Leonard Heim Oral History

Authors

St. Cloud State University

Document Type

Interview

Publication Date

7-31-1978

Abstract

Biographical Information:

Leonard George Heim was born on February 16, 1931 in St. Cloud to John A. and Hildegard (Mick) Heim. He co-owned and operated Heim Milling in St. Cloud for 49 years. He retired in 1998. Heim served on the Le Sauk Township Planning Commission. Len was a member of St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church and the Knights of Columbus. He passed away on September 3, 2016 at the age of 85. Heim is buried in St. Cloud’s Calvary Cemetery.

Transcript Summary:

In an interview conducted on July 31, 1978, Leonard described his family background and their family business, which eventually became Heim Milling. He talked about his grandfather’s farm and family homestead in Sunset Park, as well as how he initially purchased the mill in 1900. Heim’s father John purchased the mill from his grandfather in 1941 just days before the Pearl Harbor attack. He remembered his family home near the mill and how the river was central to his childhood. During the interview, Heim also discussed how the Great Depression affected the mill. Heim discussed in detail about the milling, flour, and soybean industries in Minnesota and how they functioned. In addition, he further discussed how flour and other flour food products were exported to Europe and how shipping around the United States was done. He described how water power was used at the mill and then shifted to diesel and electric power.

Interview conducted by Mark Stone

Comments

Image ID: 15539

See additional files below for full transcript.

Recommended Citation

St. Cloud State University, "Leonard Heim Oral History" (1978). General. 14.
https://repository.stcloudstate.edu/gen_oh/14