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Historic Grain Building ???

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Forum Name: Shops, Barns, Varmints, and Trucks
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URL: https://www.allischalmers.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=204901
Printed Date: 22 Jan 2025 at 4:53am
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Topic: Historic Grain Building ???
Posted By: BuckSkin
Subject: Historic Grain Building ???
Date Posted: 11 Jan 2025 at 6:57am
Am I correct in thinking this is an old grain loading facility where scoop shovels were used to load loose grain inside ordinary boxcars ?


This is at Great Bend Coop Elevator in Ellinwood, Kansas.

What were the upper openings used for ?

I guess once elevators and covered hoppers took over, this could have been used as a warehouse.

Please add your two cents worth as my thinking may be all wrong about this building's purpose and use.

I am driving the truck/trailer that is sitting on the scales and was there getting empty weight before going out in the country to load big squares of Alfalfa, after which I returned to the scales to get loaded weight.

This was Tuesday_15-July-2014.

Thanks for looking.



Replies:
Posted By: DMiller
Date Posted: 11 Jan 2025 at 7:04am
IIRC the upper openings at least in a similar structure I have seen the grain was lifted on conveyor belting or old style auger legs from gravity boxes and rear discharge grain beds on trucks. 


Posted By: jaybmiller
Date Posted: 11 Jan 2025 at 7:16am
upper openings could VENT grain dust  ,get fresh air in ??

 wonder if those neat 'shorty 'G' tractors were used there ???


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3 D-14s,A-C forklift, B-112
Kubota BX23S lil' TOOT( The Other Orange Tractor)

Never burn your bridges, unless you can walk on water


Posted By: Lars(wi)
Date Posted: 11 Jan 2025 at 9:58am
My first thought, would be something for ear corn, but being what looks like brick construction, I just am not certain. Wonder what the back side of the structure looks like?

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I tried to follow the science, but it was not there. I then followed the money, and that’s where I found the science.


Posted By: DMiller
Date Posted: 11 Jan 2025 at 11:54am
Brought up on Google Maps, same as this side just had a Overhead Door added at some point at Mid section.


Posted By: jiminnd
Date Posted: 11 Jan 2025 at 12:20pm
How about a coal shed?  In our area we had wood building with many bins for different types of coal, you loaded what you needed with a shovel.

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1945 C, 1949 WF and WD, 1981 185, 1982 8030, unknown D14(nonrunner)


Posted By: DMiller
Date Posted: 12 Jan 2025 at 5:06am
Coal bunkers usually were open, lock coal inside a closed box will self heat and ignite in a relative amount of time. Power stations stir coal piles to keep that from happening.


Posted By: truckerfarmer
Date Posted: 12 Jan 2025 at 8:19am
Appears to be train tracks in front of dock. I'm gonna guess that it predates mechanized grain handling. I'm thinking more than likely for bagged feed/seed storage.
Back in the 90s I used to deliver bagged seed to places like this. All moved with a 2 wheel cart, (steel wheels and wood handles). Stack 10 bags on a wood or plastic pallets that were about 12" x 18". Then the customer would wheel them out of my trailer into the building. Wasn't so bad when each stop only got 4-6 pallets, 40 bags to a pallet. Had a couple customers that would take a full load. As I recall I could haul 24 pallets. Most of my deliveries were in North Central MN. But I get to Central ND, NE IA, and had one customer West of Witchita, KS. Even took a load to El Reno, OK once. KS and OK loads were to reload salt to bring back to our warehouse/store.

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Looking at the past to see the future.
'53 WD, '53 WD45, WD snap coupler field cultivator, #53 plow,'53 HD5B dozer

Duct tape.... Can't fix stupidity. But will muffle the sound of it!


Posted By: AC7060IL
Date Posted: 12 Jan 2025 at 10:35am
That brick building was probably a “flour depot” for wooden barrels of milled wheat flour? Ellinwood was primarily a German immigrant settlement in the 1860-1880s propelled by the Santa-Fe railroad immigration agency. The immigrants brought their old world (Europe) business ideas to Kansas. During peak crop production years, multiple flour mills produced 600+ wooden barrels per day. “Wolfs Premium flour” was marketed internationally via railways/barges/ships.
Checkout it’s rich history on the weblink I’ve attached. On a side note, only half of town’s businesses are visible topside as many underground tunnels/rooms/businesses/meat storage/saloons/brothels etc.
https://legendsofkansas.com/ellinwood-kansas/" rel="nofollow - https://legendsofkansas.com/ellinwood-kansas/


Posted By: DMiller
Date Posted: 12 Jan 2025 at 11:07am
Pretty cool on that small town.  KS summers smoking Hot, and winters blowing mean cold, can see tunnels being a purpose both seasons.


Posted By: BuckSkin
Date Posted: 12 Jan 2025 at 11:34am
Originally posted by AC7060IL AC7060IL wrote:


Checkout it’s rich history on the weblink I’ve attached. On a side note, only half of town’s businesses are visible topside as many underground tunnels/rooms/businesses/meat storage/saloons/brothels etc.
https://legendsofkansas.com/ellinwood-kansas/" rel="nofollow - https://legendsofkansas.com/ellinwood-kansas/

Thanks for this information.

In 2014, soon after me being there, I had read of the tunnels and underground businesses and had completely forgotten about it until your post brought it back to my memory.

If the same thing was done in heinously humid Kentucky, you would die of lung rot and all your product would mold and mildew in short order; for whatever reason, whatever the humidity is above ground, it is a lot worse at basement level. 



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