OLD MILL TORCH

St. Anthony Falls, Minneapolis, Minnesota—September 2016

44°58' 53"N 93°15' 13"W

The Torch cairn marks the remnants of a lumber or flour mill, built in the 1800s to use water from St. Anthony Falls for power.  These mills transformed the wood from surrounding forests, and grain from area farms into lumber and flour that created wealth for Minneapolis businessmen. By 1900, steam power allowed sawmills to move away from the falls. By 1960 all the mills had gone out of business. Remnants of those massive stone buildings can be seen behind the Torch cairn in Mill Ruins Park, downtown Minneapolis. 

https://www.minneapolisparks.org/parks__destinations/parks__lakes/mill_ruins_park/