Butterfield, MN: Wood Grain Elevator

(Satellite)

There has been only one street view driver in this town and he never got close to the elevator.

Street View, Jul 2025

Wesley Peters posted three photos with the comment:

Grain Elevator Photography Trip 2, North Dakota/South Dakota/Minnesota.

Butterfield, Watonwan County, MN.

Adrian Elevator Inc. South headhouse built after 1969 (exact year unknown). Bushel capacity unknown. North headhouse built in unknown year.

Photographed on 7/20/2025.

Photos courtesy of Wesley Peters.

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Both routes through town were the C&NW.

19l70/72 Butterfield Quad @ 24,000

The East, West and South "spokes" are still owned by the UP.

rail.guide

Boyd, MN: Wood Grain Elevators

East: (Satellite)

West: (Satellite)

Looking North:

Street View, Aug 2025

Wesley Peters posted three photos with the comment:

Grain Elevator Photography Trip 2, North Dakota/South Dakota/Minnesota.

Boyd, Lac qui Parle County, MN.

Northwest Complex- Farmers Elevator Co. Square top headhouse built before 1955 (exact year unknown). Bushel capacity unknown.

Southeast Complex- Early history unknown.

Photographed on 7/20/2025.

Photos courtesy of Wesley Peters.

John Harker: SE Complex still in use

Owned by Prairie Grain Partners of Clarkfield Minnesota

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PrairieGrainPartners

The railroad was the C&NW.

1965/66 Boyd Quad @ 24,000

A satellite image shows that the tracks still exist. And it looks like all three road crossing were reconstructed rather recently.

Google, Oct 25, 2024

To my surprise, because UP bought C&NW, this route is now owned by BNSF.

rail.guide

And this map agrees.

National Rail Network Map

Fairfax, MN: C&NW/Minneapolis & St. Louis (M&StL) Depot and Wood Grain Elevators

Depot: (Satellite)

East Wood Grain Elevator: (Satellite)

West Wood Grain Elevator: (Satellite)

See Franklin, MN, for information about the railroad.

Museum/Minneapolis & St. Louis (M&StL) Depot

János Mc, Aug 2019

The west wood grain elevator is in the left background.

Mashell Aponi (Princess Athia) posted

East Wood Grain Elevator

The right background looks like the fertilizer supply facility for the co-op. This grain elevator has grown considerably from its start with a significantly large wood elevator.

Street View, Oct 2023

The fertilizer supply facility must get rail service because it has an industrial siding from the mainline and has a hopper unloading conveyor. But I don't see a fall protector in the above view for the elevator to get rail service.

Satellite

West Wood Grain Elevator

No street view driver went into town. We can tell from the satellite image that it hasn't grown much since it was built.

Street View, Oct 2023

Both Wood Grain Elevators

Wesley Peters posted five photos with the comment:

Grain Elevator Photography Trip 2, North Dakota/South Dakota/Minnesota.

Fairfax, Renville County, MN.

East Complex- Fairfax Grain & Supply Co-op. False-front drive-thru headhouse built in 1976, Hogenson Construction Co. 200,000-bushel capacity.

One of six surviving drive-thru headhouses by Hogenson Construction Co. in Minnesota.

West Complex- Great Western Elevator Co. Built in 1895. Bushel capacity unknown. The previous elevator on the site was destroyed by arson, along with two other elevators along the siding, on July 8, 1895. Incendiaries were used to set all three elevators ablaze. 5,000-bushels of wheat were destroyed.

Last (confirmed) surviving elevator built for the Great Western Elevator Co. in the Midwest.

Photographed on 7/20/2025.

Photos courtesy of Wesley Peters.

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Franklin, MN: Wood Grain Elevator and Minnesota Prairie Line/C&NW/M&StL Railroad

(Satellite)

Street View, Dec 2023

Wesley Peters posted

Grain Elevator Photography Trip 2, North Dakota/South Dakota/Minnesota.

Franklin, Renville County, MN.

Caven Elevator Co. Built in 1940, Hogenson Construction Co. 25,000-bushel capacity.

