Grainnet

Written by Barb Selyem. Photos by Bruce Selyem

There is over a century of history inside the whimsical lemon-yellow exterior of the Odenweller Milling Co. in Ottoville, OH.

It has been home to this amazing 1894 feed mill for 104 years. Howard Odenweller, vice president, is the fourth generation to manage the business, now in its third century of operation.

Howard, who is very proud of the company legacy, preserves fragile property records in an old safe inside the mill office. These fascinating deeds document a very short ownership list.

History of Ownership In 1894, the Catholic Church sold the property to two men, Schullen and Wannemacher, who subsequently built a flour mill.

E.L. Odenweller, Howard’s great grandfather, acquired the mill in 1897.

The mill was built next to the Miami and Erie Canal, which ran from Cincinnati, OH to Toledo, OH.

This canal made generating power using a water wheel both convenient and economical.

Despite the canal’s location, Howard said only one shipment of flour was moved by boat.

Navigation on the canal ceased in 1912. At the same time, the mill was converted to electricity.

The Mill’s Interworkings Massive, hand-hewn, burr oak timbers fastened with wooden pegs support the structure. Those timbers had been free for clearing.

There is no manlift inside, only a maze of stairways leading to the upper floors of this century-old workhorse.

A network of wooden spouts, draped with cobwebs and disappearing through the walls and floors, connects wooden elevators to cribbed, hopper-bottom bins and other machinery.

Much of this machinery was manufactured by two old companies with familiar names—Sidney Grain Machine Co., Sidney, OH and A.T. Ferrell, Saginaw, MI. Patent dates stenciled on the equipment date back to 1879.

From Flour to Feed “In the early years, we delivered more flour to local merchants by team and wagon,” Howard said. “Later we used trucks.

“When we started noticing more and more bread trucks in the mid-1940s, we decided to change from milling flour to manufacturing feed,” Howard said.

“At the same time, we began a relationship with Central Soya that was to span nearly 50 years,” he continued. “Our company has the distinction of receiving the first and last loads of Central Soya’s Master Mix Feed.”

In 1990, the Odenwellers took on the Kent Feed line, and in 1999, as if to verbalize their commitment, they painted the old mill Kent Feed yellow and gave it a new Kent Feed red roof.

They also continue to manufacture their own custom feeds.

Howard is optimistic about the continued success of Odenweller Milling and confident that the remarkable old mill easily could continue in operation for another 100 years.

Barbara and Bruce Selyem are directors of the Country Grain Elevator Historical Society. For more information, contact the society at 406-388-9282; e-mail: bselyem@country-grain-elevator-historical-society.org.

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