Newton Falls is named after one of the men who founded the Newton Falls Paper Mill. It brought people to the area for work. But through the years, it closed and changed ownership several times.
"People were very upset. You can only imagine how upset people were," said Clifton Town Historian Mark Friden. "Some of these people had been through several closures [and were] now already trying to keep jobs, keep money in the bank, food on the table."
But there's a new future in sight for the property. According to the Saint Lawrence County Industrial Development Agency, Abacus Financial of California is buying the site.
The property is more than just a landmark for Newton Falls. It's one of few areas that can be developed as part of the Adirondack Park.
"The uniqueness of the paper mill property in the Adirondack Park is that it's classified for industrial use, so there's very little restriction on what could happen there," said St. Lawrence County Industrial Agency Member Mark Hall.
That means there are a lot of possibilities for new industry.
"It's tragic that the mill closed," Hall said. "It was tragic when they scrapped the paper machines, because that probably means it's never going to be a paper mill again, and it ran for over 100 years without shutting down. But we've got to move on. It's gone. And we're open to anything that could help economic development in this area."