The anniversary special is a $5
blue-plate schnitzel with soda and chips. Timeless Presentations of
Bloomington-Normal will give a living history portrayal between 3
and 6 p.m. Brian Huffman, who
owns and operates Hallie's, is the great-grandson of Blossom
Huffman. Blossom once owned and operated The Mill restaurant, a
Route 66 establishment known as "the home of the schnitzel."
Deborah Senger of Timeless
Presentations -- in the persona of Blossom -- will host the
anniversary party. She will share stories and folklore of The Mill,
the Huffman family and Route 66.
The Mill opened on Stringer Avenue
in Lincoln in 1929, under the name of the Blue Mill. Proprietor Paul
Coddington served patrons grilled sandwiches at any hour of the day
or night. A Dutch-themed building with blue trim, The Mill featured
a revolving windmill and waitresses dressed in blue with white
aprons.
In 1945, Albert and Blossom Huffman
purchased the building, added a barroom and dance hall, and then
painted the building barn red.
Over the years, the restaurant
became famous for its fried schnitzel, originally made of veal and
later of pork.
By the mid-1980s, the Mill had lost
most of its Dutch-themed interior. Besides the fame of its schnitzel
sandwiches and sauce, it was championed as a museum of strange
objects, including a mechanical leg that protruded from a hole in
the ceiling.
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The Mill, which closed in 1996, is now
under renovation by the Route 66 Heritage Foundation of Logan County
as a Route 66 museum and tourist stop.
The famed schnitzel sandwiches,
still made from Blossom's recipe, can be purchased at Hallie's, 111
S. Sangamon St.
Saturday's celebration is
co-sponsored by Hallie's, Main Street Lincoln, the Route 66 Heritage
Foundation of Logan County and Timeless Presentations.
Timeless Presentations has
entertained Logan County residents over the past two years during
paranormal investigations at The Mill, Ghost Walks along the Route
66 Ghost Bridge and through Coonhound Johnny and Blossom Huffman
portrayals.
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