Rockbridge Mill (Rainbow Trout & Game Ranch)

Dating back to the 1840s and rebuilt after it was destroyed during the Civil War, the mill at this site was an essential contributor to the local economy and remained operational until the 1940s. The mill was the center of economic activity for Rockbridge, a small community that served area farmers from other parts of the Ozarks who visited to obtain milling services, buy goods, vote, get the latest news, and socialize. The community was nearly abandoned by the start of the 1950s, but in 1954, the property transformed into a fishing resort, which helped the town grow into a popular vacation spot.

In 1841, Captain Kim Amyx led a group of families in horse-drawn wagons along with ox on the 500-mile, six-month journey to an area known today as Rockbridge, Missouri. They were part of an influx of migrants who came to the Ozarks during the nineteenth century, notably from the American South. The families established a new community along the confluence of Spring Creek and Bryant Creek, where they assembled a mill site The town they formed evolved into the county seat of Ozark County (which, at the time, encompassed what today is Douglas, Howell, and Ozark counties). However, a Civil War battle and subsequent fire destroyed the town and mill site. 

B.V. Morris rebuilt the mill at its present location after the war in 1868. The Rockbridge community also rebuilt its post office and general store along with building a bank, church, school, Blacksmith shop, and Masonic Lodge. As a result, the mill town evolved into a place where travelers and farmers could vote, obtain goods and services, and socialize, a typical characteristic of Ozark mill towns during the nineteenth century. 

The mill enjoyed immense success from the late nineteenth century until the 1920s. However, with modern technology and the rise of the automobile, family mills gave way to industrial mills and their associated fleets of trucks, and the general store and Blacksmith shop grew obsolete. The Great Depression only served to cement Rockbridge's steep decline. The mill continued to operate until the 1940s but made very little (if any) profit in its final years. By the early 1950s, the post office survived as the only reminder of a once thriving community. 

The Amyx family played an integral part in transforming the mill into a fishing resort in 1954 and, consequently, revitalizing the town. Descendants of Captain Kim Amyx, Sidney and Edgie Amyx, married in Rockbridge in 1895. The couple homesteaded the land adjacent to Rockbridge Spring, where condos now sit; they are named Ralph's Ridge Condos in honor of Sidney and Edgie's son, Ralph, who was born on the homesteaded land. But, in 1946, they moved to Rockbridge. Sidney and Edgie's son and daughter-in-law, Lilie and Edith Amyx, operated a sawmill on the lower part of the stream while also holding a job in Gainesville working for the family business: Amyx Auto Company. The family worked diligently to rejuvenate Rockbridge Village. Meanwhile, Edith became Postmaster of the Rockbridge Post Office, the county's oldest post office. In 1954, the family initiated the development of the Rockbridge Rainbow Trout & Game Ranch at the historic mill site. 

Today, the Rockbridge Rainbow Trout and Game Ranch comprises 2,000 acres and has grown into a popular getaway location. So, while the town once attracted people because of its mill and opportunities for trade, today it attracts visitors for leisure. 

"Historic Mills: Rockbridge Mill." West Plains Missouri. Accessed July 23, 2022. https://explorewestplains.com/rockbridge-mill/.

"Ozark County." Community and Conflict: The Impact of the Civil War on the Ozarks." Accessed July 23, 2022. https://ozarkscivilwar.org/regions/ozark.

Rainbow Trout and Game Ranch, Inc. Accessed July 23, 2022. https://www.rockbridgemo.com/.

"Rockbridge — Once a Mere Mill, Now a Booming Resort." KSMU Ozarks Public Radio. December 17, 2018. https://www.ksmu.org/local-history/2018-12-17/rockbridge-once-a-mere-mill-now-a-booming-resort.