WESTPORT — It was the first official day on the job on Wednesday for new owners, Bruce and Sarah Delano, who just closed on the sale of the historic Gray’s Grist Mill and Gray’s Daily Grind on Adamsville Road on the Rhode Island border.

“It’s going to be a lot of hard work, but I think it's worth it,” said Sarah, who will run Gray’s Daily Grind and was already getting training from her staff of baristas. “We are going to keep the good coffee and keep building a good staff.”

“It’s going to be the same old coffee shop,” according to Sarah, who said she’s been coming to Gray’s on a weekly basis as a loyal customer for years.

When the Delanos, who live in Fairhaven, found out the property was up for sale, Sarah told her husband that she didn’t want anyone else to purchase Gray's.

“The coffee shop is his dream, too,” said Sarah.

The couple own Delano’s Landscaping out of Fairhaven and are now just the third to own the Gray's mill and coffee shop since the start of World War II.

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The historic mill operation on hold

The Delanos purchased the picturesque property on Mill Pond for $550,000 from the heirs of the late New York businessman, Ralph Guild, who died in November 2021, and his wife Calla Guild, who died July 2022. The husband and wife were both 93 at the time of their death.

The Guilds bought the property back in 1980, and spent millions to restore the mill building on 2.16 acres that also includes a restored five-unit office building.

The Guilds purchased the mill and property from the Gray family, who owned the mill since 1880. The stipulation in the sale in 1980 was that it continue to operate as a working mill.

The iconic Gray’s Grist Mill is reportedly the country’s oldest continually operating mill that’s been grinding johnny cake corn meal for over 300 years.

The mill produces Gray’s Rhode Island Jonnycake Cornmeal, a product that was spotlighted in the 2022 Yankee Magazine food awards in October.

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But for now, Sarah said the operation at the mill is on “pause,” due to the fact that it's winter and the building used for the traditional production of cornmeal needs a new roof and insulation.

The miller, George Whitley, who had been hired and trained under Ralph Guild to run the operation for the past seven years, announced on social media that he is no longer employed at Gray’s Grist Mill.

Contacted by a reporter, Whitley declined to comment on the status of the old mill.

Creating a destination

Delano said she has confidence moving the business ahead, and that while her first day felt “crazy," it also felt calm and credited the staff.

“Everybody who wants to stay, can stay. I know I have nothing to worry about, everyone has a good work ethic,” she said.

And taking over the Gray’s property in winter is advantageous for the new owners, giving them time to learn the business before the summer deluge of tourists and locals.

“I just need to learn it all, hopefully before the summer rush,” joked Delano.

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While there may be no need for any improvements to Gray’s Daily Grind, with its beloved coffee bar and homemade sweets, the couple is eying improvements to the property that will make people think of Gray’s Mill and coffee shop as a destination.

They are looking to add more picnic tables and seating across the street on Mill Pond and are looking to also enhance the bucolic area behind the mill building that has so far been underutilized.

“No one even knows it exists,” she said.

This article originally appeared on The Herald News: New owners take over Gray's property; grist mill operation on 'pause'