In 1846, the settlers of Tumwater built a mill for grinding grain into flour and corn meal, called a gristmill. To understand how important this was to them, think about how many times a day we eat bread. Many of us have toast for breakfast, sandwiches for lunch, and perhaps rolls with dinner. Now think about all of the other foods that contain wheat flour – cookies, cakes, pies, pancakes, and muffins. The Tumwater pioneers couldn’t have any of those foods. They did have wheat that they had grown on their farms, but without a way to grind the wheat, they didn’t have flour. The only way they could eat the hard wheat kernels was to boil them. Boiled wheat was filling but not very tasty. The pioneers wanted to have flour so they could bake bread and other foods that had been an important part of their diet back home. In order to have flour, they built a gristmill.
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| Wheat is harvested from the field. |
It is then taken to the mill to be ground into flour. |
The flour can be made into bread, pastries, or crackers. |
The Tumwater gristmill was the first gristmill built on Puget Sound. Settlers came from miles away to have their wheat ground there. Usually the mill owner, or the miller, kept a portion of the flour as payment for grinding it. He could then sell or trade this extra flour for land, animals, or other goods. The Tumwater miller, Michael T. Simmons, made a very good living!
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In later years the Deschutes River was used to power many other factories and mills. In 1847, Michael T. Simmons built the second mill in New Market, a sawmill. This meant that the settlers could quickly cut rough logs into smooth planks. It would be much easier to build houses and furniture. Michael T. Simmons later sold his gristmill and sawmill to Clanrick Crosby. |
| The log flume in this picture is said to be part of Michael T. Simmons' saw mill. |
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Other early water-driven industries included:
1852-1889 – Ward & Hays Sawmill
1854-1889 – Ward & Hays Gristmill
1866-1882 – Lincoln Flour Mill
1869-1888 – Kendall Sash and Door Company
1869-1882 – William N. Horton Pipe Factory
1870-1873– Crawford & Barnhart Furniture Manufacturing
1870-1907 – Pressey & Esterly Furniture Factory
1871-1887 – Leonard, Crosby & Cooper Sash and Door Factory
1878-1890 – George Gelbach Flour Mill
1882-1907 – Olympia Light & Power Company
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These industries have long since burned down or been demolished. However, a careful observer will see the stone foundations of some of these buildings along the Deschutes River in Tumwater Falls Park.
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The gray building at the top of the falls is the Gelbach flour mill, built in 1883. The foundations of the mill can be viewed along the Deschutes River in Tumwater Falls Park. |
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on to page 6 |
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