Shawnee Milling Company An American Dream, 1906-2006 Hardcover - 2006

From the publisher

In A History of Shawnee Milling Company, Virginia and Jim Bradshaw trace the development of an enduring Oklahoma institution. This nostalgic story, accompanied by a wealth of photographs, is more than a trip down memory lane. It parallels the history of Oklahoma as seen through the eyes of three generations.

It all began in April 1906. J. Lloyd Ford purchased a small milling operation and dubbed it Shawnee Milling Company. Turning out only seventy-five barrels of flour a day in the beginning, the business soon expanded to serve several key Oklahoma communities, from Stillwater and Pauls Valley to Okeene, Ada, and Hugo. The Great Depression and a devastating fire in the 1930s could have signaled an end, but Ford and family refused to admit defeat and dedicated themselves instead to rebuilding their beloved company.

After World War II, Leslie "Leck" Ford modernized the entire enterprise through automation and advanced processing. The second generation led Shawnee Milling company to new heights with expanded product lines and a 1.2 million bushel increase in storage capacity. Beginning in 1979, William "Bill" Leslie Ford and his brother Robert "Bob" Lloyd Ford, Okeene manager, took the company to yet another level. Maintaining a strong regional presence in Oklahoma, Texas, and Arkansas, the third generation of the Ford family's Shawnee Milling Company now ships products throughout the nation.

J. Lloyd Ford invested all his savings in the little barnlike flour mill. A century later it has blossomed into an instantly recognizable complex on the Shawnee, Oklahoma, skyline. An Oklahoma vision, Shawnee Milling Company can also be seen as the fulfillment of an American dream.