A series where we take a #lookback at the stories and history of our community, brought to you by Mick Pryor, Financial Advisor with Edward Jones.
Riverton has, since its founding, produced a large amount of high quality alfalfa. It only makes sense for the construction of an alfalfa meal mill in the area. Plans for the first mill were rumored in 1913, though the mill was not constructed until 1914. The Wash Co. Alfalfa Mixed Feed and Million Co, known as Wash-Co., made contracts with the farmers of the valley for 3500 tons of alfalfa to be delivered to the mill. The building was made along the tracks and was roughly 55×175 feet with all “modern” equipment, such as unloading and unloading machinery. The building was also as “near fireproof” as it could be made, an issue that plagued other Western alfalfa mills of the time. In 1917, the Basin, Wyoming alfalfa mill burned to the ground destroying machinery worth around $35,000.
However, the new Wash-Co mill seemed up to standards. In September 1914, the contracts and leases between Wash-Co and the railroad were signed. The foundation was built by Riverton’s Gus Carolson, who also built the foundation for the electrical plant, and several hundred feet of sidewalk in Riverton and at St. Stephens during that summer. The alfalfa meal mill was put in at an expense of $25,000. However, there was an expectation that Riverton would continue to grow very quickly. The Fort Collins Enterprise predicted that Riverton would soon become the third largest town in Wyoming north of the Union Pacific: in part because of the alfalfa mill, the railroad, and the tie treating industry in town.
Riverton has always had its alfalfa production, and another company wanted to profit from the high quality alfalfa grown here. Despite the construction of the alfalfa mill in 1914, the Colorado Alfalfa Milling Company designed a plant to be built just the following year at the cost of $40,000. It would be housed in a building approximately 60 x 140 feet with a large warehouse for the storage of the alfalfa at around 60 x 600 feet. The new alfalfa mill was said to be the largest in the world at the time.
To compete with the “largest mill in the world,” the original Riverton Alfalfa Mill owned by Wash-Co planned to increase the capacity of their mill to a minimum capacity of eighty tons of meal per day in ten hours. They ordered additional machinery and sufficient power had been arranged to run it. Power had been a previous issue in Riverton. The town council was not satisfied with the power run by the Popo Agie Light & Power Co. at the time. They even were willing to discontinue service for street lighting at 12pm every day to ensure there was enough power to be used for the alfalfa mill.
On September 24, 1915, a grand ball was held in the new alfalfa mill with around 100 Riverton and Lander residents present. The competition between the two mills had begun. The Wash-Co mill had been working both day and night shifts, grinding the rich product of the local Riverton alfalfa farms. They also ensured contracts between local farmers and agreed to pay a minimum of $7 per ton of loose hay brought to the mill over the next five years. The new mill, run by the Colorado Alfalfa Milling Company and owned by H. Cassidy also began operations. Though they had no contracts yet, the steam had been turned on and the machinery had started up. Both mills were offering to pay $7 per ton for its product, shipping in alfalfa from Lander and the Riverton valley.
The competition continued for several years, though it was not exactly profitable. The Riverton valley has always grown a high quality product, and that high quality product has demanded high purchasing costs from the mills. The competition between the two mills, and other companies looking to purchase alfalfa, quickly inflated the cost that they were paying to farmers. In 1915, both mills were willing to pay the fair price of $7 per ton.
Just two years later, on July 12, 1917, the Wash-Co. alfalfa mill packed up their machinery onto cars and shipped off to Fort Calhoun, Nebraska. The mill could no longer compete with the Cassidy mill, and was unable to pay the higher prices that were being offered for alfalfa. Their departure meant that the Cassidy mill had no opposition in Riverton. In 1919, the Cassidy mill was offering $12 per ton of hay, a much higher mark than the $7 from 1915 that both mills were offering. From Fort Calhoun, Wash-Co sent a letter to the Lander Eagle in 1918 reporting that they were currently paying $18 per ton, so they were most likely not faring any better in Nebraska.
The alfalfa mills were not open year round. They usually closed down sometime in September as the weather grew colder, and opened in February to mill the remaining hay left in the valley after wintering. In mid-February of 1919, the Cassidy mill opened one final time to take in the roughly 5,000 tons of hay that lasted the winter.
Transporting 5,000 tons of hay from the surrounding area would take a long amount of time without modern equipment, but the Cassidy Mill had a system in place to deal with it. They purchased more than ten wagons with 10×20 racks. As the farmer drove in with his load of hay, he could take a second wagon and return with another load while his wagon was being unloaded in order to cut down on delays.
However, that investment would be short lived. The Cassidy mill announced on March 26, 1919, that they would shut down operations and move the mill elsewhere once operations had ceased. This was the end of a short era for the Riverton alfalfa mills. Later that year, E. J. Griffith opened a General Machine and Tool Co. in the old Wash-Co mill, and T. C. Gatten installed a welding outfit in the same building. By 1926, the Teton Gas Products company had purchased the mill and began using it as a warehouse. The Cassidy mill was torn down in 1920 and shipped off to a new location.
Author: Kevin Scannell
Next up for the Fremont County Museum
October 26, 3-5pm at the Dubois Museum, “Halloween at the Museum”
October 26, 2-4pm at the Riverton Museum, “Fall Fun Fest” Bailey Tire/Pit Stop Children’s Exploration Series
November 7, 6:30pm at the Pioneer Museum, “Celebrating Our Veterans” Wyoming Community Bank Discovery Speakers Series
Call the Dubois Museum 1-307-455-2284, the Pioneer Museum 1-307-332-3339 or the Riverton Museum 1-307-856-2665 for detail regarding their programs.
The Dubois Museum, the Pioneer Museum in Lander and the Riverton Museum need your financial support. In the current economic environment, the museums are more reliant than ever on donations from the private sector to continue to provide the quality programs, collections management, exhibits and services that have become their hallmark over the last four years. Please make your tax deductible contribution to be used specifically for the benefit of the museum of your choosing by sending a check to Fremont County Museums 450 N 2nd Rm 320 or taking it directly to the museum you choose to support.