Sunday June 3, we will be celebrating the 200th birthday of Charles Dickens, whose book The Pickwick Papers was the reason for the town's name. Join us at 1:30 for tea and English pastries on the front lawn of the famous Pickwick Mill Museum. For a mere 4 pound 6 shillings and 9 pence ($7.00 ) you will be provided with, performance readings, strolling minstrals, tea, english pastries, and free entry to the Pickwick Mill Museum. You best come join us elst the ghost of birthdays past may come avisiting!!
The Pickwick Mill was built from 1856 to 1858 by Thomas Grant and Wilson Davis and is one of the oldest water powered gristmills found in southeast Minnesota. The mill was constructed as a gristmill and sawmill on the banks of Big Trout Creek located in Pickwick Minnesota. The mill ran 24 hours a day during the Civil War and produced 100 barrels daily for the Union Army. After the war, the mill became a flour-milling center for most of southern Minnesota and portions of Iowa and Wisconsin.
The mill was built from locally quarried limestone, with a timber frame that was so closely fit, that nails were not used (outside of the floor). The six story building was severely damaged in 1907 when a tornado took off the roof and top storage room. The mill was then retrofitted with a flat plank roof. The mill has been restored to a gable roof that is reminiscent of the original design.
Today the mill is administered as a historic site by Pickwick Mill Inc., a privately funded, non-profit organization.
The Annual Board Meeting will be on April 2 at 7:00 P.M. It will be at the Pickwick Firehouse. Everyone is welcomed. There will be refreshments served afterwards. Come join us and give us your input, or just visit with friends and show your support.