Conrad, MT: Anheuser-Busch Malt Barley Elevator and Others

Malt Barley: (Satellite)

Grain North: (Satellite)

The railroad was a Great Northern branch that crossed the mainline in Shelby, MT.

Ken Bryan posted
Hopper cars add a splash of color to an otherwise drab winter day at the Anheuser-Busch Malt Barley elevator.

If that it a contemporary picture, that is a lot of hoppers left in BN green in today's world of BNSF. The elevator still exists as Busch Agricultural Resources. I assume Busch contracts with farmers in the area to grow the type of barley they need for their malt processing. My grandfather raised chickens (20,000 at a time). He would be approached by processors to grow them on contract. It would be a set price that was high enough for him to make money, but not high enough to make a "killing." They also would provide the feed so what you earned was pretty much guaranteed. But he was a gambler and wanted the option of selling when the market was high and make a killing. Unfortunately, the market was typically low and he would be killed (i.e. have to sell at a loss). Various people tried talking him into switching to contract growing, but he was too stubborn to do it. He did start growing just two crops a year instead of three so that he could catch both the Thanksgiving and Easter markets.

Ken Bryan posted
BNSF 2000 is tied down at the head of a short string of hoppers, in position to load grain at the Columbia Grain [North] elevator in Conrad MT.
Aug 13, 2020

What amazed me is that there are at least three wooden elevators left. (Then turn the Streetview 180 degrees to see the elevator on the other side of the road.) There is also a wooden elevator at Montana Milling.

The "signature photo" that Google Map chooses for the town shows some of the old elevators and the railroad museum.

Jonathan Fischer, Jul 2019, cropped