The mill was built in the1870s, remained in operation until the mid-1950s, and torn down in the late ‘60s. Last week, workers discovered the remains while digging along the Grand River between the Pearl Street bridge and the museum. Chief Curator Alex Forist explains:
“It turns out that when they demolished that building, they actually left a lot of the equipment in the basement including some of the turbines that used water power to power the milling machinery.”
Those turbines were used to power machinery that not only ground gypsum into powder, but also wheat into flour.
“They also produced some of their own cereal products. They had a product called Voigt Cream Flakes that was basically a breakfast cereal, sort of like corn flakes.”
After the mill was torn down, the site was turned into a parking lot for the next two decades until the museum was built there in 1994.
The museum hopes to remove and preserve the old mill equipment for a future display that will help tell the story of the formation of Grand Rapids and the Grand River’s role in it.
“And these pieces that we’re just now uncovering kind of finish that puzzle and help tell the last couple hundred-year story about kind of an industrial river.”
The museum expansion is expected to be completed in 2025.
