Henry Bruemmer, a native of Mecklenburg, Germany, learned the milling trade there before emigrating, spent a few years on the East Coast, invested in a flourmill in Mishicot, and then operated a mill at Tisch Mills. In the mid-1860s, he and his family moved to what is now known as Bruemmerville, where he purchased an interest in the Ahnapee Mill and eventually became its sole proprietor. The Bruemmer family enterprise included a flour and feed mill as well as a saw and planing mill, powered by water from a dam on Silver Creek, the South Branch of the Ahnapee River, and by steam power when necessary. Bruemmerville eventually included an ice house, brickyard, cheese factory, two livery stables, a tavern, and several homes, including those owned by members of the Bruemmer family. Part of the tavern was built in 1875 by Randolph Bruemmer and still remains in the community. At one time, the mills made this one of the busiest areas of the county, and the two stables were said to be able to hold up to 300 horses. Competition from other mills eventually led to the closing of the operation in the mid-1940s. Although the mill that once stood here is gone, the dam remains, and the present dam was constructed in the early 1920s.