The mill didn’t charge anything as far as money, but they would keep an eighth of the corn as a toll, which they would use for themselves or sell to people who didn’t have any corn.” “I also heard at that time the mill would accept chickens, eggs, and such as a trade,” Linda adds. They also recall that the old Piedmont and Northern Railroad came to town not long after Suber Mill was established. “When the railroad came around 1914,” Jim

says, “the mill was already up and running and was a vital part of the community. Where we all still live up on Suber Mill Road was Suber Mill Stop. If you wanted to get on the train, there was a flag you raised. You could ride to the town of Greer or on to Spartanburg and then back home again.” As the years passed, Hillary’s son James went to work as a railroad engineer, and the operation of the mill became the responsibility of his grandson, Walter. With the help of his wife, Willette, son Jim, and daughters Lucy and Mary, the mill continued to thrive as the small rural community of Greer continued to grow. Willette, who still lives across the street from the mill with husband Walter, remembers those days well.

“The old yard in front of the mill used to be dirt, and when it rained it would be too muddy for the farmers to pull their trucks into. They’d park along the other side of Suber Road and we had an old wagon that we’d load the corn into and pull to the crib. If they didn’t want to wait for their corn to be ground, they could take some already milled out of the silo which stood behind the scale house. At the time we had a little store in the mill where we sold things like chewing tobacco, and the men would stand around talking while chewing and spitting into a little spittoon. There’s even an old thrasher still around here somewhere that we used to thrash peas for people.” “I was only 12 when my daddy started running this

place,” Jim says, “and my favorite thing to do was go fishing in this creek here with a couple of boys that lived around here. We would fish all day until it was almost dark, then turn around and come back. But before we’d go, Daddy would always tell me, ‘you’ve got to shell enough corn so I can grind.’ Back then, we would get corn on the ear. There’s an old sheller back there that I would drop two ears in at a time, and it would shell the corn into a little box.” When Jim was in his 30s, he took over the mill operations from his father. “He asked me if I intended to stay on at the mill,” Jim says. “I kind of liked this kind of work so I said yes. Soon after,” he laughs, “my daddy decided to retire.” Gone are the days when farmers brought their wagon and

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truckloads of corn to Suber’s to be milled. Today, the corn is purchased from a couple of dependable producers, and it comes in on tractor-trailers already dried, shelled, and FDA approved. But the milling process, Jim explains, is pretty much the same as it’s always been. “There’s a pond out back that supplies the water needed to spin the waterwheel. I’ve got a wire going through the woods hooked up to a lever inside the mill. When I pull the lever, it opens a gate at the pond and, in about thirty minutes, the water will flow down the chute here to another gate. The second gate lets me control the amount of water falling on the wheel, which controls the speed needed to grind. There are no gauges to go by; I can just tell by looking if I need more water.” It is the weight of falling water that turns the waterwheel outside, which in turn drives the gears, shafts, and spindles used to power the mill equipment inside. When Jim is ready to mill, he takes the shelled corn from the storage bin and dry cleans it to cull the whole corn kernels. The corn is then loaded into a bin where it falls down through the funnel-shaped hopper to two millstones below. The top stone, called the runner, spins just above the stationary bed stone, and is powered by the waterwheel outside. As the corn flows through a hole in the middle of the runner stone it is scissored between the two grooved stones. The milled grain is collected as it falls off the stones and, at this stage, is ready to be sold as stone ground grits. If it’s cornmeal they’re making, the ground corn will continue on to a sifter, also powered by the wheel, which takes out the

Suber’s Corn Mill is located at 2002 Suber Mill Road in Greer, SC. The mill is open Monday to Friday, 8 am to 5 pm, and

on Saturdays from 8 am to noon. Tuesdays and Fridays are grinding days, if you want to see the mill in action. For more

information, or to set up group tours, call (864) 877-5616.

outer covering of corn called the bran. The final process for self-rising corn meal is to add baking powder and baking soda with a mixer. Curious, I asked Jim what happened when the ancient mill parts break down. “I fix it,” he says. “When you’ve been here as long as I have, you learn how to fix it all. But I do have friends who help with the parts in exchange for a little milled corn.” Today, Suber’s Corn Mill supplies hand-weighed and packaged white cornmeal and grits to local grocery stores and homestyle restaurants, as well as to individual customers. They also offer a wide variety of assorted animal feed. But it’s the steady stream of people who pop in for a neighborly visit - and the chance to slow down a bit and enjoy the timeless old feel - that really makes this Suber legacy and its family so special. After 100 years, this little old mill located in the very heart of Greer remains, also, in the hearts of her people.

Jim Suber’s Grits I put about a half a cup of my stone ground grits (for two people) in a pot and cover with cold water. The secret is to soak them overnight to soften them. In the morning, pour off the chaff that floats to the top, but leave about a half an

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inch of water covering the grits. Add a dash of salt. Bring them to a boil on the stove, then turn the heat down and cook for 15 to 20 minutes. Don’t worry if they look a little soupy, they’ll thicken up as they sit. Just remember to keep them stirred so they won’t stick.

Linda Suber’s Cornbread I don’t ever measure mine out. I take about a cup of our self-

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rising cornmeal and mix with 1 egg, about a tablespoon of oil (I use canola oil) and some buttermilk. Next I grease a 9-inch black cast iron pan real good with canola oil, and put the batter in that. Cook it in a 450°F oven until the top is lightly brown. Remember, the bottom gets brown quicker, so the top needs to be just tan. d