Prior's Mill
Old Mill or Bergen Creek
Present day corner of Freemont and Wayne Streets
Bergen Township

Prior's Mill is an example of a popular and successful business during the Revolutionary War era.

In 1760, Jacob Prior constructed a tidewater mill at the Mill Creek in the marshes that once separated Harsimus Island from the mainland. The filled-in area is now much of the present lower Jersey City. The creek flowed into Communipaw Bay where there was a large dam. Gates to the dam were built across the creek allowing water to enter with the incoming tide; the returning tide applied a force against the gates thereby closing them. As the water accumulated in the dam, it flowed to the wheel where the grinding of grain was done with the use of African slave labor. Utilization of the flood tide as an energy source for the millstones also meant that that the mill operated in the evenings.

Prior's Mill is frequently mentioned in accounts of the area during the Revolutionary War. Although the patriots controlled the area of Mill Creek, it is reported that the British troops as well as the Continental army employed the services of the mill to obtain food for their soldiers. General George Washington, it is claimed, used the area behind the mill to watch the movement of the British navy in the Hudson River. He and General Hugh Mercer were said to be guests of Prior on occasion. Also, Major Henry "Light House Harry" Lee of Virginia used the mill as a stop for his troops before his strategic attack of the British held Fort Paulus Hook on August 1779.

The mill remained in service until it was razed in 1838 to allow for the construction of the New Jersey Railroad. Prior had built a thatch roof home and dock on the premises. The location of the mill made it accessible for farmers to bring their corn and wheat to Prior's mill by either wagon or boat as well as logs to be sawed for lumber. His neighbor Cornelius Van Vorst built a ferry with a route from Paulus Hook Island to Cortland Street in New York City. It required the construction of an earthen causeway to connect with the road to Prior's Mill.