Eating Minneapolis: Mill City Museum

My brother came to visit last weekend-- which meant I got to be a tourist in my own backyard. Score!



He's a huge history buff, so when he suggested that we check out the Mill City Museum, I was a little skeptical. The history of a flour mill? I mean I bake, but I wasn't sure...

Turned out to be one of the coolest. museums. ever.

The museum covered not only the history of the mill (including an awesome multimedia elevator ride-- trust me, worth it!), but also of the home baking industry.

There was a baking lab, complete with a bread-making demonstration and samples!

I didn't realize Pillsbury was a Midwest brand. I also didn't realize that the doughboy has a name: Poppin' Fresh. Who knew?

Another tidbit: Betty Crocker wasn't real. I was so hoping...

The abandoned mill caught on fire in the early 1990s. You can still walk through all the ruins, which is kind of beautiful...

Since flour milling required water power, the mills were all on the Mississippi river and used its water power.

I definitely just stopped and went "M-I-S-S-I-S-S-I-P-P-I" just now to make sure I spelled it right.

Across the river, the old Pillsbury mill still stands.

The Mill City Museum is housed in the old Gold Medal Flour building.

Walking through the old mill, it's just incredible to imagine all the manpower it took to make a bag of flour.

A wonderful museum, and great for foodies and history fans. Highly recommended!

(And I'm not just saying that because I got a free snack, too, when I parked myself by the bread samples in the Baking Lab).