Mill City Museum

When we learned Minnesota sixth-graders gain access to all Minnesota Historical Society sites for FREE during the academic year, we immediately made plans to visit Mill City Museum. The 6th Grade Minnesota History Pass allows admission to more than 15 historic sites across the state. After recent stops at the Minnesota History Center and the Minnesota State Capitol, our next adventure was to Mill City.

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Mill City Museum is on the site of the former Washburn A Mill which operated on the banks of the Mississippi River in Minneapolis from 1874 until 1965. At that time, Minneapolis was dubbed the “Mill City” and was known as the flour milling capital of the world.

Flour Tower

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When you purchase tickets to the museum, you’ll receive a timed-entry ticket to the Flour Tower elevator ride. The Flour Tower elevator ride did not allow photography which is disappointing because the experience was entertaining and very informative. The open air, Four Tower elevator ride takes visitors on an audio visual experience of a day in the life of the mill. The entire eight floor ride uses voices and videos of people who worked at the mill in the early 1900s to bring the story of the mill to life.

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When the flour tower ride concluded we made our way into the museum’s exhibit area. Here visitors can see some of the original artifacts of the mill including; a stone wheat grinder, grain separator and dust collectors. The displays do a nice job of explaining the milling process as well. After learning about the milling process, our next stop was the museum’s Water Lab.

Water Lab

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The boys loved the Water Lab at Mill City Museum. The lab offers hands on and interactive exhibits on how the early mill harnesses the power of the Mississippi River to facilitate milling. The boys got their hands wet (pun intended) changing the flow of the river in the table top model to spin the wheels of the mill and generate power. They also spent time putting together a giant puzzle of buildings and milling infrastructure on the river’s banks.

Ruin Courtyard

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Our final stop at Mill City Museum was ruin Courtyard. The courtyard is the burned out remnants of the Washburn A Mill after a fire in 1991. The fire destroyed the entire building except the concrete interior and the limestone exterior walls. After the fire, the Minnesota Historical Society announced plans to build a museum on the site.

Bonus Visit: Foshay Tower

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As a bonus to our trip to Mill City Museum, we made a quick visit to the Foshay Tower as well. To purchase tickets to the Foshay Museum and Observation deck, head to the front desk of the W Hotel. You’ll receive a key card to ride the elevator to the 32nd floor where the museum is located.

The Foshay Tower is modeled after the Washington Monument. Work on the tower was complete in August 1929. Three months later the stock market crashed which marked the start of the Great Depression. Utilities businessman and tower builder, Wilbur Foshay would loose almost everything as a result. The tower stands 607 feet tall. It remained the tallest building in Minneapolis until the IDS Center was constructed in 1972.

Both our visit to Mill City Museum and the Foshay Tower were wonderful. Our 6th grader had recently learned about the significant events that happened at these locations in his Minnesota Studies coursework. Our visits brought this coursework to life. It was a joy to hear his get excited when he was able to connect classroom experiences with the artifacts and displays at the museums. Check out more 6th grade Minnesota History Pass posts on our visits to the Minnesota History Center, the State Capitol, the James J. Hill House and Jeffers Petroglyphs.

Happy Adventuring, Rochelle