Industry

Industry. . In the 1880s, wheat was among the major crops grown locally, and the need to process the grain locally arose. In 1877, the Cascade Mill purchased water rights and five acres of land on the east side of the Big Sioux River, north of Eighth Street, and built a dam. In 1878 they constructed a mill and began processing wheat. , In 1884, on the west side of the river, the South Dakota Water Company built a pumping station. The station used the mill pond above the dam to supply the city of Sioux Falls with water. By 1907, most of the water for Sioux Falls was supplied by wells and the company went out of business. , The Electric Light Company introduced arc lights to Sioux Falls in 1884. In order to cope with declining wheat production the Cascade Mill added a stone building in 1887 that housed the machinery for producing electricity. They secured a contract from the City of Sioux Falls for street lighting and brought the Edison incandescent bulb to Sioux Falls for the first time. In 1901, the City of Sioux Falls purchased a canning factory and converted it into a municipal light plant. By 1907 the municipal light plant had acquired the Cascade Mill. The plant was later acquired by Northern States Power and by 1924 it was no longer used for the production of electricity. Today the Country Inn and Suites hotel sits at the location of the mill. , The Zip Feed Mill was established in 1937 to produce livestock feed. In the mid-1950s, a large addition was built. This structure was one of the tallest buildings in South Dakota until it was demolished in 2005 to make room for Cherapa Place. As the day came to raze the building, the dynamite was set, and when ignited, the building didn't fall to the ground as planned. Instead, it settled in the basement and tilted to the side and remained that way until it was demolished by crane and wrecking ball.