Portfolio Naples JUNE 2023 | Page 75

tempts to restart the operation failing over the subsequent years . In 1977 , the mill was destroyed in a fire caused by a suspected lightning strike . More than 75 firefighters fought the blaze which ravaged the mill and reduced it to its concrete foundations . A handful of families remained in the mill village through the late 1970s , but they eventually dispersed , leaving behind a ghost town of buildings slowly falling into disrepair .
Fifteen of the original thirty-five millhouses have been demolished over time , but the remaining 20 homes along the road , and scattered around the property preserve the village ’ s distinct visual character and uniformity . While the houses within the village are deteriorating , they offer a relatively unaltered example of an early twentiethcentury rural mill village .
In 2011 the village was selected as the location for District 12 in the movie adaptation of Suzanne Collins ’ The Hunger Games . The company store became the bakery where Peeta worked out of , and the rest of the houses and site depicted the dilapidated coal mining town . One of the old mill houses was destroyed--blown-up during filming . One house was used in the film for the interior of Katniss ’ home . It was the only house where they filmed inside . Some of the house was gutted then refitted to suit the film ’ s needs .
In 2017 Calvin and Melissa Reyes purchased Henry River Mill Village .
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