The Miller Cereal Mills / Salvation Army building

2501 Center St. Omaha, NE.

From Corn Flakes to Kellogg’s (1917–1965)

Long before it was a hollowed-out shell, this seven-story concrete monolith was a powerhouse of Midwestern industry. Built in 1917 by Edwin Stanton Miller, the Miller Cereal Mills was a state-of-the-art facility designed to process the endless yields of the Great Plains. For decades, the building hummed with the sound of rollers and sifters producing corn flakes and other cereal products. The building’s success caught the eye of the Kellogg’s Company, which purchased the plant in 1943 and operated it as a major production hub until 1965. Its proximity to the Martha Street bridge and the rail lines made it a landmark of Omaha’s "Sheelytown" neighborhood.

A Mission of Rehabilitation (1965–2001)

In 1965, the building took on a new, more somber purpose when it was acquired by the Salvation Army. It became the Adult Rehabilitation Center, a sanctuary for men battling addiction. For thirty-five years, the industrial floors were repurposed into a chapel, a kitchen, a recreation center (complete with a bowling alley and pool tables), and living quarters. It was a place of radical transformation for many, but as the 20th century closed, the building itself began to fail. Rising heating costs, a notoriously "shaky" elevator, and decaying infrastructure forced the Salvation Army to vacate the property in 2001 for a new facility on Dodge Street.

Decay and the "Benign Neglect" (2001–Present)

Since the turn of the millennium, the Miller Cereal Mills building has entered a state of terminal decline. While developers have floated grand plans—ranging from a "haunted house" attraction to an ambitious apartment complex called the "Intersections" project—none have come to fruition. Today, the structure is a skeleton of reinforced concrete and asbestos, home only to those seeking shelter or adventure.

So please enjoy looking through my photos. The only way I know to protect these buildings is to remind people they even exist.

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