| Year |
Event |
| 1840 |
Early 1840s first settlers arrive in the Town of Richfield |
| 1846 |
John Messer arrived in America |
| 1846 |
John Messer purchased 120 acres of land in the Town of Richfield |
| 1856 |
Sawmill, with an up and down saw (Mulley), was constructed. Power for the Mulley saw was provided by a 20-foot overshot waterwheel |
| 1856 |
Wooden dam constructed of logs |
| 1869 |
Andrew Messer purchased 27 acres and Sawmill from his father John Messer |
| 1871 |
Grist Mill construction began |
| 1872 |
Leffel water turbine installed |
| 1873 |
Messer grist Mill construction completed and in operation |
| 1874 |
Andrew Messer killed in an horse accident |
| 1876 |
Johann Mayer purchased the grist Mill and Sawmill from Andrew Messer's estate |
| 1880 |
Original turbine replaced |
| 1885 |
Karl Wilhelm (C.W. Mayer) purchased the Mills from his father Johann |
| 1890 |
Added a circular saw powered by a steam engine to Sawmill |
| 1893 |
Four stands (sets) of double roller mills were added to the grist Mill
|
| 1895 |
22 horsepower gasoline engine was installed in grist Mill
|
| 1895 |
Gas engine broke down |
| 1896 |
Engine was replaced; operated 1 week |
| 1897 |
New 35hp engine replaced 22 horsepower engine |
| 1899 |
C.W. Mayer added a 6 roll feed roller to grind oats for cattle feed |
| 1901 |
C.W. Mayer set record - produced 45 barrels of flour in 11 hours |
| 1907 |
Corn cob crusher added to expand cattle feed grinding |
| 1908 |
Turbine replaced |
| 1913 |
Wooden dam collapsed and replaced with a concrete dam |
| 1917 |
George and Charles (Milton) Mayer took over operation of the grist Mill and Sawmill after the death of their father C.W. Mayer |
| 1923 |
Dam washed away and rebuilt |
| 1924 |
Turbine replaced |
| 1927 |
Electricity came to the Mill |
| 1927 |
Electric powered attrition (burr) mill was added |
| 1930 |
Charles (Milton) Mayer sold his interest to his brother George Mayer for $1 |
| 1930 |
Sawmill operation ended |
| 1930 |
Flour milling ended |
| 1951 |
Sawmill collapsed |
| 1954 |
Cattle feed grinding ended; George Mayer retired leaving all of the Mill equipment intact |
| 1968 |
Dam failed again and remnants remain |
| 1971 |
George Mayer moved out of the Mill House |
| 1973 |
George Mayer died |
| 1974 |
Property was sold out of the Mayer family |
| 1996 |
The sawmill equipment was sold and removed from the property |
| 1998 |
Town of Richfield purchased the property (27 acres) containing the Mill and surrounding buildings |
| 1999 |
Started work on Mill restoration |
| 1999 |
New cedar shingle roof on Mill |
| 2001 |
Roller mills refurbished |
| 2002 |
Started replacing the siding |
| 2002 |
Major structural repairs completed on the 2nd floor of the Mill |
| 2002 |
Completed reconstruction of the horseshed |
| 2003 |
Trees cleared from Mill area - lumber was used to replace flooring on the 2nd and 3rd floors |
| 2003 |
Information sign by the Mill built |
| 2004 |
Finished replacing the siding |
| 2005 |
Sifter restored |
| 2006 |
Mill placed on the State Register of Historic places |
| 2006 |
Repaired flooring on the 2nd and 3rd floors |
| 2006 |
Portion of water chase reconstructed |
| 2006 |
Front steps moved |
| 2006 |
Purchased 1913 Superior gas engine |
| 2006 |
Water chase rebuilt |
| 2007 |
Mill placed on the National Register of Historic places |
| 2007 |
Completed Mill window replacement |
| 2009 |
Mill designated a Washington County Landmark |
| 2009 |
Foundation stabilized |
| 2011 |
Built new stairs between 1st and 2nd floors |
| 2012 |
A set of grain elevators refurbished and made operational |
| 2013 |
Restored north and parts of east and west side of the foundation |
| 2015 |
Rebuilt basement stairs |
| 2015 |
Path & door to basement completed |
| 2016 |
Cleaned and rebuilt the bolting machine |
| 2017 |
Mill siding repainted |
| 2018 |
Completed the restoration of the foundation |
| 2023 |
Rebuild the engine shed |
| |
Restore the Leffel turbine |
| |
Clean and rebuild floor hopper, chute, and grain elevators |
| |
Clean the storage bins and rebuild the bagging area |
| |
Realign the shafting that turns the millstones |
| |
Hook up the Superior engine as the power source |
| |
Rebuild the dam |
| |
Rebuild the Sawmill |
| |
LET'S GET THE MILL GRINDING |
