Pickwick Mill

	Pickwick Mill
	U.S. National Register of Historic Places
	Pickwick Mill from the southeast
Location	24813 County Road 7, Pickwick, Minnesota
Coordinates	43°58′49.4″N91°29′48.2″W / 43.980389°N 91.496722°W Coordinates: 43°58′49.4″N91°29′48.2″W / 43.980389°N 91.496722°W
Area	1 acre (0.40 ha)
Built	1854
NRHP reference #	70000314 [1]
Added to NRHP	September 22, 1970

Last updated May 02, 2019

Pickwick Mill is a historic gristmill in the unincorporated community of Pickwick, Minnesota, United States, near the city of Winona. It was constructed in the mid-1850s and is now operated as a milling museum. Pickwick Mill was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1970 for having state-level significance in the themes of agriculture, architecture, and industry.^[2] It was nominated for being one of southeast Minnesota's oldest surviving water-powered mills, serving as a key local industry in its day and a Winona County landmark to the present.^[3]

A gristmill grinds cereal grain into flour and middlings. The term can refer to both the grinding mechanism and the building that holds it.

Pickwick is an unincorporated community in Homer Township, Winona County, Minnesota, United States.

Winona is a city in and the county seat of Winona County, in the state of Minnesota. Located in picturesque bluff country on the Mississippi River, its most noticeable physical landmark is Sugar Loaf. The city is named after legendary figure Winona, said to have been the first-born daughter of Chief Wapasha (Wabasha) III. The total population of the city was estimated to be 27,592 at the time of the 2018 census.

Description

The six-story building was constructed from local limestone with a nail-less timber frame and a pitched roof. In 1907 a tornado ripped up the roof and top story, which the operators replaced with a flat plank roof. A more classically accurate pitched roof was restored in recent years.^[4] The mill is powered by a 20-foot (6 m) water wheel.^[5] Most of the mill's original machinery is still intact and operable.^[3]

Limestone Sedimentary rocks made of calcium carbonate

Limestone is a carbonate sedimentary rock that is often composed of the skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral, foraminifera, and molluscs. Its major materials are the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate (CaCO₃). A closely related rock is dolomite, which contains a high percentage of the mineral dolomite, CaMg(CO₃)₂. In fact, in old USGS publications, dolomite was referred to as magnesian limestone, a term now reserved for magnesium-deficient dolomites or magnesium-rich limestones.

In building construction, roof pitch is a numerical measure of the steepness of a roof. Roofs may be functionally flat or "pitched".

A tornado is a rapidly rotating column of air that is in contact with both the surface of the Earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. The windstorm is often referred to as a twister, whirlwind or cyclone, although the word cyclone is used in meteorology to name a weather system with a low-pressure area in the center around which, from an observer looking down toward the surface of the earth, winds blow counterclockwise in the Northern Hemisphere and clockwise in the Southern. Tornadoes come in many shapes and sizes, and they are often visible in the form of a condensation funnel originating from the base of a cumulonimbus cloud, with a cloud of rotating debris and dust beneath it. Most tornadoes have wind speeds less than 110 miles per hour (180 km/h), are about 250 feet (80 m) across, and travel a few miles before dissipating. The most extreme tornadoes can attain wind speeds of more than 300 miles per hour (480 km/h), are more than two miles (3 km) in diameter, and stay on the ground for dozens of miles.

History

Pickwick Mill was built on the banks of Big Trout Creek by Thomas Grant and Wilson Davis. The mill's official website says it was constructed 1856–58,^[4] though other sources give a construction date of 1854.^[2]^[6] The property's National Register nomination says it was built in 1854 as a grist- and lumber mill and converted to flour production in 1856.^[3]

Flour powder which is made by grinding cereal grains

Flour is a powder made by grinding raw grains, roots, beans, nuts or seeds. It is used to make many different foods. Cereal flour is the main ingredient of bread, which is a staple food for most cultures. Wheat flour is one of the most important ingredients in Oceanic, European, South American, North American, Middle Eastern, North Indian and North African cultures, and is the defining ingredient in their styles of breads and pastries.

Pickwick Mill is one of the largest mills in Minnesota and was one of the first community businesses in the state.^[6] During the American Civil War the mill ran non-stop, churning out 100 barrels of flour a day for the Union Army.^[4]

American Civil War Civil war in the United States from 1861 to 1865

The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States from 1861 to 1865, between the North and the South. The most studied and written about episode in U.S. history, the Civil War began primarily as a result of the long-standing controversy over the enslavement of black people. War broke out in April 1861 when secessionist forces attacked Fort Sumter in South Carolina shortly after Abraham Lincoln had been inaugurated as the President of the United States. The loyalists of the Union in the North proclaimed support for the Constitution. They faced secessionists of the Confederate States in the South, who advocated for states' rights to uphold slavery.

During the American Civil War, the Union Army referred to the United States Army, the land force that fought to preserve the Union of the collective states. Also known as the Federal Army, it proved essential to the preservation of the United States of America as a working, viable republic.

Historic attraction

Pickwick Mill is now managed by Pickwick Mill Inc., a non-profit organization largely funded by grants.^[4]^[6] It is open for tours from May to October.^[5]

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References

↑ National Park Service (2010-07-09). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service.
1 2 "Pickwick Mill". Minnesota National Register Properties Database. Minnesota Historical Society. 2009. Retrieved 2015-06-23.
1 2 3 Grossman, John (1970-05-11). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory – Nomination Form: Pickwick Mill". National Park Service. Retrieved 2015-07-05.
1 2 3 4 "Pickwick Mill". Pickwick Mill Association. 2015. Retrieved 2015-07-06.
1 2 "The Historic Pickwick Mill". Explore Minnesota. Retrieved 2015-07-06.
1 2 3 Pederson, Alyssa (2010-07-16). "Pickwick Mill going strong". Winona Daily News. Winona, Minn. Retrieved 2015-07-06.

External links

Pickwick Mill - official site

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[nris-1] National Park Service (2010-07-09). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service.

[MNHS-2] 1 2 "Pickwick Mill". Minnesota National Register Properties Database. Minnesota Historical Society. 2009. Retrieved 2015-06-23.

[Grossman-3] 1 2 3 Grossman, John (1970-05-11). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory – Nomination Form: Pickwick Mill". National Park Service. Retrieved 2015-07-05.

[Official-4] 1 2 3 4 "Pickwick Mill". Pickwick Mill Association. 2015. Retrieved 2015-07-06.

[Explore-5] 1 2 "The Historic Pickwick Mill". Explore Minnesota. Retrieved 2015-07-06.

[Pederson-6] 1 2 3 Pederson, Alyssa (2010-07-16). "Pickwick Mill going strong". Winona Daily News. Winona, Minn. Retrieved 2015-07-06.

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