The Neligh Mill, a former water-powered flour mill turned museum on the banks of the Elkhorn River, holds significant historical value to the residents of Neligh, Nebraska.
Constructed in 1874 by the city’s founder, John Neligh, the flour mill operated for nearly 100 years, grinding wheat, corn, and buckwheat until it closed in 1969. Today, the Nebraska State Historical Society maintains the mill complex and museum, which includes all the original equipment used when the mill was in operation.
Western Specialty Contractors—Omaha, NE Branch started a project in April 2023 to restore the brick mill’s foundation, retaining walls and façade and install waterproofing to ensure the historic treasure would be preserved for future generations.
Western’s craftsmen started the project by demolishing an existing brick retaining wall and wing wall on the mill’s south elevation that were on the verge of collapsing due to age and replacing it with a 10-foot-tall, reinforced concrete retaining wall. The wall protects the building and exterior metal pumping gear from soil erosion.
The brick-and-mortar foundation on the mill’s west and northwest elevations was experiencing extensive deterioration. The Historical Society and state officials requested structural repairs be made to the foundation to prevent the building from shifting if the 150-year-old foundation gave out.
Western’s crews demolished 62 LF of foundation in the area and provided new structural shoring under the building’s northwest corner, which included the installation of ten 2’x2’x2’ concrete footings in the building’s crawl space, ten shoring jacks, 8” structural steel I-beams and LVL wood beams with structural steel shoring.
The Omaha team then poured a new reinforced concrete foundation wall at the west and northwest elevations throughout two phases, which included a backup block wall with rebar reinforcement, 18” anchor bolts, and nine courses of brick veneer.
To complete the project, Western’s craftsmen installed a new crawl space access door and cedar lap siding at the west and northwest elevations, replaced all caulking around penetrations on the building, replaced missing brick, and performed tuckpointing on the entire facade.
Western completed the entire project in March 2024, within budget. Jackson–Jackson & Associates was the architect on the project, and Kenneth D. Lathrum & Associates was the structural engineering consultant.
About Western Specialty Contractors
Family-owned and operated for over 100 years, Western Specialty Contractors is the nation’s largest specialty contractor in masonry and concrete restoration, waterproofing, and specialty roofing. Western offers a nationwide network of expertise that building owners, engineers, architects, and property managers can count on to develop cost-effective, corrective measures that can add years of useful life to a variety of structures, including industrial, commercial, healthcare, historic, educational and government buildings, parking structures, and sports stadiums. Western is headquartered in St. Louis, MO, with 30 branch offices nationwide and employs more than 1,200 salaried and hourly professionals who offer the best, time-tested techniques and innovative technology.
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