The Great Grain Elevator Project, September, 2001.

All photos and text © 2001 Glenn E. Stewart. All rights reserved.

This page last modified 19 December, 2001

Several years ago I discovered that the old-style Midwestern grain elevators were going out of business, falling into disrepair and being demolished. Several factors are contributing to their demise: Roads are better and travel is easier and cheaper. It is, therefore, more economical for the farmers to truck their grain to a major market than to use the elevators as a "middle man" in the process of transporting their product to market. De-regulation of the nation's railroads has caused some rail lines and spurs to be abandoned because they were not profitable. Without rail service, the elevators serve no practical purpose. In many areas, the railroads have literally torn up the rails and sold them and the ties for scrap. Some states are turning the abandoned railroad rights of way into green belts, parks and walking/bicycling trails. The general trend for farms to be run by corporations rather than families, results in less business for the elevators.

Regardless of the reasons, within a generation or so, I doubt that there will be very many of these old prairie landmarks left. During the '70s and '80s, as the railroads became automated and computer controlled, the old railroad buildings, such as rail yard control towers, switching shacks and other trackside buildings were all demolished. As a rail fan, I miss them as photographic subjects. I missed the chance to make a significant photographic record of them, and I'm not aware of the work of anyone who did. Their architectural style was unique, and is now lost. The same can be said for the old country grain elevators. They have a unique architectural style. But this time, I have decided to try to make a photographic record of as many of them as I can before they, too, are all lost.

I've included a map showing the locations of the elevators I have shot. I've also included a diagram showing the inner workings of the elevators. As my wife and I traveled and photographed these buildings, we became aware of something that we hadn't ever noticed before. Each of these buildings is different from any other. Even though they all perform the same function, no two are alike. We talked to several people as we traveled, asking them about the demise of the elevators, and found that many of these old buildings are nearly 100 years old. One was described to us as being from the "horse and buggy" era.

All the elevators were shot on film with black and white negative film, color negative film and color transparency (slide) film, using a Mamiya RB67 medium format camera that produces 2-1/4 x 2-3/4 inch (6x7cm) negatives, compared to the familiar, but much smaller, 35mm negatives, which are 1 x 1-1/2 inches (2.4 x 3.6cm). The print quality these large negatives can produce is incredibly good. As an example, the Glenmore, Ohio, elevator was shot from across a parking lot and a street. If I enlarge the photo to make a 16x20 inch (40x50cm) print, you can see the heads of the nails that hold the sheet metal siding on the building. I love intricate detail in a photo. The elevators were also shot digitally in both black and white and color for record keeping purposes, using a Kodak DC-4800, a fine camera that approximates 35mm film in resolution. The elevator photos presented on this page, with one exception, are from the digital camera which was mounted on the tripod immediately after the film shots were taken.  Unfortunately, the digital cameras' performance in black and white is not really to my liking. The b&w images appear to have been shot with very grainy 35mm film. I will add b&w images to this page as I have time to print them from film and scan the prints. This process will produce superior image quality, but will take some time. One of the drawbacks to presenting this type of material in a digital format is the Moiré patterns caused by the interaction of the dark and light lines in the image representing the corrugated metal that is used extensively in the buildings, with the scan lines of the digital camera, scanner and monitor. The blue and orange, or dark, curved bands and jagged lines you will see superimposed on the some of the silos and on the metal siding on some of the buildings are examples of these Moiré patterns. Sorry, they can't be helped. The film photos do not suffer from this effect. This is one of the reasons digital can't replace film.  I regret that we didn't have time to wait for better skies. The weather was very accommodating for travel, but the lack of clouds detracts from some of the artistic quality these photos could have had. Unfortunately, we did not have time to wait for the perfect sky. We had a limited amount of time and had to take what we could get. I passed up several elevators because the lighting would only have been good in the morning, and we were there early in the afternoon and couldn't afford to wait until the next day to take the shot. Next time...

On your machine, please go to My Computer, Control Panel, Display, Settings and set your monitor to 1024x768 resolution and the highest color setting your machine will support to enjoy these photos. I have sized them to fill your screen with this setting. With lower resolution (the 800x600 Windows default) you will have to scroll to see the entire image.

I hope you enjoy this journey through the Midwest and back into time.

Click photo for larger image

We began our photographic journey in Limon, Colorado, on the 2nd of September, arriving just in time to shoot the first elevator at sunset. We followed old US 40 from there on through Kansas, where we picked up US 24 and followed it to Hannibal, Missouri. I-72, US 36 and Indiana SR 37 carried us to the in-laws home in Indiana. Elevator shooting on the return trip was along old US 30 through Iowa and Nebraska. The numbers on the map are keyed to the photos, below.

