Local

Holyoke Mills formally opened Feb. 29, 1916 — a day which came to be known as Biscuit Day. Hot biscuits, corn bread and graham bread from the products of the mill were served, and a 5-pound sack of flour was presented to the head of each family. That day, 513 sacks were passed out and more than 3,000 biscuits were consumed, which did not nearly fill the requirement of the crowd of 4,000. Two brands of flour were made by Holyoke Mills, as well as graham, corn meal, ground feed, shorts, bran and all by-products of milling. H.C. Rice of Franklin, Nebraska, installed the mill at a cost of $8,000-$10,000, and E.R. Owens was the miller in charge and his son, W.A. Owens, the engineer. An Enterprise ad from 1935, when this photo is thought to have been taken, claimed “this institution is owned and maintained by our local farmers.” — Source: Phillips County Museum