HomeMy WebLinkAbout555"Article taken from Pickering News Dec 4, 1885.
The Greenwood Flouring Mills have been completely overhauled and remodeled to the full
roller system, under the management of F. L. Green, with I. Courtenay as superintendent
mill-wright.
After a great deal of work and an immense outlay to fit them up in such a manner as to render
them one of the best mills in Canada, they have been started up again in a most satisfactory
manner, reflecting great credit upon Mr. Courtenay for the way in which he performed his duty.
They were first started up Wednesday, 18th ult..and in three hours after first starting flour was
sent to several to try its quality, and all pronounced it as excellent—the writer himself testifying
as to the quality of the bread and cakes it made.
It may be of interest to describe the mill and the various processes the wheat has to undergo
before being ready for the baker : In the first place the mill is driven by a 14 inch
""Little Giant"" water-wheel, under the magnificent head of 36 feet, giving 54 horse-power.
The wheat after entering the mill and being weighed is elevated to the fifth floor,
and is from there passed through a separator to take out all foreign material such as straws,
chaff, &c. From this it goes to a smut machine, and is beaten and brushed to remove all smut
and dust and remove the light wheat. It is now sent to a brush finishing and polishing machine,
which ends the cleaning preliminary to grinding.
After leaving the Brush machine it is elevated to the stock hopper over the first rolls,
and is sent from there through the break roll and merely split through the crease in order to
loosen all the crease dirt, which is taken out by passing through a scalper.
After passing through the first scalper it is put successively through four more setts of rolls,
each one reducing it finer, in the meantime being sent through a scalper after each roll,
to separate the flour and middlings from the broken wheat. The flour and middlings from the
scalper are collected and bolted to separate them, the flour going to the packer,
the middlings to the purifiers. After being thoroughly purified they are ground on stones,
except the coarsest, which are reduced on another sett of rolls; stones being generally
accepted as the beat for handling purified middlings. The patent flour comes from these last
operations.
The light and branny particles which the purifiers ""tail over"" are sent to another sett of rolls.
The flour, &c, is taken from one machine to another by means of elevators, conveyors,
and spouts. There is almost a forest of spouts ; so numerous that a stranger is almost in
danger of being lost in the labyrinth.
The business is carried by Mr. John Mitchell, who expects to do a large business,
and who has the well-known reputation of being a straight-forward and in every way a
successful business man. I have no doubt he will be pleased to show ladies or
gentlemen the mysteries of flour-making, and the employees are noted for their civility to
visitors and all.
The machinery was all supplied by the celebrated firm, E. P. Allis & Co., of Milwaukee,
Wis., whose branch works are at Stratford. The machinery is such as to give a daily
capacity of 90 bbls.
Lex Meunier.
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