What's the purpose of a grain elevator? Most basically, it's used to transfer grain from the vehicle in which the farmer brings it to the elevator into a mass-transportation vehicle for shipment to a major market. The first elevators moved the grain from the farmer's horse drawn wagons into barges for shipment along canals. Later, the elevators transferred the grain to the railroad. The elevator serves several purposes. It grades the quality of the grain, dries it, stores it and ships it. The feed elevators also provide grinding and mixing services. If the diagram here isn't clear enough for you to understand the process, let me know and I'll add a textual description.

My first photo of the project, Limon, Colorado. This digital image isn't as good as it could be. I had accidentally bumped the "macro" button on the back of the camera and didn't notice. This caused the photo to be slightly out of focus. I will replace the image after I print the film photo. This is a very basic structure without the gabled building. It's included here to show some of the architectural diversity we saw. (Film photo: Mamiya RB-67, 90mm, F11, 1/30 sec., Kodak 160VC, polarizer. Map key: 1).

The next stop along US 40 is Hugo, Colorado. This little town has two elevators, but this one is the only one of the two that's still operating. It is owned by Collingwood Grain, Inc. (Film photo: Mamiya RB-67, 50mm, F8-11, 1/60 sec., 160VC, polarizer. Map key: 2).

Just to the west (right) of the elevator, above, is the Snell Grain & Feed elevator. Note the three electrical wires on the side of the building (right center) that have been cut off. This one is out of business, but is of the architectural style I'm trying to preserve. (Film photo: Mamiya RB-67, 90mm, F16, 1/60 sec., Kodak 160VC, polarizer. Map key: 2).

Kit Carson, Colorado, was one of the few places where we had the kind of clouds in the sky that make a photographer drool. I tried to make the most of this one. Unfortunately, we never encountered any thunder storms. I had visions of shooting an elevator with clouds and lightning in the background. This is the  Dempel Grain East elevator, with several ammonia (fertilizer) tanks in the foreground.  (Film photo: Mamiya RB-67, 90mm, F16, 1/60 sec., Kodak TMX 100, Red 23. Map key: 3).

Cheyenne Wells, Colorado, has several elevators along its piece of the Union Pacific railroad. The ones on the left are in business, the one on the right is abandoned. Beneath the weeds is a rail siding that hasn't been used in several years. Near the lower left side of the building is a section of the corrugated galvanized sheet metal siding that is peeling away from the structure. (Film photo: Mamiya RB-67, 50mm, F16, 1/60 sec., Kodak 160VC, polarizer. Map key: 4).

This is the wave of the future. The elevator at Weskan, Kansas, is of the modern concrete silo type. This is not the style I'm trying to preserve, but is included here to illustrate the difference in architectural style. To me, it has all the charm and aesthetic appeal of a six-pack of beer. Don't get me wrong, I LIKE beer. I just don't think it's too much fun to look at while it's still in the can. (Film photo: Mamiya RB-67, 90mm, F16, 1/60 sec., Kodak 160VC, polarizer. Map key: 5).

Wallace, Kansas, has two elevators. The one on the east end of town can be seen between the silos of this one, on the west end of town.. (Film photo: Mamiya RB-67, 90mm, F16, 1/60 sec., Kodak 160VC, polarizer. Map key: 6).

The Wallace, Kansas, east elevator is shown here. It is a good example of the old style, with two large steel silos and a lot of ammonia trailers on the right. (Film photo: Mamiya RB-67, 50mm, F16, 1/60 sec., Kodak 160VC, polarizer. Map key: 6).

This is one of my favorite scenes. We were forced onto I-70 in western Kansas, since it had replaced, rather than paralleled, old US 40. As we rolled along through seemingly endless miles of corn crop as far as the eye can see, we noticed this scene. The thing that intrigued me was the huge church steeple. This is a geographically isolated town, and logically shouldn't have had such a large church. I had to find out more about it, so we left the freeway and headed into town to find out more about the church. Here in Park, Kansas, there are three elevators, Hennrich, Wheatland and Midwest, along with the water tower and the Catholic church. All in a town that has 12 streets, by actual count, all of which are dirt! It is a tribute to the pioneer spirit that still lives in the residents of this little burg that they and their neighbors, probably from up to 50 miles away, can support a church as nice as the one they have. How they manage during the winter, I can only guess. (Film photo: Mamiya RB-67, 90mm, F11, 1/60 sec., Kodak 160VC, polarizer. Map key: 7).

Victoria, Kansas, west. Out of business. The walkway from the mother house to the steel annex along the horizontal conveyor is in disrepair and probably too dangerous to walk on. (Film photo: Mamiya RB-67, 50mm, F16, 1/60 sec., Kodak 160VC, polarizer. Map key: 8).

Victoria, Kansas, east. Still operating. Please pardon the Moiré patterns. (Film photo: Mamiya RB-67, 50mm, F16, 1/125 sec., Kodak TMX 100, Yellow 12. Map key: 8).

