Lincoln Flour Mill

Lincoln Flour Mill. . , Lincoln Mill, built in 1880 by W.D. Washburn, was the largest and most successful of Anoka's mills. The mill measured 60'x120' and was 7 stories tall. The mill was powered by two American turbine wheels, a 250-horsepower Corliss engine, and was considered state of the art. The mil employed 40 men and could produce 600 barrels of flour a day. The great fire that swept through Anoka on August 16, 1884, destroyed most of downtown and the Lincoln Mill. In 1885 the mill was rebuilt and began operating once again. A news release on reopening day exclaimed that "without a doubt, this is the finest mill in the state, the machinery being the latest approved patterns, and no expense has been spared to make it the finest in every particular.", In 1889 the mill was purchased by the Pillsbury-Washburn Flour Mills Company and reopened after sitting idle for two years. In 1905 the mill began the periodic production of durum flour. In 1909 the mill was acquired by receivers through the reorganization into the Pillsbury Flour Mills Company. A year later the Anoka mill was completely converted to the production of durum wheat resulting in an increased production capacity of 1,500 barrels per day., [Captions:] , William Drew Washburn, Mill Destroyed by the Great Fire of 1884, Custom and Feed Mill, In 1932 Pillsbury decommissioned the mill, transferred the grinding equipment to the "A" Mill in Minneapolis, and demolished the upper floors. The elevator and first floor offices remained until the rest of the building was razed in 1939., In 1934 the Rum River dam, flume, wheelhouse, and water rights were sold to the City of Anoka for $1,500 In 1944 the City of Anoka purchased the Lincoln Mill property from Pillsbury for $4,200. City Hall was constructed on the site in 1952., Two flour mills operated in the City of Anoka long before the Lincoln Mill was built:, . Custom and Feed Mill was the first grain mill to be built in Anoka in 1854. The grist mill was owned and operated by Woodbury and Lane. The mill burned the same year it was built, but was rebuilt the next summer. The mill was purchased by the W.D. Washburn Company., . Eagle Mill was built by Owen and Morse in 1879. The mill paled in comparison to the Lincoln Mill, measuring 30' x 40' and three stories high. The mill was able to produce 50 barrels of flour per day., Photos and historical information courtesy of the Anoka County Historical Society.