The Methodist Manse

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Methodist Manse (1834). The first brick construction in Washington County probably took place in Cane Hill, a town which had its beginnings even before 1828 when the county officially opened to white settlement. Conrad Russell, who lives in Cane Hill and has a passion for its history, says the brick Methodist manse, still standing on the main road through town, was built in 1834. Russell has found evidence that even earlier than the manse, a two-room brick school house was built on the hill east of town. He speculates that it was built in 1832 but was destroyed long ago. He believes that Cane Hill College was first organized in that schoolhouse sometime around 1834 (Besom, 1981, p. 14).

The Methodist Manse is still being occupied today and is known by local residents as The Brick House. It is made of solid brick masonry which is almost two-feet thick. The building was originally a Methodist church. When the Federal army occupied Cane Hill, the commanding officer used it for his headquarters, so it was not burned (Miller, pp. 60-61, 1989).

ABOVE: An early 1930's picture of the Buchanan-Moore Mill. Picture by Martha Moore (The History of Washington County, p. 6.)

Mill. Above and below are pictures of the old Buchanan-Moore Mill in Cane Hill. This mill was far from being the first in Cane Hill. Numerous mills existed almost from the beginning of the settlement of the community. The earlier ones produced corn and other derivatives. One of the earliest mills that seems to have done a thriving business was that of Mark Bean. But the best known and authenticated mill of the early times was that of John Rankin Pyeatte, built at least a generation before the Civil War began. Passed down though his daughters and granddaughters after they were married, the mill eventually became known as the Moore-Buchanan Mill. As water became less plentiful, this mill was moved downstream to its present location on the south side of Cane Hill. The mill continued in operation until the early 1930's (Miller, pp. 17-18).

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