Yorkton Brick Mill Heritage Society Inc.
Yorkton Brick Mill Heritage Society Inc.
  • Home
  • The Society
    • Board of Directors
    • Join or donate
    • Strategic Plan
    • AGM
  • History
    • The Flour Mill
    • Storyboards
  • Capital Campaign
  • Sponsors
  • Fundraising
  • Road Rally
  • Contact
  • News
  • More
    • Home
    • The Society
      • Board of Directors
      • Join or donate
      • Strategic Plan
      • AGM
    • History
      • The Flour Mill
      • Storyboards
    • Capital Campaign
    • Sponsors
    • Fundraising
    • Road Rally
    • Contact
    • News
  • Home
  • The Society
    • Board of Directors
    • Join or donate
    • Strategic Plan
    • AGM
  • History
    • The Flour Mill
    • Storyboards
  • Capital Campaign
  • Sponsors
  • Fundraising
  • Road Rally
  • Contact
  • News

Mill Society aims to raise $2 million for major expansion

The historic Yorkton brick flour mills kicked off a fund-raising drive on Dec. 6, 2021 to raise $2 million for a major expansion of the mill to include an interpretive centre, meeting and multi-purpose spaces, a servery, patio, and enhanced gardens and grounds.. 


Capital campaign chair Terry Tyson made a presentation to City Council providing details of the campaign and what it will accomplish at the mill site at the corner of Livingstone Street and Beck Avenue, along the rail line that the mill once shared with grain elevators.


The Mill Society is planning a single storey addition to the east side of the mill. It will house an atrium which will provide access to the mill itself for tours once interior renovations are finished, as well as an interpretive centre which will focus on rebuilding connections between today's society and agriculture, which has long been the backbone of local and prairie economies.


At one time the mill was a vibrant gathering place for the fledgling Yorkton community, and the Mill Society feels the addition to the historic mill can again fulfill that purpose. 

Making the mill a thriving gathering place and hub again

Yorkton's historic flour mill, also known as the "brick mill" because of the construction material, is one of the oldest remaining buildings from the community's early years. Yorkton moved south from its original location in 1891 to be alongside the newly-built rail line, and in 1898 John J. Smith built the flour mill with bricks from his own brick plant to support the new settlement's agricultural base. 


Over the next 80 years, the old mill changed ownership a number of times before falling into disuse in the late 1980s. It is now one of the last remaining heritage mills in Saskatchewan, and the only one of its kind made from brick, and it is also the oldest remaining local commercial/agricultural heritage site. 


The objective of the new capital campaign is to create a new agricultural interpretive centre to educate and promote connections between society and agriculture and to restore the mill site to a thriving cultural hub and gathering space. 


The new complex will be connected to the historic mill via a main entrance directly into the interpretive centre and its walk-in interactive agricultural displays. These will tell the stories of primary producers and prairie agri-businesses, demonstrating their focus on generating safe and wholesome food products by sustainable means.


The rest of the complex will be a vibrant, bustling hub of activity. It will offer a multo-purpose space, meeting space for service groups, artists, youth and seniors, as well as a servery, patio and enhanced gardens and grounds. 


The exterior grounds provide a comfortable, park-like setting featuring large aluminum panel signs that display important aspects of Yorkton’s history, including York Colony, the railroad, and the signing of Treaty 4.


The building will feature the iconic railway station roof design reflecting York Colony’s relocation to the railway in the late 1890s. The building design will seek to minimize carbon footprint and maximize sustainability. 


The building will adopt state of the art technology, creating a juxtaposition of the past and the present - a mix of character and modernity that will be a coveted location for events such as:

  • Educational and historical programming;
  • Community events, small recitals and concerts, receptions, family reunions, etc.;
  • Corporate functions such as training meetings, strategic planning sessions, and customer or staff appreciation events;
  • Youth, Indigenous and newcomers’ groups gatherings and activities;
  • Service group meetings
  • Fundraising events;
  • Farmer’s market and other indoor/outdoor opportunities.

Our supporters

The following have made a commitment to support the capital campaign to date:


City of Yorkton $300,000 in matching funds;

Harvest Meats $100,000

Legacy Co-op $100,000

Ernie Aniuk $100,000

Grain Millers $100,000

Yorkton Tribal Council $100,000

Richardson International $50,000

Rotary Club of Yorkton $25,000

Royal Auto Group and the Terry Ortynsky family $25,000

Allan Bailey family $25,000

Kinsmen Club of Yorkton $25,000

Cornerstone CU $10,000

RBKR Law $10,000

Baker Tilly $5,000

Bode Family $2,500

RM of Walllace $2,500

RM of Orkney $2,000

Wagner's Flooring $1,500

Sperling Industries $1,500

PCL Construction $1,000

National Bank $500

To date $986,500

More information about the campaign

Floorplan concept (pdf)

Download

Telling the story of prairie food production (pdf)

Download

Leave a legacy, create a memory (pdf)

Download

Copyright © Yorkton Brick Mill Heritage Society Inc. All rights reserved.


Yorkton Brick Mill Heritage Society Inc.

Box 1062  Yorkton SK  Canada S3N 2X3

Located at the corner of Livingstone Street and Beck Avenue.

admin@yorktonflourmill.ca


Web site by UncommonSense Business Solutions, Yorkton SK