Around the turn of the previous century, various mill and grain companies operated within Clay County.
The Quaker City Roller Oats was built in 1874 by CR Barnes, a miller from Massachusetts.
Around 1901, John B. Snell purchased the location, renaming the business after himself. At 28 he moved from his home state of Wisconsin, where he was raised on a farm, and remained in Clay Center the rest of his life.
The mill was located on block 50, which is between 5th and 6th Streets and Pomeroy and Sherman. Around where the current Clay Center Fire Department sits. Records show it took up several sections of the lot and was also in close proximity to the railroad tracks.
In 1907 the Snell Mill joined operations with the Elevator Company, becoming Snell Mill & Grain Co. Snell himself remained the largest stockholder, while JW Pinkerton, who served as president, HH Startkweather, AA Wixon, GP Randall, DA Valentine, LF Valentine, William Docking, HH Mertens, Gus Mussleman and others, joined to take a loan from Peoples National Bank.
The public trading company was valued at $75,000 in stocks. (Just over $2.5 million today.) Two years later, in 1909, they spent $10,000 on improvements. The brand replaced the upper portion of the mill with newer, more modern pieces. It was hoped the new equipment would produce more flour, though it’s unclear if that proved to be the case. (That’s an upgrade of nearly $347K today.)
The location employed Pierce Randall who was a a grain buyer for more than 25 years. He left to work two terms as Clay County Register of Deeds before returning to work for Snell.
There were also reports of Snell purchasing “the old Higinbotham elevator.” Two generations of Higinbothams came to Clay Center from Indiana in the 1870s and started the Clay County Bank.
One harsh winter after a crop failure, Snell made it his goal to employ farmers who needed a job. He left a standing agreement for anyone with a team to haul rock from a quarry east of town. It was collected in a big pile east of the iron-clad elevator and behind the Swenson building. This is near modern-day Kansasland.
The rock was later used throughout town. However, the gesture helped many farmers feed their families during a time “when money was very scarce and times extremely hard.”
Research by Susan Hammond
