Noun

1. A fast-running water-filled channel diverted from a river or stream used to drive a mill wheel.
   • "The mill race was a ditch that was cut which started along the river’s edge that ran past the mill to provide the water that would turn a wheel that would provide power to the saws. There was a gate on the ditch which could be raised or lowered to allow the water to run or to stop its flow down the ditch." 2000:Lewis J Swindle: The History of the Gold Discoveries of the Northern Mines of California's Mother Lode Gold Belt As Told by the Newspapers and Miners 1848-1875. Trafford Publishing ISBN 155212472X p.8.