Here are a few more views of

Here are a few more views of the LaGrange IN elevator. I have dozens more! When I head out on an "elevator safari" I tend to take lots of photos including plenty of close-in detail photos.

CLICK ON PHOTOS TO ENLARGE

Here at Wellington Ohio is an

Here at Wellington Ohio is an elevator on the old Big Four (CCC&StL) line that ran southwest from Cleveland. I grew up a few miles from this facility and watched it change over the years.

Date: 06-18-2004

Millersburg elevator

Not all elevators are large of complicated. Here is the old elevator in Millersburg IN. I life about 1/4 mile from this facility. The photo was taken on 10-22-2005 on a cool dark fall morning. This elevator is an easy one to model. The NYC (now NS) mainline is just on the far side of the elevator down a slope.

fertilizer business

Jim

you said and supporting industries, would that include fertilizer businesses. I do not mean large production facilities but the ones in agricultural regions that receive fertilizer or components by bag or in modern times covered hopper and blend them for local farmers. Some also receive product in tank cars. 

I know the two areas I am interested in, Florida and Carolinas both had facilities like that. 

James, those silos with the

James, those silos with the tile construction (Wellington) would make great models for one of your elevators. Have you figured a way to replicate them yet? I know they were used for farmers silos as well that were built in the 20s. I remember seeing lots of things constructed from that material that dated from the early part of the 20th century. It seems after a while they were phased out and concrete blocks replaced them. I remember seeing many houses from the early twenties that had that same typ of material used in foundations.

Foster Farms Feed Mill, Donald, Oregon

This one is going on my layout. Eventually. I do have some of the pieces for it. 

Foster Farms is a big chicken outfit, up here in Oregon at least. Their Donald Feed Mill gets a _lot_ of covered hopper traffic on the Portland & Western RR (PNWR). 

I actually talked my way onto the site in 2014 for some close-up photography (it's a bit of an isolated location). 

One thing I couldn't get good photos of from the ground was the actual rail side of the facility. Here's where having a father-in-law who is both a model railroader _and_ a private pilot with his own plane comes in extremely handy... 

To get any further around the facility, I was going to have to go airborne.... (drones didn't really exist then, nor could I have afforded one). 

Enter the camera platform, a Citabria (or Decathalon, never did quite get that straight) (note the large, generally unobstructed, rear side window):

I got a lot of closeups too - here are the elevator tops:

It's about second or third in my "build it" priority list. 

Cell towers

Am I seeing things, or are there cell towers at the top of some of those structures?

John C

Long Lasting

The above grain elevators are not located in Indiana but are an example of the long lasting and easily adaptable "cribbed" constructed structures that have served this community next to a class I railroad for decades.

Constructed by using 2X8, 2X6 (lower portion) and 2X4 (upper portion) lumber laid flat. 

In O scale a definite candidate for stir stick construction.

Definitely an interesting topic and a great way to have a structure that can transition many eras with the addition of modern loading equipment.

Eugene

LaGrange, IN

Jim, I've never noticed the old part of the elevator in LaGrange.  I always thought about driving through LaGrange with ZZTop (Who?) blasting "LaGrange" but I'm sure that was referring to LaGrange, TX plus shows my age.

I'm wondering if the Wellington, OH elevator is still there today.

Here's Jackson, MN on the old MILW now CP (formerly DM&E)

Lower photo is Kimball, MN on the Soo Line (CP)

This is a nice elevator

This is a nice elevator facility for modeling anywhere from 2012 all the way back to 1877 when the elevator was first built. It has been added to many times over the years creating an interesting evolution. For the modeler you would have to pick a year to model and then research to determine how the facility looked in that year. This facility is located on the Big Four (CCC&StL/NYC) line that ran between Louisville KY and Benton Harbor MI.

Obviously, the yellow buildings are the oldest. They are metal covered. The buildings were originally wood. The metal came sometime after the early 1930s. The concrete silos came after the great depression is two stages. The metal bin came much later.

The yellow building was torn down in 2012. New, very large grain bins are there today. Should you ever need detail photos, I have plenty to share. Just ask.

