For seasoned residents this building may be familiar. It was Bronson & Doyle’s Honey Lake Feed located on Richmond Road. Susanville. It is now a vacant lot.
By 1912, with the arrival of the railroad and increased population growth, locally there was a flour drought. The Johnstonville mill had closed and the in Janesville the mill was operating at half capacity at the harvest season. In February 1917, Fred Begin organized a new company, the Lassen Grain & Milling Company to rectify the situation. When the news broke, it made the grain growers of the Honey Lake Valley rejoice.
The site selected was on Richmond Road across from the Susanville Depot. Excavation began in April with the goal of being in operation by June. However, with President Wilson’s declaration of war, changed everything. Building supplies and especially machinery was difficult to come by, and the war effort took priority. It was not until mid-November when it was placed into operation. The company’s brand name was Honey Lake Family Flour.