VIDEO: Prairie grain elevators an ‘endangered species’

On Jan. 9 a hearing was held in Stoughton at which time submissions were made on behalf of the R.M., Crop Production Services Ltd. and local residents.

According to the report this elevator “represents an important chapter o in the evolution of grain handling.”

The wooden crib structure was erected at the end of the era of wooden elevator construction and features several innovations that overcame limitations and safety issues like dust reduction technology, dual weigh scales, ability the handle an entire B Train at once and a floating slab foundation, according to the Review Board.

“The innovations represent changes to the way grain was handled, and increased the efficiency in safely processing large quantities of product … The level of craftsmanship demonstrates that this elevator was intended to be an anchor facility designed to stand the test of time,” the recommendation reads.

Even the orange colour has meaning and the sheer fact that grain elevators are under-represented has upped its heritage value, the report stated.

“Finally, the elevator is an important element of a larger cultural landscape that spans the distance between Regina and Stoughton along the longest straight section of operational rail line in North America (from Richardson to Stoughton) and the second longest section of straight rail line in the world.”

In addition to the designation, the Review Board suggested a concerted effort be made to document the evolution of grain handling technology, architecture and grain handling companies. It said Crop Production Services Ltd. should work with local communities to figure out the best way to use and celebrate the grain elevator for the “cultural benefit.”

SUB: Grain elevators disappearing from Prairie landscape

The former Pioneer grain elevator isn’t the only one that has been under threat.

A grain elevator near Melfort was recently decommissioned.

(function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = “//connect.facebook.net/en_US/all.js#xfbml=1”; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); }(document, ‘script’, ‘facebook-jssdk’));

Post by Michael Harold.

According to the Saskatchewan Heritage Foundation, in 2009 there were about 420 known wooden grain elevators left in the province, a number which has not been recently updated by the Foundation.

Jim Pearson, 53, has been documenting grain elevators across the prairies since 2001.

The Alberta resident said his interest in grain elevators started when he noticed the iconic structures slow disappearance around two decades ago.

By 2007 all of his work was transformed into a book and in 2008 Pearson embarked on a project to document Saskatchewan grain elevators.

“Last year was really bad for Saskatchewan,” he said about the numerous grain elevators lost. “It’s kind of depressing.”

“There’s a lot of people concerned about it (grain elevators) and there’s a lot of people really happy that I’m doing all this work; recording all this history,” he added.

Pearson has been to the Prince Albert area, including Shellbrook gaining information on grain elevators.

“Grain elevators were probably the first thing built after, maybe, the hotels and the towns because the Canadian government wanted settlers coming out to the prairies and they were always making these huge, beautifully done posters saying ‘Come to Canada we have all this room, we have thousands of acres you can farm,’” he explained.

“There were elevators starting to pop up … they were basically like the major part of the town, like that’s where you got a lot of the tax base from and they were used like navigation markers.”

As these grain elevators continue to come down, Pearson said they are becoming more and more like an ‘endangered species’—leaving a noticeable impact.

“And then of course these big concrete terminals, they’re like 100 miles apart, you know, and the roads are being chewed to pieces and farmers around them are basically paying the bill to haul the grain instead of just going to your local centre,” he said.

To see the list Pearson is working on and photos of grain elevators in the prairies, click here.

Messages left with the R.M. of Tecumseh and Crop Production Services were not returned before publication.

sstone@panow.com

On Twitter: @sarahstone84

by Sarah Stone

VIDEO: Prairie grain elevators an ‘endangered species’

What's Trending