In 1857 George Lynch and George Walker, both of Milwaukee, built a flouring mill west of the millpond named Lake Marion. It was first powered by an iron waterwheel sixteen feet in diameter and later by smaller water turbines, manufacturing flour and offering custom milling. In 1865 William Thompson bought the mill and expanded it into a three-story building with six-run-of-stone employing twenty men. Edward Sanderson, a Milwaukee miller, made further improvements in 1876 and increased its capacity to eight-run-of-stone. In 1885 a group of local businessmen bought the mill and installed a dynamo to generate electricity for lighting the downtown business district, and between 1888 and 1892 the mill also supplied pressurized water to downtown mains for fire protection. On January 1, 1900, the mill burned, possibly from incendiary origin. Henry Kirch bought the ruins and rebuilt the mill using the remnant walls of the 1857 structure. His son Nicholas, and later his son-in-law Guy Dunlap, operated it until 1946, after which Harold Rochon, a son-in-law of Dunlap, took over; in all, the Kirch family ran the mill for sixty-six years. After a flood destroyed the Lake Marion dam in March 1950, water turbines were discontinued and the mill was converted to electric motor operation. In 1995 a restoration was completed and the interior was remodeled for use as a restaurant, bakery, and gift shop.