Beckman Mill Miley

The Ghost of Beckman Mill:

You hear much about “Lucy 7” in Beloit as a historical exemplification of a young female rising to prosperity from simple agricultural roots; but not so much of those with a less happy ending.

Such is the case of Miley Jenkins, the daughter of a farmer from nearby Avon. Miley worked at the Beckman mill in the late 19th century and after an unexpected teenage pregnancy was promised marriage by her love Benjamin Fitzgerald, the son of prominent Judge John C. Fitzgerald of Monroe. Benjamin’s mother Abigail however forbade such a thing to what she called a white trash farmer’s daughter.

Shortly thereafter Miley fell into the grinding stone that turned grain to flour at the mill with her unborn son. The river that powered the mill ran red with her blood upon exit, and the most beautiful lilies bloomed downstream for years afterward. Her death was ruled an accident, as suicide was not an accepted cause on a coroner’s report during the time.

Only bits and pieces of this story remain in old torn newspapers that now occupy the depths of local landfills. But as a visiting photographer of the Beckman Mill historical site, I feel close to her story as I am occasionally offered a gratuitous appearance. Unseen at the time, here is an example of her presence that only shows after developing the picture taken.