Młyny Rychtera (Rychter’s Mills) or Młyny Toruńskie (Toruń Mills) were developed from 1881 to the 1940s. Until the closure in 1989, it was one of the biggest steam grist mills in Pomorze (Pomerania), with a total area of 10,606 m2 and capacity of 44,828 m3.
The first mill in Mokre, a borough in Toruń, was built in the 19th century by Gustav Regitz. His company faced bankruptcy and so another entrepreneur, Gustav Gerson, started building steam mills on the grounds. Then, Leopold Richter, a businessman from Warsaw, bought and expanded the mills. The investment location was characterised by two very crucial features: a rivulet to drive the mill wheel and a rail siding of Toruń-Mokre train station.
The construction of the first granaries and the mill began in the 1880s. Production took off in 1887. The steam mill was built in an L-shape and was connected to the furnace building (from the eastern side). The coal yard and stables were located at the back of the facility. From the side of Kościuszko street, a garden house with a shed and a stable was constructed. In 1909, an additional granary was built by the south wall and in 1916 another was constructed in front of the mill’s western facade. Both buildings were designed by E. Hoffmann. During the inter war period, the facility was rebuilt and modernised, which drastically altered the initial design of Leopold Rychter’s Steam Mill. Part of the building was consumed by a fire in 1941. Then, the Germans constructed a new rye mill, the exterior of which tied closely to Toruń Gothic architecture style.
On the side of the building facing Kościuszko street, a monument of millers martyrdom is located. It consists of two tablets and a torch shaped like a mill wheel. The monument was unveiled in 1967. It is dedicated to mill workers suspected of being part of the sabotage prepared by the Polish Home Army in 1941 and murdered by the Nazis.