North Dakota Mill and Elevator
Introduction
Text-to-speech Audio
Images
North Dakota Mill logo
North Dakota Mill and Elevator as it looks today
Reportedly 1915 colored postcard of the Mill
Aerial view of the Mill
1939 photo of the Mill. Photo courtesy State Historical Society of North Dakota
1919 cover of the Nonpartisan League Journal
Backstory and Context
Text-to-speech Audio
The North Dakota Mill and Elevator Association started operations on October 22, 1922. The facility was built by the state as a way of bypassing what many area wheat farmers considered unfair business practices on the part of the railroads and milling facilities in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Immigrants especially felt that they were disadvantage by the actions of major capitalists in the big cities.
In the early 1900s, the flour mills and grain exchange in Minneapolis were the primary wheat markets for North Dakotan farmers and elevators. After freight costs to Minneapolis were deducted from Minneapolis market prices, North Dakotan farmers received a low price for their wheat. The North Dakota Mill was established by the Nonpartisan League leaders, who then controlled the state government, to help solve this problem and benefit local farmers.
The North Dakota Mill facilities include seven milling units, a terminal elevator and a packing warehouse to prepare bagged products for shipment. The Mill's offerings include not only flour, but also newer products such as bread machine mixes, pancake mixes, and organic wheat products.
Sources
- Morlan, Robert L. (1955) Political Prairie Fire: The Nonpartisan League, 1915-1922 (Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press)
- Lipset, Seymour M. (1971) Agrarian Socialism (Berkeley: University of California Press)
- Gretchen Dystra (March 30, 2012). "Pragmatism on the Prairie". The New York Times.
- "Mill and Elevator Association". State Historical Society of North Dakota.
- "Company Overview of North Dakota Mill & Elevator Association". Bloomberg Business.