The Sutherland Steam Mill Museum is a restored steam woodworking mill from the 1890s located in

Denmark, Nova Scotia Denmark is a community in the Canada, Canadian province of Nova Scotia, located in Colchester County, Nova Scotia, Colchester County. The Sutherland Steam Mill Museum lies in Denmark. References Denmark on Destination Nova Scotia
Communi ...

. The mill operated until 1958. Today it is part of the

Nova Scotia Museum Nova Scotia Museum (NSM) is the corporate name for the 28 museums across Nova Scotia, Canada, and is part of the province's tourism infrastructure. The organization manages more than 200 historic buildings, living history sites, vessels, and speci ...

system. The museum represents the transition from water powered mills, such as that preserved at the nearby

Balmoral Grist Mill Museum The Balmoral Grist Mill Museum is a restored 1874 water-powered grist mill located in Balmoral Mills, Nova Scotia. The site includes a walking trail along the ravine of Balmoral Brook. The mill is part of the Nova Scotia Museum system. It could b ...

, to the more powerful and efficient steam-driven mill. The mill was located in at the centre of a vast woodland area and was situated next to a railroad. Thus it had excellent access to both raw materials and to markets though shipping terminals at

Pictou Pictou ( ; Canadian Gaelic: ''Baile Phiogto'') is a town in Pictou County, in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia. Located on the north shore of Pictou Harbour, the town is approximately 10 km (6 miles) north of the larger town of New Gl ...

and

Wallace Wallace may refer to: People * Clan Wallace in Scotland * Wallace (given name) * Wallace (surname) * Wallace (footballer, born 1986), full name Wallace Fernando Pereira, Brazilian football left-back * Wallace (footballer, born 1987), full name ...

. At its peak, the mill employed more than a dozen workers, and it produced sawn lumber, sleds and carriages, sashes and doors and other architectural products such as

gingerbread trim Gingerbread is an architectural style that consists of elaborately detailed embellishment known as gingerbread trim. It is more specifically used to describe the detailed decorative work of American designers in the late 1860s and 1870s, which w ...

. The founder of the mill, Alexander Sutherland retired in 1940 and his son and successor Wilfred Sutherland retired in 1958. The mill became a museum in 1970 and it was adopted into the Nova Scotia Museum Complex in 1975. The museum lies next to the Shortline Railbed section of the

Trans-Canada Trail The Trans Canada Trail, officially named The Great Trail between September 2016 and June 2021, is a cross-Canada system of greenways, waterways, and roadways that stretches from the Atlantic to the Pacific to the Arctic oceans. The trail extends ...

. The Museum offers free bike loans for day use on the trail. It also offers free woodworking space within the museum.Sutherland Steam Mill Maker Space
Accessed July 8, 2018.

References

;Sources *Barbara Robertson, ''Sawpower: Making Lumber in the Sawmills of Nova Scotia'', Halifax, Nimbus Publishing and the Nova Scotia Museum (1986), pages 129–132. ;Notes

External links

Sutherland Steam Mill MuseumSutherland Steam Mill Museum on Facebook.com
Museums in Colchester County History museums in Nova Scotia Technology museums in Canada Nova Scotia Museum Steam museums {{Canada-museum-stub