“Swany White Flour Mills”的意思、由来-开放百科全书

The mill complex had been listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982 as the Freeport Roller Mill and Miller's House for its local significance in the theme of commerce.^[4] In addition to the 1898 mill, which was expanded to three stories in 1912, the complex consisted of an attached brick powerhouse, the adjacent miller's house built in 1900, and a disused freestanding brick smokestack.^[5] It was the last remaining 19th-century mill in use in Minnesota.^[6] The miller's house and smokestack still stand, with the 2012 replacement mill between them, and the property has not been delisted from the National Register.

History

The builder of the original mill, Anton Hoeschen, did not intend to run the mill himself. Instead he saw it as an investment in the community and hoped that he would find a buyer who wanted to be a miller. After several ownership changes in its first few years, the mill was bought in 1903 by Hubert and Peter Thelen, who ran the mill together. They chose the name Swany White for their brand of white flour to suggest that their product was as white as a swan.^[6]

In the early years the business was one of a number of small mills throughout Minnesota where local farmers could sell their wheat close to home rather than having to ship it to large mills in Minneapolis. At the mill they could sell their grain outright or trade raw wheat for ground flour for their own family's use.^[6]

In 1913 the Thelen brothers remodeled the mill, adding a basement and more manufacturing space. The changes made the mill more efficient, and it was able to produce twice as much flour as it had before. After Peter Thelen's retirement in 1953, his son Walter took over the mill. In 1966 he replaced the mill's original steam engine with an electric motor.^[6]

While other small mills were not able to remain profitable during an era of increased consolidation and a downturn in Minnesota wheat production, Walter Thelen came up with a way to keep the mill in business by producing a slightly different product. During the 1970s he persuaded organic farmers to produce organic flour, and he made arrangements with specialty bakers in area. His strategy worked, and Swany White Flour was sold in food cooperatives and health food stores in Minnesota. He also sold flour as far away as the East Coast.^[6]

In 1982 the mill was placed on the National Register of Historic Places, but it remained a working mill. In 1998, Walter's son Gary took over the family business when he bought it from his father. By that time, the Swany White Flour Mill had become a Minnesota landmark. When photographer Richard Olsenius spent time in Freeport looking for places that had inspired Garrison Keillor's Lake Wobegon, he photographed Gary Thelen and his mill. Members of local bread clubs would also visit to see how a century-old mill worked.^[6]

Swany White Mill burned to the ground on December 27, 2011. No one was injured.^[6] The fire was reported at 4:48 P.M. by an employee. It took over five surrounding fire agencies to put out the blaze. That night, people gathered to watch the local landmark burn, with many holding hands and crying.^[7] Though he initially claimed that he would not rebuild the mill, Gary Thelen changed his mind, and a new Swany White mill opened in 2012.^[6]

Production

For white flour, Swany White had used the same milling equipment since 1913. It had a milling capacity of about {{convert|1000|lb}} per hour, or {{convert|12000|lb|abbr=on}} per business day.^[8] This was a fraction of the milling capacity of most mills. It is notable that Swany White Flour had continued to operate as a small independent while most other small regional producers have either given up or sold out.{{Citation needed|date=December 2011}}

For its conventional products, the mill had a commercial presence mainly in the Upper Midwest, however its organic products were distributed more widely.^[8] In addition to sales to distributors and retailers, Swany White had a retail outlet at the mill in Freeport. The mill's most popular product was a bleached flour sold under the brand name Faith's Best, which accounted for about 60% of all sales.^[8]

See also

References

1. ^{{NRISref|2010a}}
2. ^¹{{cite web |title=About Us |url=http://swanywhiteflour.com/about-us |publisher=Swany White Flour Mills |year=2012 |accessdate=2018-06-05}}
3. ^{{cite news |last=Bowen |first=Amy |author2=Dave Aeikens |title=Fire destroys iconic Freeport flour mill |url=http://www.sctimes.com/article/20111228/NEWS01/112270034/Fire-destroys-iconic-Freeport-flour-mill |newspaper=St. Cloud Times |location=St. Cloud, Minn. |date=2011-12-27 |accessdate=2013-03-28}}
4. ^{{cite web |title=Freeport Roller Mill and Miller's House |url=http://www.mnhs.org/preserve/nrhp/NRDetails.cfm-NPSNum=82003043.html |work=Minnesota National Register Properties Database |publisher=Minnesota Historical Society |year=2009 |accessdate=2018-06-05}}
5. ^{{cite document |last=Harvey |first=Thomas |title=Minnesota Historic Properties Inventory Form: Swany White Flour Mill & Miller's House |url={{NRHP url|id=82003043}} |publisher=National Park Service |date=October 1980 |accessdate=2018-06-05}} With {{NRHP url|id=82003043|photos=y|title=two accompanying photographs from 1977}}
6. ^¹²³⁴⁵⁶⁷{{cite web |last=Weber |first=Eric W. |title=Swany White Flour Mill |url=http://www.mnopedia.org/structure/swany-white-flour-mill |work=MNopedia |publisher=Minnesota Historical Society |date=2018-01-10 |accessdate=2018-06-05}}
7. ^{{cite news |last=Bowen |first=Amy |author2=Dave Aeikens |title=Fire destroys iconic Freeport flour mill |url=http://www.sctimes.com/article/20111228/NEWS01/112270034/Fire-destroys-iconic-Freeport-flour-mill |newspaper=St. Cloud Times |location=St. Cloud, Minn. |date=2011-12-27 |accessdate=2013-03-28}}
8. ^¹²{{cite web |last=Mergian |first=Gwen |title=Focus on Coop Suppliers: Swany White Flour |url=http://www.honestweight.coop/CoopScoop/Nov05/suppliers.html |publisher=Honest Weight Food Coop |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20060923041422/http://www.honestweight.coop/CoopScoop/Nov05/suppliers.html |archivedate=2006-09-23 |df= }}

External links

11 : 1903 establishments in Minnesota|Buildings and structures in Stearns County, Minnesota|Destroyed landmarks in the United States|Flour mills in the United States|Food manufacturers of the United States|Industrial buildings completed in 1898|Grinding mills in Minnesota|Grinding mills on the National Register of Historic Places in Minnesota|Manufacturing companies based in Minnesota|Manufacturing companies established in 1903|National Register of Historic Places in Stearns County, Minnesota