The Lane Couny Farmer's Union Cooperative was built in 1923 primarily to process grain. As A cooperative, the mill was owned by families and built by the family owners with materials available, no loans being taken out. The small concrete block section in the photo was built to house a steam generated feed pelletizing system. The block room is now office space.

The years 1932 & 1940 saw two main additions built to the complex,but aside from no longer grinding grain, much is still same as it was when the mill was operating up into the early 70's.

Crown Feeds was the specialty of the cooperative. As of 1977, the former mill complex has been known as the Down to Earth Home & Garden Center. See the mills website for additional information.

The interior of the retail home & garden store still exhibits much of the old chutes and bucket elevators necessary to convey grain either up or down through the mill, with bag filling stations at various points. All this in cooperation with the current retail item displays.

Here, stuffed animals, and Monopoly spin-offs such as Beaveropoly, Duckopoly, and Gardenopoly share space with above belts pulleys and lineshafts which were necessary to make the milling operation successful.

The sign of Crown Feeds on the left tower and the Purina checkered logo on the higher tower.

A small book section sequestered between the sloping sides of wooden grain bins in the mills interior.

In 1953, the mill was sold to Lane County Feed & Seed. Additional bulk grain storage bins were built within the warehouse along the north wall, the long wall in the above photograph.

The 80'X 52' warehouse section was built in 1940 usinf salvaged materials from the old Lane County Courthouse, demolished the previous year.