The elevator at Walker, Kansas, has been abandoned for quite some time. Note the missing siding and roofing. Also note, lower right, that you can see the next town. The prominent structure, the grain elevator, is visible on the right side of the tracks. This is a common occurrence in the Midwest. Each little town sprang up around the elevator and as you travel, you can see from town to town. (Film photo: Mamiya RB-67, 90mm, F16, 1/125 sec., Kodak TMX 100, Yellow 12. Map key: 9).

We were, again, forced onto the freeway and saw this large complex of silos from several miles away. The Wilson, Kansas, elevator seems to have been built as needed, rather than planned. Note the rings around the concrete silos. I consider this some pretty innovative engineering. The silo walls are thin, to save money, and are reinforced by dozens of steel cables ringing them. The tensile strength of the cables allows the silos to hold a full load of grain. (Film photo: Mamiya RB-67, 50mm, F16, 1/60 sec., Kodak 160VC, polarizer. Map key: 10).

The Willey Station Feed Company in Willey Station, Illinois is another abandoned elevator that's falling into disrepair. Note the walkway along the horizontal conveyor. If there ever had been any rail service here, it's long gone now. (Film photo: Mamiya RB-67, 900mm, F16, 1/60 sec., Kodak 160VC, polarizer. Map key: 11).

The odd paint color of the Metcalf, Illinois, elevator got my attention. The metal silos of this abandoned elevator are badly rusted. The telegraph pole in the foreground sports an upper crossarm that's split lengthwise, with the upper half missing. Also, note the several telegraph wires that hang down from the pole, no longer connected to anything. There is a dark strip of ground next to the elevator that is parallel to the active railroad in the foreground. This is where the siding that used to serve the elevator once lay. (Film photo: Mamiya RB-67, 90mm, F11-16, 1/60 sec., Kodak 160VC, polarizer. Map key: 12).

This elevator, in Glenmore, Ohio, also appears in my gallery under Current Work, Summer of 1998. I shot it again because the last time I didn't shoot any color photos of it. I was disappointed that the trees that used to run along the siding on the left have been cut down. On the other hand, the photo, below, showing the south side of the elevator couldn't have been shot with the trees in place. This elevator is still in use in some manner. The door for the dump pit is open in this photo, but was closed in the earlier shot. We approached this elevator from the west this trip and found that 1/2 mile (1 km) down the tracks in the direction the camera is looking, the tracks are gone. I was afraid that by this time they would be gone next to the elevator, as well. (Film photo: Mamiya RB-67, 50mm, F16, 1/60 sec., Kodak 160VC, polarizer. Map key: 13).

This is the south view of the Glenmore elevator. The dryer is clearly visible here, between the mother house and the steel silos. This would make a wonderful scratch-build project for a model railroader. If anyone is interested, I have photos of three sides of the complex, showing enough of the buildings to give the modeler the info needed to make a thoroughly detailed replica. (Film photo: Mamiya RB-67, 50mm, F16, 1/60 sec., Kodak 160VC, polarizer. Map key: 13).

The elevator at Monroe, Indiana, is the only one we saw in Northeastern Indiana that I had any desire to shoot. The best angle from which to shoot it is here, from the north side. At the time of year we visited, the lighting isn't very good. This one might be done better early in the morning in the winter when the north side of the building gets some light. (Film photo: Mamiya RB-67, 50mm, F16, 1/60 sec., Kodak 160VC, polarizer. Map key: 14).

As we returned to Marion, Indiana, from a shoot we went through Van Buren, Indiana, and saw the Weaver Pop Corn processing plant. The silos are about as far behind the cars as the cars are from the camera. The silos are about the same size as the ones at Glenmore, and there are, by my count, about 50 of them. That's a lot of pop corn! Is it any wonder that Van Buren is known as the Pop Corn Capitol of the World? (Film photo: Not shot on film. Map key: None).

Shabbona, Illinois. The Indian head picture on the side of the building caught my eye. It's one of the few pieces of artwork we saw on elevators. Some of the concrete elevators in Kansas had wheat stalks painted on them, but I didn't shoot any of them. They were the wrong architectural style and the artwork was on the shady side of the silos. My big camera attracted some of the locals here and we learned that this elevator will soon be shut down. This is the one that was described as being from the "horse and buggy era". Though the railroad is immediately behind the elevator, there is also a horizontal conveyor above the brick scale house that can be used to fill trucks. (Film photo: Mamiya RB-67, 50mm, F8-11, 1/60 sec., Kodak 160VC, polarizer. Map key: 15).

This elevator, in Lowden, Iowa, has been shut down for some time. Near the center of the buildings you can see the ramp going up to the dump pit door. It has been growing a crop of weeds for several years. (Film photo: Mamiya RB-67, 50mm, F11-16, 1/60 sec., Kodak 160VC, polarizer. Map key: 16).

