Junk At The Mill, The Junk Ranch Cater To Customers

PRAIRIE GROVE — If you are looking for a lot of food, a lot of music, a lot of junk, Prairie Grove is the place to be during Oct. 4-7.

A 36-acre pasture will be filled with more than 100 vendors and thousands of shoppers at The Junk Ranch, located on Centerpoint Church Road just outside the Prairie Grove city limits.

Inside the city, the historic Washington County Milling Co., on Mock Street, provides a smaller venue for customers to also shop unique booths and enjoy the setting of the historic building that once produced millions of pounds of flour a year in Prairie Grove.

Junk at the Mill

This is the ninth show for Junk at the Mill, which opens two times a year, in June and in October. Junk at the Mill will be open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Oct. 4-6 at 501 S. Mock St. Admission and parking are free.

The fall 2018 show will have more than 25 vendors, including three new vendors. One will offer restorations of cast iron. Another has fall decorations, and a third new vendor will have fresh, fall mums for sale.

The old milling structure, built in 1919, was in total disrepair when Marcus Nall, who grew up in Prairie Grove, purchased the building in 2011.

In the early days, flour mills in Prairie Grove operated day and night and turned out about 2.4 million pounds of flour per year. About 60,000 bushels of wheat were shipped from the elevators each year. Railroad cars came to the mills, and the product was loaded on the train and shipped out from there.

After purchasing the old building, Nall spent the next five years remodeling and renovating the structure, with the goal to keep it as historically accurate as possible.

Nall retained the original name of the business, the Washington County Milling Co., for his new venture.

Today, Washington County Milling Co., is an event center for activities such as family reunions and wedding receptions, and also is used for many community events.

Nall has said he came up with the idea for Junk at the Mill as another way to draw people to come see the historic building, which now is the only remaining flour mill structure in Prairie Grove.

The Junk Ranch

The Junk Ranch vintage fair draws thousands of shoppers and will be held 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Oct. 5-6. Friday is considered an early shopping day and tickets cost $10 and are good for both days. General admission on Saturday is $5. Parking is free. Children 12 and under are free.

The Junk Ranch is located on 36 acres of pasture land off U.S. 62 near the Prairie Grove bypass. The specific address is 11195 Centerpoint Church Road, Prairie Grove.

The fall show will have more than 100 vendors offering around 200 booths with vintage and antique items, repurposed furniture, jewelry, unique gifts and home decorations and salvage materials. Along with shopping and browsing, customers can enjoy food vendors and live music.

The Junk Ranch is held twice a year, in June and again in October. The business is owned by Amy Daniels and Julie Speed, both of Prairie Grove, and evolved from their first event called Farm Fresh in September 2013. The women knew they needed more space and decided to relocate to land owned by Speed and her family.

The Junk Ranch has grown from 45 vendors in 2013 to more than 100 vendors today.

For more information, go to thejunkranch.net or The Junk Ranch on Facebook.

FILE PHOTOS Janice Hughes, left, with the Gilded Passion vendor tent from Smackover talks to customers about her items for sale during the fall 2017 show of The Junk Ranch, located just outside Prairie Grove city limits. Thousands of people, mainly women, shop at The Junk Ranch during its June and October shows.

The Washington County Milling Co., a former flour mill built in 1919, will be filled with vendors and food during Junk at the Mill Thursday through Friday. Vendors will be inside the building and on its outside grounds. Admission and parking are free.

This booth shows examples of recycled and repurposed items that may be found at The Junk Ranch vintage event in Prairie Grove on Oct. 5-6. This is a booth from the June 2017 show.

Junk at the Mill will be held Friday and Saturday at The Washington County Milling Co., on Mock Street in Prairie Grove. The building, once a flour mill, has been restored as an event center.