Long before the Pillsbury Dough Boy became an advertising icon, the company founded by Charles Alfred Pillsbury was known for its state-of-the-art Minneapolis flour mill complex on the banks of the Mississippi River. A masterpiece of industrial architecture, and the largest and most advanced facility in the world at the time of its completion in 1881, the Pillsbury “A” Mill Complex set a new standard in both production and design. Pillsbury “A” Mill Complex includes several structures and an extensive system of headraces, tailraces, and drop shafts that generated power for the entire complex. The complex, a National Historic Landmark, is located within the locally- and nationally-designated St. Anthony Falls Historic District and the Mississippi National River and Recreation Area.