Welcome to the Grain Elevator History Project

The Grain Elevator History Project is a project of Just Group which is owned and operated by Trevor Esau. To see more about Just Group go to www.justgroup.ca

Contact Trevor at justcdgroup@gmail.com

INTRODUCTION

We are fascinated by grain elevators. We are struck by their beauty. The colourful landmarks are the subject of paintings, photographs, and pictorial books. The hamlets, villages and towns were defined, in part, by their elevators. We searched for them on the horizon as we drove to each community. The names of the community were clearly visible on the sides of the elevator. They were a distant sign that we were close to home. More than that, grain elevators are part of our own experiences of Canadian culture.

The rise of the country elevator was a strong icon for the strength of rural life in Canada and their destruction a symbol for its weakening. In 1934, the number of grain elevators in Alberta peaked at 1,781. Today there are less then 130 standing and few used by the grain trade. Those left are run down.

We are also telling the inside and hidden histories of the grain elevator through first hand accounts. We invite people to tell us their stories by e-mail. The stories submitted appear in the personal experience page.


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Saturday, January 30, 2010

The Story of the Injured Owl and the Seed Cleaning Plant

The second floor of many grain elevators housed the seed cleaning plant. These plants weren’t used very often after the early years of the elevator. The second floor had windows on each side and a very high roof, probably 20 feet. The second floor was not used. Owls were frequent visitors to the elevator.


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