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While the world changes, Millville stays the same

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Staff photo by Greg Lynch The Country Corner Western Wear shop in Millville.

By Josh Sweigart, Staff Writer Updated 1:50 PM Monday, November 16, 2009

MILLVILLE — It could have been any day in Millville.

Evelyn Bridgeford showed up to the Millville Restaurant at 3 a.m. to start mixing up massive fluffy biscuits and gravy with nickel-size sausage chunks.

When the restaurant opened at 5 a.m., regulars shuffled in and started putting creamers on the tables. The smell of sausage and eggs filled the air.

A few doors down Walnut Street — a.k.a. U.S. 27 and Ohio 129 — Cappucino Depot opened at 6 a.m. That is where the more hurried residents start their day, including a local teacher who got her daily chai tea.

At 7 a.m. a group of four or five guys showed up for coffee.

They call themselves the “men’s club,” said Cappucino Depot employee Susan Gabbard. “They sit and discuss political issues and whatnot.”

And so it has gone for years.

With a population of roughly 817, the village just west of Hamilton is too small to be bustling. But unlike many old, small towns across the state, it’s far from dying.

There’s not an empty storefront in sight. Instead, the village has all the trappings of daily life: a hair stylist, insurance agency, gas stations, gift shop — even two adult video stores.

The last of these are a newer addition. And faces around town are always changing. But other than that, Millville is a holdout of the tiny towns that were once so common in Ohio, according to Curt Pennington.

Pennington is owner of Millville Motors, a family owned garage where the self-described born and raised “Millvillonian” started sweeping floors when he was 12. He’s now 46.

“It hasn’t changed much in the last 40 years,” he said.

As its name suggests, this small village just west of Hamilton was founded in 1815 near a grist mill along Indian Creek.

“People came from all around to get their corn ground and ... trade corn for whiskey or other things,” said Robert Settles, known locally as “Mayor Bob,” though many aren’t aware he really is an elected official.

“It really was quite popular,” Settles said.

It still is.

“I come out here every chance I get,” said Hamilton resident Patricia Denham while browsing the country crafts and holiday décor on sale at Old Mill Country Gifts.

The shop is located at the intersection of Millville Avenue and Walnut Street. If the village has a “downtown,” that is it.

“If I don’t buy anything, I just like to look around. It’s a darling shop,” Denham said. “I usually end up buying something, though.”

The gift store is a distance from what little is left of the old mill, but it has become an icon itself after 10 years in business — though natives still think of it as the doughnut shop, which it had been before Peggy Henegar bought it.

For the most part, things are slow to change in Millville. Old-fashioned.

“I was looking for some bullets,” a West Chester Twp. resident yelled out while walking into the Country Corner across the street from the gift shop.

“Got ’em,” Clarence Heis called back.

If the gift shop is the old doughnut shop, the Country Corner is the old saddle shop, or the pharmacy before that.

Today, it’s a one-stop western wear, muzzle-loader supply store — currently with a selection of local apples, pumpkins and gourds.

“In the summer, we do local produce. Everything’s local,” said Heis, whose sister Rose Mallory owns the shop. “We will soon replace this stuff with bulk chocolate for Christmas.”

The Country Corner boasts boots, western shirts, Stetson hats, Breyer Horses and is one of the only local suppliers of Minnetonka Moccasins.

“We got a little bit of this, and a lot more of that,” Heis said.

In fact, the village is so much of a draw that it’s hard to find anyone who lives there. Even the Millville Restaurant is filled with people from Hamilton, Oxford, Milford Twp. and across the county.

“I get the special every day. It’s very good,” said Elaine Wilson, who drives from Fairfield to eat there daily with her husband, Robert Reeves.

“(Millville is) a little old country village, I guess you’d say,” Wilson said. “It makes you feel at home.”

The village does have its challenges, though. The stretch of U.S. 27 surrounding the village has been dubbed the “Highway to Heaven” because of an unusual frequency of deadly crashes.

“It’s not a bad road, you just drive it with respect,” Settles said, opining that the reason for many of the crashes is people not willing to drive slowly.

Then there’s the controversy of the two adult video stores in the one small village.

“I don’t totally approve of it, but they pay their taxes and don’t ask for nothing,” Settles said. “It’s America, you can do what you want to.”

Finally, there’s the universal challenge of funding social services. In Millville’s case, that’s partly handled with a “Homecoming Festival” the second weekend in July with ice cream and pizza.

“We use that so we don’t need a fire levy,” Settles said.

Ultimately, it’s a great place to visit, said Mayor Bob, but it’s also “a nice, neat little place to live.”

Contact this reporter at (513) 820-2175 or jsweigart@coxohio.com.

Fast facts

about Millville

Established: 1815

Population: 817

Native son: Kenesaw Mountain Landis, the first commissioner of professional baseball, was born in Millville.

Price of biscuits and gravy at Millville Restaurant: $3.15

Source: U.S. Census, menu, interviews

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Mike Cupp. Ha ha ha. I was one of the commenters. You grew up three miles outside of Millville. Ha ha.

You tried to ride a motorcycle through your parent's wall.

I hope jen, brandon and glenda are doing well.

Now back with the sarcastic **** everyone knows me for.

I mean, uh, sorry you didn't get to see the bike I been working on when you came up recently.

I wanna remain anonymous so forget you know me.

Jonas
10:37 PM, 11/16/2009

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Thanks for leaving out J.W. ***** Saloon. The bar and restraunt has been in my family for over twenty years and we can not get any press unless something bad happens. We just had a bartender retire after 31 years of working there,your newspaper did not return our calls. When the Farm had water coming in it was in the pape. We had a lot of fun raisers and have very little trouble. Why were we left out?

becky Horne
6:55 PM, 11/16/2009

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You failed to mention what time the XXX stores open.

Todd
4:48 PM, 11/16/2009

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Idea for future story in JN: What town in Ohio has the most XXX-rated video stores per capita? Milville may be near the top with 2/817!

Stranger
4:41 PM, 11/16/2009

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I was raised about three miles out of Millville on 129. My wife and I just came to to visit from Austin Texas about two weeks ago. I hadn't been back in Millville in about 14 or 15 years. You are right other than the names on some of the buildings the place was the same other than the old fire station moving. It was nice that at least something looked familiar.

Austin Texas

Mike Cupp
4:13 PM, 11/16/2009

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