The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1905-12-31
MINNEAPOLIS
LEADS WORLD
IN MILLING.
Flour Making the Industry Which
First Made Minneapolis
Famous. Fl
Capacity and Production Of the
Mills of Today The Export
Business. a.

|
try dates back half century to the
erection OF merchant mill at the Falls
Of St. Anthony in 1854. But there was
little progress made for number Of
years and in the hard times just pre-
ceding the war the industry was al
most extinguished. With the close of |
the war and the reaction which led to
rapid development Of the northwest,
mill building was taken up and pushed
with that aggressive earnestness which
characterized the commercial opera
lions Of the city at that period. This
was the real beginning of the industry
as an important factor in the country's |
-four production. -, |
| Within a few years came tho roller
process and other important inven-
tions, while at the same time came to
the world knowledge that northwest
ern spring wheat made the best flour
for baking bread. 1t was time Of
marvellous progress for the Minneapo-
lis industry. The names Of Washburn,
Pillsbury, Christian, Crosby, Dun
woody, Barber and others became
prominent Mills were built one after
another with great rapidity, while ma
chinery WAS installed only to be torn
out and replaced, perhaps, in few
months, by improved apparatus. With
in very few years Minneapolis found
herself famous as four-making city, 4
and people all over the country, who
possibly could not locate the city on
the map, knew the name "Minneapo-
lis'' for it's flour.
In 1866 there were eight mills at
Minneapolis with a combined capacity
Of $4,000 barrels; one year later there
! 4hir+oa, Wills Nth ofI
22O, 688 barrels These were all small
mills. A few years later the Wash
burns and Pillsburys began to build
great flour producers and capacity
was no longer reckoned by yearly pro-
duction but by a possible days out
put. In 1875 the capacity was 5000
barrels a day and five years later
this had doubled. Another fve-year
term brought the capacity up to 1915
and the increase continued in five
year periods as follows: 1890, 44,1O0;.
1895, $4,000; 1900, 1896; 1905, s4,775
barrels.
! Annual production figures became so
large that people would hardly believe
them. When, in 1876, Minneapolis
first produced 100000 barrels of flour,
it was regarded as a. most extraordi.s
nary accomplishment. But four years
later over 100000 barrels were
ground, and during the next year (the
year of the organization of the Cham
Der Of Commerce) the output was
3,142,000 barrels. For five years there
was steady growth, but from 1886 to
1890 the output remained nearly STA
tionary. Then another period of growth
set in and from about 100000 barrels
in 1890 the production sprang to TO-
5S1,635 in 1895. From this it grew to
! 16, 1850, los barrels in l9O2-the highest
point reached by the Minneapolis mills
Light crops and other influences served
to lower the output in 1903 and 1904,
but the production is again on the up
grade and 1906 shows a substantial in
crease With the last four days of the
year estimated the production was H.
403,l15 or 100000 barrels better than
in 1904. e.. - =.
Flour exporting was commenced in
1878 and has since developed to con-
siderable proportions, tho much de-
pressed Gas compared with output) in
recent years. The present year, how
ever, has shown a gain Of upwards of
half million barrels exported. The
figures for 1905 compared with 1904,
IN production, exports, receipts and
shipments, are as follows:
|,... Output, Exports
Brls. A. -. Brls
1928 :.:11ssSS5 5S ,z9 a 1751:52G
Increase -. 750,380 45O,92(
49, Receipts, Shipments
: 1904 ........... 352,O93 14,12o,7 85
1905 .......... 313,517 l4,227,l7s
*Last four days estimated. aF
The gain in -four business in 1905
was all made during the last -four
months of the year. in the first part
of the year the industry was very much
depressed, suffering both from short
supply Of wheat and from poor quality
of that which was considered worth
milling at all. With the coming Of the
new crop-beginning in September
grinding began at a rate never equaled
before in the city. Records were
broken only to be broken again.
In October the mills ground 1868 ,s15
r barrels, breaking all records for q
month. During the week ending Oct
30, 4S6,367 barrels were shipped, es
tablishing a new record for a week +
shipment, and the shipment Of 2, 1925 ,oOC
Va. barrels in a month set new mark fol
thirty days loading. The one-day rec
ord Of shipment was pushed up K
106,841 barrels, while Individual mills
shattered all their old states and hat
to start new records all round.