Notes

Finding a proper site with enough water power to make flour was the first challenge facing Valentine Oehler. At the beginnings of the Civil War flour was one of the most important products in Wisconsin. In 1860, flour accounted for 40 percent of the manufactured products in Wisconsin. In the 1870s, flour production dropped off to 25 percent because farmers started growing crops other then wheat and because large national mills put local mills out of business.
The dam, built up stream from the mill, works by increasing the speed of the water. The water must flow quickly in order to allow the water power to turn the mill wheel.
Millers faced many challenges in the up keep of a mill. Rats and other rodents were a constant nuisance. Millers often employed several cats to keep the rodent population in check. Cats were so important that the miller would make "cat doors" throughout the mill.