The Mill Pond Dam was a dam on Mill Creek in Dexter.

History

The aging Mill Pond Dam sat on Mill Creek, just before it entered the Huron River. The 420-foot-long dam sported an 8-foot-high spillway, and was originally constructed in 1824 by Judge Samuel Dexter, with the current incarnation built by Henry Ford a century later.

The dam was located at the western entrance to Dexter, partially supporting Dexter-Chelsea Road - a situation which made addressing the dam's condition a high priority to the community. The dam was one of the Huron River Watershed Council's highest priorities for removal, and has additionally been named a removal priority by the State DNR, though coordinating dam removal with the rebuilding of the bridge is a tricky operation.

Sources: Riggs, Elizabeth H.W., "Case Studies in River Restoration Through Dam Removal", Huron River Watershed Council, June 2003.

In the news

• Plans for removing Dexter dam outlined, Ann Arbor News, Jan 2008.

The proposed project includes the replacement of the crumbling Main Street Bridge - a 75-foot, steel beam bridge over the Mill Creek - as well as the realignment of the road leading to the structure. The current bridge will be replaced by a 101 foot single span, 62-foot wide concrete I-beam bridge, and construction could start as early as April on the about $2.5 million project. It's expected to be completed in November.