Mason City, IA: Ethonal Plant adds 2.2 Million Bushel Bin, World Record in 2021

(Satellite)

Sukup Manufacturing Co. posted three photos with the comment:

Earlier this month we celebrated the official ribbon cutting for the world's largest grain bin, located at Golden Grain Energy, LLC in Mason City, Iowa.

Before the 2.2 million bushel bin starts getting filled, the Filmore Central high school choir performed in the empty bin!

#TBT #TeamSukup

Golden Grain Energy shared

The Farmer's Life shared

If we planted the whole farm to corn every year and averaged 200 bushels an acre we could fill this bin in about 5 years. Perspective for how much grain that bin holds.

Chad Gates: So roughly speaking your total acreage is 2200 Acres

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I saved a current image so that later I can see how the new bin compares to the existing bins.

Satellite

(source) The music starts at 2:30. As I had expected, this "room" has good reverberation.

Claytonville, IL: Wood Grain Elevator and Several Steel Bins

(Satellite)

This is one of those towns that almost has more bins than homes. And the Street View car never visited here. This town is close enough that it demands that I make a field trip to it.

Chicago & Eastern Illinois Railroad Historical Society shared a Logan Frey photo
Union Pacific Cissna Park branch in Illinois. Not sure when last used. It’s in rough shape. First shots are in Claytonville, last ones are in Cissna Park.
Bob Ralph: Wow, got 10-15 cars a week out of there from Goodwine on the main line. This was suppose to be built to Peoria when started.

This C&EI branch made it as far as Cissna Park's grain elevator. That elevator should be part of the field trip because it appears to have a rectangular bin at its core and Street View has not gone there yet. In fact I should do all of the elevators along that branch. I saved a satellite image for Goodwine because it has a big, active ground pile.

Satellite

And Alonza is an example of an Illinois town where only the elevator is left.

Arlington, IL: A wood elevator made it into the 21st Century

(Satellite, it was just east of the tree)

Steven J. Brown posted
Milwaukee Road 261 is on the ex-CB&Q to Galesburg at Arlington, Illinois - June 27, 1998.
Dennis DeBruler: A wood grain elevator that made it into the 21st Century. According to Google Earth images, it was removed between Aug 2010 and Nov 2011.

Comments on Steven's post

1941 Aerial Photo from ILHAP

Google Earth, Aug 2010

Kentland, IN:, Sheldon, IL: and Goodland, IN: Grain Elevators

Kentland: (Satellite)

Sheldon: (Satellite)

Goodland: (Satellite)

Sheldon, IL, still has a wood elevator. That elevator goes on the field-trip list.

Kentland, IN

I found this elevator interesting because it is a big elevator that does not to use rail service even though they are right next to a friendly shortline railroad, the TP&W. Was that because there are various ethanol and corn product plants within trucking distance? The satellite image shows that they have a ground pile, but it was empty when the satellite went over.

Kentland Elevator

Another reason for saving these photos is that I wanted to study how someone else photographed a large elevator. I ended up deleting over half the photos because they were redundant.

Brett Elis posted some photos with the comment: "Kentland Grain,  Kentland Indiana.  Had an old wooden elevator in town originally.  Built the quonsets outside of town at current location.  Eventually closed and tore down elevator in town. They are strictly truck from this location.  They have also purchased the elevator in Sheldon Illinois that is rail served."

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Brett missed the old Farmall tractor that is on display out in front.

Street View

Sheldon, IL

This one is also next to a friendly shortline railroad, the KB&S. And it still has its original wood elevator.

Satellite

And it has two industrial locomotives to help load the hoppers.

Street View

Both Kentland Grain Elevators (Kentland and Seldon)

My theory that the prices at the rail served elevator would be a little higher is wrong. I guess the other has more capacity so it balances out. Or they ship the Kentland grain to local plants and the Sheldon grain goes to rail served markets. It is interesting that they quote prices for each elevator. Are they sometimes different?

Kentland Elevator

When I got caught on IN-55 just south of US-24 by a TP&W eastbound train that stopped for about a half-hour, an 18-wheeler grain truck was soon also caught. Cars and pickups backed up and turned around. But the 18-wheeler was trapped for the duration. The driver told me that he was headed to Kentland Grain for one more load for the day before the elevator closed at 5pm. We had to wait long enough that I don't think he made it.

