Ernest B. Heise

The Ernest B. Heise Brothers Milling Company Mannufacturers-Shippers Scholarship Fund was established in honor of the family patriarch who brought the family from Germany to the United States. The scholarship provides financial assistance to students graduating from Orleans High School who are planning to continue their education.  The Heise family has a strong Orleans legacy that endures through this scholarship which was established to give back to the Orleans community and to help future generations flourish by assisting students achieve their educational goals.

Heise Brothers Feed Mill Orleans Indiana

Heise Brothers was established March 19,1896, when Albert and Edward M. Heise purchased the Chenworth flour mill and continued its operation. Their father Ernest Heise, Senior, earlier immigrated to New Orleans on December 1, 1854, from Wulften Germany where the Heise family were established German Flour Millers since the 1600’s. Adding to the facilities in 1905 was the erection of a coal powered steam engine which powered their electric light plant. The plant serviced the town with electric power for lighting purposes six hours a day divided by morning and night. They installed home wiring to facilitate this new modern convenience. An initial ice plant with a daily capacity of ten tons was eventually increased to thirty tons with the aid of electricity. The electric plant was sold years later to the city of Orleans. Other products were maintained as chief products of a steadily growing business.

 Albert and Edward Heise each passed away three months apart in 1919. The second generation of Heise Brothers was born. The new firm included sons Ernest, Earl, and Roy Heise. As business increased, they kept abreast of the times with consistent equipment modernization in every department. In 1926, they converted the Orleans Mill into a Feed Mill to meet local and growing demand for animal feeds.

In 1936, they erected a grain elevator with a storage capacity of 33,000 bushels. A corn dryer was installed soon thereafter with a dryer capacity of 7,200 bushels daily. It was one of very few dryers in the State of Indiana. An enormous quantity of grain was purchased from farmers in this locality. Corn shipping was initiated to liquor manufactures located in Louisville, Kentucky

Satellite milling manufacturing plants and retail stores were opened in Bedford, Mitchell, Paoli, French Lick, and Marengo, Indiana. Heise feed formulas were only manufactured with the very finest ingredients with evolution. Heise quality feeds were recognized, purchased, and shipped to hundreds of communities. The established Heise Brothers Milling Co. grew into one of the largest grain milling manufacturing organizations in southern Indiana. They became recognized as a manufacturing, dealer, and shipping company. After prohibition, the firm became a wholesale distributor of Ortel beers. The first authorized Pepsi distributorship in the state of Indiana was opened by the Heises giving birth to their second and third business enterprises. They added additional delivery trucks, storage rooms, and a growing workforce. The main section of their Orleans plant was expanded with the purchase of the James Fidler home with the firm then encompassing one city block.

The business was sold to the Goodrich Feed Company in 1951. Fifty-five years of Heise Brothers products and services were a great asset and employer to their respective communities.