About Our Community Cornerstones
The Mill District of Minneapolis is the Historic Birthplace of Minneapolis, and one could argue, Minnesota as well. From Father Louis Hennepin discovering the St. Anthony Falls in 1680, to the rise of Minneapolis as the Flour Milling Capital of the world, to it's status today as the cultural and historical center of Minnesota, the Mill District has played a central role in shaping Minneapolis as we know it today.
Present day finds a resurgent Mill District featuring renovated flour mills and new residential buildings, historical landmarks and parks, and many of the most important cultural and historical institutions of Minnesota and the Upper Midwest.
Mill City Times wants to honor the important institutions and landmarks that play a central role in making our community what it is - an amazing place to live, work, visit, learn, and play.
Cornerstone defined:
Something that is essential, indispensable, or basic
The chief foundation on which something is constructed or developed
We are proud to honor our Community Cornerstones.
Mill District Community Cornerstones
The Guthrie Theater
The Guthrie Theater, founded in 1963, is an internationally reknowned center for theater performance, production, education and professional training. The Guthrie Theater opened on May 7, 1963 with a production of Hamlet directed by Sir Tyrone Guthrie, the theater's founder. The idea of the theater began in 1959 during a series of conversations among Guthrie and two colleagues—Oliver Rea and Peter Zeisler—who were disenchanted with Broadway. They wanted to create a theater with a resident acting company that would perform the classics in rotating repertory with the highest professional standards.
MacPhail Center for Music
From its inception in 1907, MacPhail Center for Music has grown to become a passionate organization at the forefront of music education and appreciation for the arts, and a leader in music therapy, Suzuki Talent Education, Early Childhood Arts and community partnership programs.
MacPhail Center for Music Website
Mill City Commons
Mill City Commons is a nonprofit membership-driven organization. They exist to create meaningful connections between members and the services, expertise and information required to live fully engaged, richly faceted, dynamic lives for as long as they choose to live in our Riverfront neighborhood.
Mill City Farmers Market
Mill City Farmers Market was founded in June 2006 by Brenda Langton, whole foods educator, chef and owner of spoonriver restaurant, in collaboration with the Mill City Museum to promote Healthy Foods, Local Farmers. Their mission is to promote local, sustainable and organic agriculture, increasing economic opportunities for farmers, urban youth, small businesses and food artisans. To offer experiential learning about and access to healthy local foods, and build a vibrant gathering place for Minneapolis residents and visitors.
Mill City Farmers Market Website
Mill City Museum
Mill City Museum - Built into the ruins of what was once the world’s largest flour mill, Mill City Museum is located on the historic Mississippi Riverfront. Here, visitors of all ages learn about the intertwined histories of the flour industry, the river, and the city of Minneapolis.
Open Book
A nonprofit organization founded by The Loft Literary Center, Milkweed Editions, and Minnesota Center for Book Arts, Open Book is a haven for flourishing creative writing, publishing, and printing arts activity in Minnesota. Since opening its doors in 2000 as the first organization of its kind in the nation, Open Book remains dedicated to fostering a vibrant book community and ongoing artistic collaboration, and providing a home for the literary arts.
People Serving People
People Serving People provides emergency shelter to 99 homeless families every night in Hennepin County. Located in Downtown Minneapolis, this 10-story building is essentially a hotel whose primary form of hospitality comes in helping families to overcome homelessness. Families come to the shelter because of landlord foreclosures, job loss, financial crisis, evictions, overwhelming medical expenses, etc – and they leave with stronger community connections, dedicated advocates, employment, stable housing, and a chance at a better future. The heart and soul of People Serving People’s work is the time spent on strengthening the futures of the 200+ children at the shelter every day – through early childhood education, healthy meals, volunteer readers and tutors, healthcare, family activities, school transportation, and stabilization of family life. Everyone deserves to have a place to call home – and People Serving People depends on the community’s support to help families find their way home.