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You know you are in the country when the traffic jam includes a self-propelled chopper.

Since I had plenty of time to kill while waiting for the train, I walked over and got a shot of the rear as well.

Goodland, IN

Looking at my photos, I noticed that there was a closer grain elevator, Co-Alliance, if he turned East instead of West on US-24. Looking at a satellite image, they had two big, round ground piles that were full.

It is hard to compare prices because they quote different delivery times.

co-alliance

Hortonville, IN: Still has wood grain elevator

(Satellite)

The Monon Railroad that used to serve this elevator has been abandoned.

Looking at a satellite image, the bin roof we see to the left of the semi-cab came off that tall metal bin that is to the left of the concrete silos. At least their big bins survived the wind storm. I also include the gravity wagon because that illustrates a role these smaller elevators still serve. Specifically, not all farmers need buy an 18-wheeler to carry their grain to an elevator if there is an elevator close by. They can use their tractor and some gravity wagons to haul their grain down the road. And the grain elevator can use 18-wheelers to get the grain to a rail-served elevator or a grain processing plant.

Street View

Or maybe this elevator is a feed mill and they don't have to use 18-wheelers to get rid of all of the grain. That is, the grain is consumed by local farm animals.

Street View

Jacqueline Reimer posted four photos with the comment: "Hortonville, Indiana today [Jun2, 26, 2021]."

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Cayuga, IL: 1901 GM&O Depot and Wood Grain Elevator

(Satellite)

safe_image for Cayuga Depot: 1901
Circa 1901. "Station at Cayuga, Ill's." 8x10 inch dry plate glass negative, Detroit Photographic Company. 

Johnny Hansen posted

ZMQG4 chase yesterday on the UP Joliet Subdivision with one of few remaining SP patched AC44CW’s leading. Descriptions with photos.

5-15-21

Street View

Kathy Black posted two photos with the comment: "Cayuga, IL - 2021."

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Street View

Beach, ND: Some Old Wood Grain Elevators, Some Still Standing

(Satellite)

David MacKenzie posted
In June 1921, landlocked Beach, North Dakota resembled a beach. Northern Pacific passenger and freight trains are above the flood waters, next to the grain elevators. The tracks and newer, concrete and steel elevators are still in use. The town of Beach is named for Captain Warren Beach, who accompanied the 1873 Yellowstone Expedition of the U.S. Army to survey a route for the Northern Pacific Railroad. The expedition was under the command of Colonel David S. Stanley, with Lieutenant Colonel George A. Custer second in command. Photo by an unknown relative.

Dennis DeBruler shared
Of course, the four grain elevators caught my eye.

Dennis DeBruler commented on his share
The far elevator in the photo was still standing when this image was taken in Oct 2007. (It no longer appears in a satellite image.) It had a wood annex added before they started adding steel bins. The town is still rail served.

Dennis DeBruler commented on his share
And one of the three elevators is still standing.

Dennis DeBruler commented on his share
And any hoppers that have the BN logo have to be old.

Dennis DeBruler commented on his share

I discovered a wood elevator that is still standing on the north side of the tracks as well.

Normally when I use a street view, I include the URL that produced it. But Facebook now deletes my comments that have a URL as spam. So this is an experiment to see if the comment survives.

https://www.google.com/.../data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sHZQBLj...

Mt. Sterling, IL: Wabash Depot

Preserved Location: (Satellite)

(Satellite)

Seven of the images posted by Randall Wiegel with the comment: "1868 Mt. Sterling Illinois Wabash railroad depot."

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Street View

Sometimes because of the bay window roof you can identify the depot in an old aerial photo. But I can't determine which building along Railroad Street was the depot.

1938 Aerial Photo from ILHAP

Huntington, OR: UP Wood Coaling Tower and Two Water Twoers

(Satellite)

It continues to amaze me what our ancestors were able to build with wood. In this case it was a coaling tower.

Raymond Story shared a post by James B Bane
Here is a shot of UP's Huntington yard circa 1945 taken by Eldridge Huffman. I think the depot must be off to the photographer's left.

Digitally Zoomed to Facebook resolution

Part of the roundhouse footprint is still visible.

Satellite

Dennis DeBruler posted two images with the comment: "Huntington, OR     I think this is located where the former UP depot used to set."

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1951 Huntington Quadrangle @ 1:62,500