Stony Brook Gristmill and Museum
Stony Brook Gristmill & Museum
830 Stony Brook Road, Brewster, MA 02631
The Stony Brook Gristmill and Museum is a favorite stopping place for locals and visitors. The beautiful spot, featuring a sparkling brook and picturesque mill, is both scenic and historical. The Gristmill is the only remaining structure from Brewster’s Factory Village, a bustling 19th Century industrial area. The restored mill is open every Saturday in the summer. Visitors can see the water wheel in motion and purchase fresh ground corn meal. The upstairs museum features artifacts of 19th Century Cape Cod life, weaving demonstrations and much more. Visitors strolling the footpaths might happen upon basking turtles, spot a heron flying overhead, see dragonflies hovering over the mill pond, or see a variety of fish in the brook. The mill site is a Brewster treasure.
In the spring, the annual alewife migration up the fish ladders of Stony Brook is awe-inspiring, and was the subject of The Run, a nature classic written by John Hay. Footpaths along the edges of the brook are a wonderful vantage point to view the fish, which journey from Cape Cod Bay to the freshwater ponds of West Brewster in order to spawn. The herring run starts in mid-March (depending on air and water temperatures) and continues through early May.
Planning a Visit
Mill and Museum Hours:
The Gristmill and Museum are open every Saturday in July and August from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. Admission is free. Fresh cornmeal is available for purchase.
Special Events:
Information about special events will be posted on Facebook.
Admission:
Free
Rules:
No Dogs Allowed.
Directions and Parking:
Address: 830 Stony Brook Road, Brewster, MA 02631.
From Route 6 (Mid-Cape Hwy): Take exit 82 (Brewster/Harwich), and follow Route 124N toward Brewster. Turn left at the first traffic light, and proceed to the intersection with Route 6A. Turn left onto Route 6A and proceed approximately 1 mile to the blinking yellow light. Bear left at the blinking light onto Stony Brook Road. Parking for the Gristmill and Herring Run will be about 3/4ths of a mile on your right. For the safety of you and your group, visitors are urged to use the crosswalk as this section of Stony Brook Road is very busy. Photo courtesy Stan Godwin Photography.
Volunteering at the Gristmill
The Stony Brook Gristmill relies on volunteers for all of the activities we host. We need volunteers to act as museum docents, assist the weaver, festival help (cooking, serving, crossing guards), spring field trip hosts, as well as to pitch in with spring and fall maintenance projects. The time commitment varies from a few hours on a single day to several hours per summer month. Please contact Town Hall or send a message to us via Facebook (Stony Brook Factory Village Gristmill and Museum) if you want more information about volunteering. We will appreciate you!