Towns and Nature: Wolf Point, MT; Two wood grain elevators, then there was a fire, now there's one

Sunday, December 21, 2025

Wolf Point, MT; Two wood grain elevators, then there was a fire, now there's one

Burnt (East) Elevator: (Satellite)

Other (West) Elevator: (Satellite)

Depot: (Satellite)

Modern Elevator: (Satellite)

Given the steel bins in the photos below, I think the one on the right is the one that burned.

Street View, Nov 2024

Bakken Oilfield Fail of the Day posted
[Some comments indicate it has not been used for over 10 years. The fire started in the office so some comments speculated that some homeless people lit a fire for warmth, and it got out of control.]

Christopher Jordan Lindsay Sr.: Bums running out of buildings to burn for real in this town, I believe homeless shelter is in the works as we speak.

Andrew Tuttle shared

Six photos contributed in the comments on the above post. Please access the "posted" link to see the names of the contributors.

Thom Fuhrmann commented on Andrew's share
Summer 2024

Dennis DeBruler: Thom Fuhrmann This is the other wood elevator in Wolf Point. The one that burned is east of this elevator.

Wesley Peters commented on Andrew's share
Photo I took in July 2024. Originally built for the Occident Elevator Co. in 1961. Hogenson Construction Co. was the contractor. 215,000-bushel capacity.

Bakken Oilfield Fail of the Day posted five photos with the comment: "Photos from the Giant Fire in Wolf Point today [Dec 10, 2025]."

Wesley Peters posted two photos with the comment:

Remembering the Occident Elevator at Wolf Point, Roosevelt County, MT.
Occident Elevator Co. Combination headhouse/annex built in 1961, Hogenson Construction Co. 215,000-bushel capacity.
Destroyed by fire on December 10, 2025.
Photographed on 7/12/2024.
Photos courtesy of Wesley Peters.

The Great Northern served this town. Note how the river had meandered. I compared this map to a contemporary satellite image, and it appears that a meander has wiped Oldtown off the map.