Faribault Mill

Faribault Mill has been weaving wool in Faribault, Minnesota, since Carl Klemer went into the business in 1865. It works from a mill on the Cannon River that dates in part to 1892. It is one of the few “vertical” woolen mills left in the country. Washing, dyeing, carding, spinning, weaving and finishing all happen in one building.

The history has a gap, and the brand’s own “for over 160 years” wording passes over it. The mill began to struggle in the 1990s and was sold to North American Heritage Brands. It closed in 2009 when that owner went bankrupt. Cousins Chuck and Paul Mooty bought it and reopened it in the autumn of 2011. The Minnesota Historical Society records both events. It is the same mill in the same town, doing the same work. In 2022 the company added Brahms Mount, a cotton weaving mill in Maine, which now makes its cotton blankets and throws.

The second mark comes from the wool itself. Faribault’s own description of its process begins with “imported and domestic fleeces”. The spinning and weaving are done in Minnesota, but some of the raw fibre comes from abroad, and the pages don’t say which blankets use which wool. The Maine cotton goods don’t say where their cotton comes from either.

Every Faribault-made product page checked carries the same origin line, “Proudly made in USA since 1865”. The shop also sells socks, slippers and robes made by other companies. Those are not woven in Faribault, and this record does not cover them.