State Center, Iowa. The lighting would have been better an hour or so earlier, but as I said, we had to take what we could get. The brick annex on this one was unique. In the 15-20 minutes we were here there were 4 or 5 Union Pacific trains that passed through on the tracks behind the elevator. If you're looking to buy railroad stock, the UP seems to be plenty busy. We saw several elevators with TV antennas, but I think this was the only one with a satellite dish. (Film photo: Mamiya RB-67, 90mm, F16, 1/60 sec., Kodak 160VC, polarizer. Map key: 17).

This elevator, in Ralston, Iowa, is of the old style, and is situated between two modern elevators that are out of sight on the right and left of the photo. The harvest was beginning and there was a lot of large truck traffic. The gables on the buildings were an interesting addition to their architecture. (Film photo: Mamiya RB-67, 90mm, F11, 1/60 sec., Kodak 160VC, polarizer. Map key: 18).

To be honest, my wife, Evelyn, shot this one with the Kodak digital. This is Arcadia, Iowa. We waited in the sun for a half hour or so to get the train in the photo. (Film photo: With train: None. Without train: Mamiya RB-67, 180mm, F8-11, 1/60 sec., Kodak 160VC, polarizer. Map key: 19).

Westside, Iowa. A plumber's nightmare. (Film photo: Mamiya RB-67, 90mm, F11, 1/60 sec., Kodak 160VC, polarizer. Map key: 20).

Woodbine, Iowa, Master Mix Feeds. (Film photo: Mamiya RB-67, 50mm, F16, 1/60 sec., Kodak 160VC, polarizer. Map key: 21).

California Junction, Iowa, was a challenge to shoot. There was no good way to approach it up close, so I retreated and shot it across the bean field with a telephoto lens. I didn't think I'd have a use for that lens when I placed it in the camera case before we left home, but I was glad I had it for this shot. (Film photo: Mamiya RB-67, 360mm, F11, 1/60 sec., Kodak 160VC, polarizer. Map key: 22).

Elkhorn, Nebraska. There is another elevator down the tracks, to the right, but I would have had to do some pretty serious trespassing on railroad property to shoot it. Since this was only a couple of weeks after the World Trade Center attack, I didn't take the chance of being arrested as a possible saboteur. (Film photo: Mamiya RB-67, 50mm, F11-16, 1/60 sec., Kodak 160VC, polarizer. Map key: 23).

I suppose I was technically trespassing for this shot, but I was also standing on a public road that crossed the tracks, so I didn't worry too much about it. This is Ames Farmer's elevator in Ames, Nebraska. (Film photo: None. Map key: 24).

Ames Farmer's elevator, Ames, Nebraska, without the train. (Film photo: Mamiya RB-67, 180mm, F11-16, 1/60 sec., Kodak 160VC, polarizer. Map key: 24).

North Bend, Nebraska. Architecturally, this is my favorite. Something about it makes me think of "The Wizard of Oz". It's probably one of the oldest ones we shot. (Film photo: Mamiya RB-67, 90mm, F11-16, 1/60 sec., Kodak 160VC, polarizer. Map key: 25).

Havens, Nebraska. Compared to the others, this is a small elevator. It has a roof line that's different from the others. This b&w photo is a scan from a print. (Film photo: Mamiya RB-67, 90mm, F16-22, 1/60 sec., Kodak TMX 100, Yellow 12. Map key: 26).

Alda, Nebraska. The angle of the sun made this one difficult to shoot. The sheet metal siding created a lot of reflection, but I think there's enough latitude in the film shots to allow making decent prints. (Film photo: Mamiya RB-67, 90mm, F11-16, 1/60 sec., Kodak 160VC, polarizer. Map key: 27).

Fox Grain, Gibbon, Nebraska. Note the tall, thin section of the building. This elevator is very active. The wind was blowing toward me as I took this shot and I was being rained on by grain dust. (Film photo: Mamiya RB-67, 90mm, F11-16, 1/60 sec., Kodak 160VC, polarizer. Map key: 28).

Gothenburg, Nebraska. This is one of the tallest buildings we saw. I believe it is out of business. (Film photo: Mamiya RB-67, 1800mm, F11-16, 1/60 sec., Kodak 160VC, polarizer. Map key: 29).

Lastly, Brady, Nebraska. By the time we got here we had been away from home for a month. When we ran into a detour about 20 miles west of here that routed us onto I-80, we decided to just head for home. I collected about 35 elevators and feel that I have made good progress toward preserving them on film. I'd like to make another run, farther north this time, but don't know when I'll have the time. (Film photo: Mamiya RB-67, 90mm, F11-16, 1/60 sec., Kodak 160VC, polarizer. Map key: 30).

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