Forbes Mill
Forbes Mill is a now-defunct flour mill originally built in 1854 located in Los Gatos, California, which now serves as a museum after having been saved from destruction in 1982. The mill is the first commercial building to be established in the city of Los Gatos. The existing two-story building is actually a storage annex which was added to the original four-story stone mill building in the fall of 1880.
Forbes Mill was built as the Santa Rosa Flour Mill by James Alexander Forbes who was born in Scotland in 1805. He came to California in about 1831 and served as Vice-Consul in San Francisco for the British government.
The California Gold Rush gave James the idea to put up a flour mill because there were none in California at the time, and the price of flour was running at $50/barrel. He found a location on Los Gatos Creek that he thought would provide sufficient water power. In 1850 he purchased 2,000 acres (8.1 km2) in the area of the Los Gatos Creek and proceeded to build a mill. In 1853 he raised the money for the construction, borrowing $130,000 from two lenders (including one who charged an interest rate of 3% per month), and in 1854 the mill was built. However, the milling machinery had to be shipped from New York around Cape Horn. Once it arrived, Forbes had trouble installing it, but eventually, the mill started grinding flour on December 1, 1855.
