ABOUT THE MILL

Gallatin County had twenty-seven grain elevators by 1915, a mark of how essential farming was to the valley's economy. Despite drought and a nationwide depression, Montana Mercantile built the Misco Mill on Bozeman’s Northeast side in 1933, adding a warehouse a few years later. Located near the railroad tracks, the Bon Ton Flour Mill, and the Lehrkind Brewery, the grain elevator was a bet on Montana agriculture even in hard times.

Most grain elevators built after 1920 used concrete. Misco Mill's builders chose an older method instead: a crib technique, stacking two-inch by six-inch planks flat and joining them with spikes, overlapping the boards at the corners for strength. It remains the best surviving example of this construction style in the region.

After the elevator closed, the building served as a recording studio and a community recycling collection point before Sam Thompson and his two sons, Shaw and Nate bought the dilapidated building almost 25 years ago. The Thompson family lovingly restored the building one space at a time and today it stands as a both a symbol of Bozeman's industrial and agricultural roots, and its current thriving creative community. The Mill hosts a unique vacation rental in addition to the Misco Mill Gallery, Misco Goods and other local businesses.