Photographed on 7/20/2025.

Photo courtesy of Wesley Peters.

This is another town where supplying the farmers with chemicals is a bigger business than storing grain. 

Satellite (Jul 2015)

The above image must be old because it doesn't show the bins on the north side of the supply company that are present in the street view above. So I fired up Google Earth. The above image is from Jul 2015.  By 2020 they had built those bins.

Google Earth, Sep 2020

The satellite photos show that the supply company gets railroad service. The 2020 photo implies a variety of products because the six railcars look different. And the following view caught some tank cars.

Street View, Dec 2023

The railroad was the Minneapolis & St. Louis, which became C&NW.

1952/54 Moroon Quad @ 62,500

To verify that UP is not providing carload rail service, I checked the current ownership. Sure enough, it is a shortline: Minnesota Prairie Line (MPL).

rail.guide

The route was abandoned in 1982 by C&NW. The Minnesota Valley Regional Rail Authority bought it. MPL operations started in 2002. [UP]

tcwr

Gibbon, MN: Wood Grain Elevator

(Satellite)

Street View, Oct 2023

Wesley Peters posted

Grain Elevator Photography Trip 2, North Dakota/South Dakota/Minnesota.

Gibbon, Sibley County, MN.

Early history unknown.

Photographed on 7/20/2025.

Photo courtesy of Wesley Peters.

Tom Dueringer: I managed the feed mill there from 2013-2016

Given Tom's comment, I looked for the feed mill. It would be the brown building behind the wood elevator. 

Street View, Oct 2023

No Street View driver went down that road, but I can zoom in. In addition to a feed truck, we see the many downspouts to the bins that would hold supplements.

Street View, Oct 2023

The railroad was C&NW.

1964/65 Gibbon Quad @ 24,000

UP still owns this former-C&NW route. The top street view and Wesley's photo shows that there is a conveyor over a Class I railroad. That is rare. And the hopper car in Wesley's photo shows that UP is providing rail service. That is also rare, especially since there is no fall protector.

rail.guide

La Salle, MN: Wood Grain Elevator

North Facility: (Satellite)

South Facility: (Satellite)

North Facility

Given the feed truck on the left side, this must be a feed mill. The C&NW railroad was on the other side of the elevator. The railroad is now abandoned.

Street View, Jul 2025

South Facility

Street View, Jul 2025

This elevator must be used for storage of grain going to the market.

Street View, Jul 2025

Both

Wesley Peters posted five photos with the comment:

Grain Elevator Photography Trip 2, North Dakota/South Dakota/Minnesota.

La Salle, Watonwan County, MN.

Southwest Complex- Early history unknown.

Northeast Complex- Farmers Grain Co. False-front combination headhouse/annex built in 1969, Hogenson Construction Co. Bushel capacity unknown.

Features Hogenson's signature mint green office and driveway.

Photographed on 7/20/2025.

Photos courtesy of Wesley Peters.

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The railroad was the C&NW. It is now abandoned.

1967/69 La Salle Quad @ 24,000

Paulina, IA: Concrete Silos Grain Elevators

East: (Satellite)

West: (Satellite)

The elevator on the left is the east complex.

Street View, Aug 2021

A closeup of the west complex.

Street View, Aug 2021

These bins and ground pile were further east. According to a satellite image, the bins are now gone.

Street View, Aug 2021

Wesley Peters posted six photos with the comment:

Paullina, O'Brien County, IA.

East Complex- Metcalf & Cannon/Farmers Cooperative Co. Headhouse built in 1920, Burrell Engineering & Construction Co. 100,000-bushel capacity. Annex built in 1949. 264,000-bushel capacity.

Oldest concrete elevator in O'Brien County.

West Complex- Farmers Cooperative Co. Headhouse built in 1970. 300,000-bushel capacity. Annex built in 1977. 280,000-bushel capacity. Both by Younglove Construction Co.

Photographed on 7/6/2026.

Photos courtesy of Wesley Peters.

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1954/68 Fort Dodge Quad @ 250,000