History came alive over the weekend, on Saturday September 16 at the Richfield Nature and Historical Park during the Thresheree and Harvest Festival.

"Our mill is running for the first time in over 50 years," exclaimed Richfield Historical Society President Pete Sampson. "The mill itself is 150 years old. Back in 1972, they closed the doors and it sat for over 20 years. And after another 25 years of putting it back together, we finally got it running this year. All of the foundation has been replaced and it looks like it was built six months ago. It looks really nice."

The engine was one of the modes that drove the mill in Richfield through history. The engine on the mill today is not the original, but a similar engine.

The Messer/Mayer Mill has great history that began in 1869, when Andrew Messer built a three-story gristmill. Four years later in 1873, the mill was up and running producing ground flour from wheat grown by area farmers.

This past summer, on July 23 members of the Richfield Historical Society celebrated the 150th Anniversary of the mill at the Richfield Historical Park.