A large water-powered mill was established during the 1830s on the middle fork of the Obion River, north of Gleason. It produced lumber, two grades of flour, shorts, cornmeal, and cracked corn for feed, which were shipped by flatboat to New Orleans. Owned and operated from 1858 until 1917 by William D. Janes and his father, Edward Janes, Janes Mill was a community gathering place and provided for the needy during the Civil War.