A familiar staple is back on the shelves in Elliston.
Big Spring Mill is open under new management and ownership, and with it, the business’s seasoned flour is now back for sale.
The historic, independent mill has been in operation for over 175 years. It was originally established as a water-powered gristmill along the South Fork of the Roanoke River by Joseph Pepper and in 1935, the mill was purchased by Fleetwood Long, the great-grandfather of the previous fourth-generation owner Bob Long. The Long family operated the mill for decades.
In 2022, the 25,000 sq. ft. facility officially ceased operations. Long closed the doors to retire and to focus on his family, sparking a regional heartbreak and a rush by loyal customers to stock up on the mill’s popular seasoned flour.
Following a dormant period, the historic 1.8-acre property and milling facilities were purchased at public auction by SHAH Development.
The mill then resumed production earlier this year and is now again selling its famous seasoned flour.
James Elkins is the mill’s general manager. He joined Big Spring after almost 20 years at Mennel Mills in Roanoke.
“We wanted to restart a business that has been so successful,” said Elkins on a tour of the facility on Friday.
Day 1, the new owners had to tear apart some of the equipment and recondition it.
“You just can’t go out and buy this stuff. You have to rebuild and remake it,” Elkins said. “It took several months to get back up and running because of that.”
The mill started milling about a month ago and selling its first line “seasoned flour” last week.
“It’s running like a Cadillac,” Elkins said.
He called it a unique flour mill because most of the equipment is well over 100 years old.
The mill continues to source its wheat and corn from the same local farmers and uses the original recipes for its coveted biscuit mix and flour.
Over its 175-plus years, the mill survived fires, major floods, pandemics and runaway train cars.
When it closed, Big Spring Mill was one of the very last small, independent commercial mills operating in Virginia.
SHAH Development bought the mill with the intention of restoring it to operational glory.
The return of “Virginia’s Best” seasoned flour has been very successful. Elkin said the response has been phenomenal.
As part of the reopening, Big Spring brought back its former head miller Benny Hollins and jumpstarted the same original flour recipe.
“He knows the mill inside and out, and knows the right recipe for everything,” Elkins said.
Another key that not many people expect in this day and age of heavy machinery production and robotics is the fact all of Big Spring’s work is done by hand. Two workers were busy tying bags of flour late last week.
“We pride ourselves on still doing things like that,” Elkins said.
Cornmeal and other flour will come in the next month of so. Feed production, which Big Spring was also famous for, could be two years out.
“There are a lot of things to still do before we can do everything again,” Elkins said.
This past week, people had driven from New York, Missouri, West Virginia and several other states just to buy Big Spring’s product. Elkins said customers were buying 20, 50 and even 100 bags of the flour. The mill is averaging daily production of 2,100 bags per day.
“Right now, we haven’t caught up with the bag manufacturer. Once they get us all the different varieties that we make, we will be able to be in full production. But for now, it is just the seasoned biscuit flour that everyone seems to love,” he said.
Also, for now, Big Spring is only selling the flour from its store at 1931 Big Spring Drive in Elliston. Online availability could be up and running in the next few weeks.
The store is open 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. A two-pound bag will cost you $5.79. The amount is only slightly higher than in the past. Some area outlets will also be available in the future including Slaughter’s Store in Floyd.
