102-yo Flour Mill

Next to highway I-35 in North Kansas City is this century old flour mill that I drive pass every week. Grey and stoic, it had a sense of soviet-like grandeur that is both captivating and intimidating.

I've visited photographed the site a couple of times now, despite their "Authorized Personnel Only" signs.

Demolition in progress. Over the course of 3 weeks, I witness the row of grain elevators falling one by one, slabs of concrete hanging in mid-air by threads of steel.

One afternoon, I met an ex-worker there outside the fence, taking his own farewell pictures. Apparently, the mill was built in 1910. On the left were the grain elevators, the actual mill in the middle, and the flour storage on the right hand side.

In its heyday the mill could churn out 2 million pounds of flour a day. It even survived lightning strikes and explosions in 1978.

But time has changed. After being abandoned for 6-7 years, the whole complex will now be flattened and replaced by a big Walmart.

Rise and fall, here's my tribute to this century-old workhorse that kept everyone fed through both World Wars and more.

Photographer:
ihave2pillows
Uploaded:
2012-04-05
Tags:
102 102 year-old 120 1910 25a 75mm abandoned adm flour mill b&w black century concrete construction site demolition diana elevator flour flour mill format grain hua industrial industry kansas kcmo lens medium mill qing red filter romantic rubble ruin ruins spooky tri-x tx400 urban white wrecking ball year-old
Camera:
Lomography Diana F+ (available in our shop)
Film:
Kodak TX 400
City:
Kansas City
Country/region:
United States
Year:
2012
Time:
morning
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