This is a wood framed little feed mill, the type of which was generally used on small farms to grind animal feed from various grains. It was a product of the Gilbert Hunt Company, of Walla Walla, Washington. Power to operate it could have come from anything which was capable of producing a few horsepower - steam tractors, gas or oil burning tractors, stationary gasoline engines or electric motors. The actual handling of the grain and the feed was still done pretty much manually; the harder work of crushing the grain being handled by this little gadget.
Having grown up on a farm in Alberta with 100 head of cattle to feed each winter, the writer is quite familiar with roller mills, though ours was quite a bit larger and pulled behind a tractor to the grain bin, the grain augured into the feed mill, then the rolled feed augured into the feed bin, AKA the "cho-pho-use". Four at a time, the writer carried the chop to the ravenous cattle in five gallon pails twice a day - all winter!
Gilbert Hunt Roller Feed Mill
This piece of equipment could be powered by a steam-powered tractor or a small single-piston engine. The engine's power was transferred to the mill via a belt.
The machine processed various grains for human and animal consumption. One of the best known products was rolled oats. Rolling oats and other grains increases the amount of nutrients that could be absorbed when digested by animals.
Ranchers used the mill in the upper Shields River Valley near Wilsall and Clyde Park. It was donated by Coral Holladay in 2013 and restored by Tern Blueher, Anvil Wagon Works.
From the sign at the feed mill
Built in 1907 of concrete block simulating rusticated stone, the four room Northside School replaced several smaller wood framed schools scattered about Livingston's north side. Serving as an elementary school until 1971, the building was purchased by the Park County Museum Association in 1976, the Park County Museum opening in the building the next year. Today it is known as the
Yellowstone Gateway Museum.
Today made easy to find with a dingy red wooden Northern Pacific caboose on the front lawn, the building is filled with artefacts relating to the early days of Livingston. Behind the building is a fenced yard and another building in which are displayed fire trucks, agricultural equipment, wagons, various machines and other large historic items. One will even find another school at this school, the former Urbach School. A small log building constructed between 1898 and 1904, it was moved to the museum in 2000. Accompanying the school is a Blacksmith Shop, donated
and moved to the museum in July, 1997.
The museum is open year round, with reduced hours in the winter months.
Yellowstone Gateway Museum
Discover the history of Park County and its connection to Yellowstone!
As a crossroads of culture, Park County, Montana has served as temporary or permanent home for many: native peoples from as long as 11,000 years ago, fur trappers and explorers, homesteaders, and today's residents. Livingston became a major entrance to Yellowstone National Park in 1883 when the Burlington Northern Railway arrived and established a spur line south toward the park.
The museum is housed in a three-story 1906 schoolhouse that is on the National Register of Historic Places. Four large exhibit rooms: Native Cultures, Expeditions, Pioneer, and Transportation, and courtyard also interpret archaeology, modern-day flint knapping, Lewis and Clark, Yellowstone National Park (including historic vehicles), railroad, veterans' history, women, and more. Museum Explorer's Journal guides families through the museum; new children's exhibits.
From Visit Montana