Bill - short answer is YES!

Bill - short answer is YES!

I have a "love affair" with

I have a "love affair" with elevators and feed mills. Looks like I am not alone!

WOW!!! Y'all have added some great elevator photos. Please keep them coming. I am insatiable for elevators and feed mills. Here is one located in Topeka, . . . Topeka Indiana, that is. The old Wabash mainline between Toledo and Chicago passed east/west alongside this facility.

Que the Time Machine

If you want to go back in time here's Muddy Creek Forks, PA on the old Ma & Pa.  Photos were taken last month.  The grain elevator is the center structure.  There are 27 windows in the roller mill.  The depot/general store shows in the background in the second photo.

Robert
  

This is the Effingham Equity

This is the Effingham Equity elevator that is about 300 yards from my house.  It sits on the CN (former IC) mainline. Most of the business is by truck now but it does take a few cars a month.

Jeff White

Alma, IL 

About 5 years ago one of the bins collapsed and fell on the road.

It was replaced with these newer bins:

Several years back a few hundred feet of the spur was taken up:

Now rail cars are loaded only from this building:

This is the office and truck scales on the opposite side of IL Route 37:

And some other views of the facility:

Here is a Google Earth Image.

Robert, Facilities like in

Robert,

Facilities like in you two photos really get my juices flowing! There is so much history in those two photos. Next time you are there take some detail photos.

Jim

Great stuff Jeff! With all of

Great stuff Jeff! With all of the Walthers bins, Rix bins, and Walthers elevator legs this is one modelable facility. Of course on a layout we would reduce truck traffic and increase rail loadings!

Thanks for sharing,

Jim Six

Here is the Leesburg IN

Here is the Leesburg IN elevator facility today as captured from a Google Maps street view. Sadly, the yellow elevator building is gone since 2012

Modern Layout Sized Elevator

This car was was being loaded on the NS line in Hickory, NC, in 2010. Just the right size facility to include on my model railroad, except that I don't think it had been built yet in 1974.

It has since been torn down.

Smaller, modelable elevators and feed mills

You don't need a large layout for elevators and feed mills -- especially if you are modeling in the times before WWII. Here is a modelable facility. It's useless for contemporary modeling, but if you model the steam years this would be great. You can bet that there was a siding between the track and the building for loading/unloading. I can clearly envision a Mike of Consolidation backing a cut of three 36-ft boxcars onto the siding and spotting them at this elevator/feed mill. I am not sure what it was back in the good old days!

Here is very modelable feed mill. Again, I can see a steam locomotive backing a couple of 36-ft boxcars along the backside of this facility, or . . . maybe a GP7 spotting a couple of 40-ft boxcars there.

Here is yet another modelable elevator. This one is on the former Grand Trunk Western (now CN) in northwest Indiana. The facility is neat, in good repair, and very busy today.

Tim - Modern Layout Sized Elevator

If I was still modeling the contemporary I would have to build and install the facility in your picture on my layout. I love it!!!

Thanks for sharing,

Jim Six

More Kingsbury IN elevator

Redmond, WA

I'm modeling Redmond, WA (one of two towns on a two town layout), and one of the major industries was T&D Feeds. This feed mill started in the early 1900's, slowly expanding, until 2000 when they shut down. In 2003 the structure was torn down.

Here are some of the many photos I have collected over the years.

The model is full sized in 1\29 scale. Its approximately 6' x 7' x 4'. All constructed out of 1/8" styrene. I started this model almost 10 years ago and still haven't gotten it finished.

This blog if fantastic. As Im

This blog if fantastic. As Im looking to to place a rather large grain unload/load scene on my layout. Was going to have an intermodal yard. but had second thoughts.

Phil

Holmesville Ohio

Here are a few shots of a former PRR served elevator. The gravel paved area in the foreground is "Railroad St".

Below is the back side of the original building

Notice the fading of the InsulBrick siding from brick red to grey. Neat weathering trick, if you can get it!

Have a few more to share later on.

Tim Moran Akron, OH