Labor of the Water Wheel

by Michael Tilley ([email protected]) 120 views 

Come celebrate Labor Day with your family at War Eagle Mill. We are honoring all the hardworking people in our communities who have taken care of us over the years.  Our special honoree is the one and only undershot water wheel in all of Arkansas, grinding corn into flour, meal and grits tirelessly all day long.  Recently restored, we are selling crafts made from our original wheel at the Wheel Wood Art Sale. Enjoy the Wheel Meal Deal in the Bean Palace Restaurant and win prizes playing our Pin the Mill on the Wheel game board!

The Wheel Wood Art Sale and Pin the Mill on the Wheel will be held September 2nd from 9 am – 4:30 pm. Bean Palace Restaurant will be serving breakfast from 8:30 am to 11 am and the Wheel Meal Deal lunch special from 11:00 am to 4pm. Also serving only delicious cobbler and ice cream from 4pm – 5 pm.

War Eagle Mill didn’t have to “Reinvent the Wheel” since we replaced the old wheel with the original design used in 1832 and 1970’s. This past April, Master Craftsman and owner of NW & Associates, Nathan Willis, worked along side the War Eagle Mill crew, Gary Jarvis, Herbert and Trevor Williams and Vernon Lane, to completely restore the wheel. The team replaced the 16 paddles with cedar and the spokes and ribbing with cypress wood. The whole restoration took over 300 hours to complete.

“It was an honor to be involved in such a great piece of local history. For a woodworker these are the types of projects that seldom grace your career,” said Willis.

“Crafted by hand” is a War Eagle Mill trademark. War Eagle Creek’s rushing water rotates the wheel to power the millstones and grind fresh grains intowholesome organic flours and meals that are then hand packed for our visitors. Keeping this tradition in mind, Woodworker John Mounts, created bits and pieces of the old wheel into beautiful frames, bowls, pens and much more. Shop all the art pieces at our Wheel Wood Art Sale on the Mill’s second floor.

Take a chance, close your eyes, spin around and pin a mill on the water wheel game board! Depending on where theMill is pinned determines your prize! Prizes include free Wheel Meals, cobbler and ice cream as well as discounts on all three floors.

Feeling hungry from winning prizes and shopping wheel art? Make your way up to the Bean Palace Restaurant on the 3rd floor and fill up on our Wheel Meal Deal of the day: pulled pork sandwich, a side of wheel pasta cheese macaroni, coleslaw and potato salad.

At War Eagle Mill, we have been rising above the daily grind since 1832. We grind fresh, organic, whole grain daily. War Eagle Mill is located at 11045 War Eagle Road about 20 minutes east of downtown Rogers and Springdale. For further information contact Liz Kapsner by email, [email protected] or phone, 866-492-7324.