Mill City Museum Wedding Photographer

Mill City Museum: The Venue Itself

What the space is actually like — the details couples ask me about before they ask about photography.

Address

704 South Second Street, Minneapolis, MN 55401

Capacity

No capacities are published on the museum's own site. Meet Minneapolis (Minneapolis CVB) lists, consistently across two directory listings: Ronald William Guzy Mill Commons 250-500 reception / 250 classroom; Exterior Rail Corridor 250-500 reception / 200 classroom; Charles H. Bell Ruin Courtyard 150-300 reception / 250 classroom; Sage and John Cowles (Interior) Rail Corridor 75-200 reception. Conference rooms per MNHS: ADM Room up to 40 in lecture format, Cargill Library 6-16 board room, 710 Room 10 board room. No banquet/dinner-seated maximum is published by any source.

Ceremony & reception spaces

Confirmed outdoor: the Charles H. Bell Ruin Courtyard, an open-air space set within the limestone ruins left when the abandoned mill was gutted by fire in 1991; the Exterior Rail Corridor; and the Koch Rooftop Observation Deck at the top of the building. Confirmed indoor: the Sage and John Cowles (Interior) Rail Corridor, and the upper-floor conference rooms — the ADM Room (6th floor), Cargill Library (7th floor) and 710 Room (7th floor). A glass curtain wall faces the Ruin Courtyard, separating interior space from it. The indoor/outdoor status of the Ronald William Guzy Mill Commons was not stated on any source checked.

Parking

Per MNHS: "Mill City Museum does not have its own parking lot or ramp" and "Mill City Museum is not able to validate parking." Nearby city-owned options are the fully automated Mill Quarter Ramp at 711 South Second St., the Riverfront Municipal Ramp at 212 9th Ave S one block away, and city parking meters outside the main entrance on South 2nd Street with a 4-hour time limit that is strictly enforced.

Catering

Exclusive for events. D'Amico Hospitality's site states it is "The Exclusive Caterer For All Mill City Museum Events," and the Minnesota Historical Society states "D'Amico Catering handles all aspects of Mill City Museum event rentals," directing all rate, availability, catering and venue-preview inquiries to D'Amico's event managers. Documented exception: the separately rented conference rooms have an open catering policy — MNHS states "You can bring food or non-alcoholic beverages from any vendor."

• Mill City Museum is located at 704 South Second Street, Minneapolis, MN 55401.
• The museum does not have its own parking lot or ramp and is not able to validate parking. Nearby city-owned options include the fully automated Mill Quarter Ramp at 711 South Second St., the Riverfront Municipal Ramp at 212 9th Ave S one block away, and city parking meters outside the main entrance on South 2nd Street with a strictly enforced 4-hour time limit.
• The Minnesota Historical Society states that D'Amico Catering handles all aspects of Mill City Museum event rentals, and directs all rate, availability, catering and venue-preview inquiries to D'Amico Catering's event managers.
• D'Amico Hospitality states it is the exclusive caterer for all Mill City Museum events.
• The museum's separately rented conference rooms operate under an open catering policy: food or non-alcoholic beverages may be brought in from any vendor.
• The museum rents three conference rooms: the ADM Room (up to 22 in U-shaped conference format, 30-40 in team table format, 40 in lecture format), the Cargill Library (6-16 person board room format, 12-person classroom format) and the 710 Room (10-person board room format).
• The museum was designed by Thomas Meyer, principal of the Minneapolis firm Meyer, Scherer & Rockcastle, Ltd. (MSR), opened in September 2003, and was built within the limestone ruins of the Washburn A Mill; the design left intact many features of the original mill, including flour bins, milling machinery, the engine house, rail corridor and a wheat house.
• A glass curtain wall facing the Ruin Courtyard has etchings from an 1898 building cross section showing the location of the milling machinery.
• The Ruin Courtyard was created by a 1991 fire in the then-abandoned mill, and the Koch Rooftop Observation Deck offers panoramic views of the Mississippi River, St. Anthony Falls, the historic Stone Arch Bridge, Mill Ruins Park and the Ruin Courtyard.
• Meet Minneapolis lists the museum's event spaces and capacities as: Ronald William Guzy Mill Commons (250-500 reception / 250 classroom), Exterior Rail Corridor (250-500 reception / 200 classroom), Charles H. Bell Ruin Courtyard (150-300 reception / 250 classroom), and Sage and John Cowles (Interior) Rail Corridor (75-200 reception), plus the ADM Room on the 6th floor and the Cargill Library and 710 Room on the 7th floor. No banquet-seated figures are listed.

Where the Best Mill City Museum Wedding Photos Happen

• Ruin Courtyard ceremony
• Rooftop Stone Arch view
• Train Shed cocktail hour
• Limestone-wall editorial
• Mill City Market alley
• Mississippi River portraits
• Bridal suite window light
• Off-camera flash first dance

Frequently Asked Questions