Florence Mill

Linda Meigs Studio. Open seasonally: 1-5pm from Mid-May through first weekend of October, Wednesdays through Sundays. The Florence Mill, located next to I-680, Exit 13 at 9102 N 30th St in Omaha NE, started as the idea of Brigham Young. Construction began in 1846. It was finished in 1847. Abandoned in 1848 as Mormon Pioneers made their trek west to the Salt Lake Valley. The mill played an important role in the history and growth of Florence, a pioneer town now part of Omaha. After it was abandoned by the Mormons, it was rebuilt by a gold-rusher. Alexander Hunter intended to head west to the gold fields but he never made it out of Nebraska. In 1860 it was bought by Hunter’s hired-hand, Jacob Weber. The Weber family operated the mill for 104 years: from before the Civil War to the Cold War. The grain elevator was added in 1915. It was electrified in 1923. In 1964 the Weber Mill & Grain Elevator was sold to Ernie and Ruthie Harpster who ran a feed mill. They saved it from demolition in 1970 by Nebraska Dept of Transportation as the adjacent interstate was being built. The Florence Mill is currently owned by an artist, Linda Meigs, who restored it along with her husband, John Meigs, as a historic site. Today it connects Agriculture, History and Art: housing the non-profit Winter-Quarters Mill Museum, ArtLoft studio & gallery, and a Sunday Farmers Market that runs 10-3 from June through September. Still standing inside the mill are original supporting beams that were put in place by Mormon Pioneers in 1846. The only remaining artifacts from the Winter Quarters settlement are these hand-hewn Timbers and a headstone at the Mormon Trail Center belonging to “Amy.”

The mill is currently listed on the National Register of Historic Places and has been designated as a Nebraska State Historic Site and a Save America's Treasures Project.