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INGLIS, Manitoba – 2004 – While standard
wooden grain elevators are rapidly disappearing from the Prairies,
from a peak of 5,758 in 1936, the Inglis Grain Elevators have a
new lease on life as they are restored for future generations to
enjoy and experience.
The 1920s standard-designed elevators were constructed in the golden
age of Canada’s grain trade. They are unique because of their
near original condition and represent one of the last standing rows
of elevators in the world.
Restoration of the five `Prairie Giants’ has been ongoing
since the Government of Canada designated them as a National Historic
Site in 1996.
When the CPR rail line was extended to Inglis in 1922, there were
four elevators in the row. The fifth was added in 1941 by Reliance,
creating the interesting double elevator complex.
The beginning of the end of the commercial life of elevators came
with the increased use of trucks and cars. In 1953, CPR ended the
passenger service to Inglis. The freight service ended in the early
1970s, while grain shipments continued on an ever-decreasing basis
until 1995, when the elevators ceased to operate.
In 1994, a group of concerned local residents formed the Inglis
Area Heritage Committee, incorporated by the Province of Manitoba
on April 25, 1995, to preserve and protect the unique vintage buildings.
The former owners of the elevators supported the plan and transferred
the ownership of the buildings and the surrounding 29-acres of land
to the committee to help conserve this National Historic Site.
The standard grain elevator
The design of the standard elevator was adopted in 1913 and contributed
to the uniformity of elevators for the next 50 years. The dimensions
of the standard elevator are 32 by 34 feet and 80 feet tall, with
a 35,000-bushel capacity, encompassing three main components –
the granary, the drive shed and the office/engine shed.
Because the rail service had been under the threat of closure since
the 1950s, the owners of the elevators did not spend large sums
of money on repairs, leaving them in near original condition with
their mechanical integrity intact. The lack of reinvestment is the
reason the National Elevator was never repainted and also why only
the Paterson Elevator had a dust collection system.
United Grain Growers Elevator
United Grain Growers built the first elevator at Inglis, erecting
it at the southern-most end of the row in 1922. It was replaced
in 1925 after a fire destroyed the original.
Fire risk was a constant concern because of the dry wood in the
building and the highly combustible grain.
The UGG Elevator has horizontal balloon annexes, which were constructed
in 1949. Its rope drive was removed a few years before it closed.
The drive wheels are still in place. Its office and the storage
shed, located underneath, are original. All of its bins and ducting
are constructed of wood.
Paterson Elevator
The N.M. Paterson Company Elevator was state-of-the-art when it
was constructed in 1922, at the opposite end of the row to UGG’s.
It is the only elevator of the five with a dust collection system,
which was primarily used to reduce the risk of fire from explosive
grain dust.
The Paterson Elevator and the mechanical components common in standard-design
elevators have been restored. The renovated interior includes, lighting,
washroom facilities, informative signage and acts as the reception
area, where visitors begin their interpretive experience, with the
assistance of videos, pictures, signs and artifacts.
Tour
guides offer visitors information about the development of prairie
agriculture, the community of Inglis, the mechanics and function
of an elevator and the restoration work in progress at the site.
Discovery
Visitors can see how grain was transported up the "leg"
then flowed through the gerber spout into a storage bin, selected
by the elevator agent.
The main floor of the elevator has a hands-on learning discovery
centre. The adjoining grain annex is now used for exhibits and displays.
A grain auger, which runs lengthwise through the building is visible
through a plexiglass-covered floor.
Reliance Double Elevator Complex
The double elevator complex in the middle of the row, demonstrates
the many changes that occurred in the management of grain.
The smaller section of the elevator was built in 1922 by Matheson-Lindsay,
between the UGG and Paterson elevators. It was later sold to Province
Elevator, which became Reliance in the 1930s. In 1941, Reliance
added its second and the newest elevator of the five. The complex
was sold to Manitoba Pool in 1952, and finally to UGG in 1971.
The smaller of the two elevators has a distinct lean towards the
tracks caused by the weight of the grain being loaded too much to
one side.
Agent’s office restored
The Reliance office is different from the traditional design, as
it has three separate rooms. These rooms are important feature of
these elevators, because prior to electricity in the 1950s, diesel
engines were used to run the power and were housed in these offices,
away from the elevators, for fire safety reasons.
The Reliance office is joined to the elevator by a catwalk. The
office has an upper floor, where the agent worked, while the lower
portion housed the Rouston-Hornsby diesel engine, which powered
belt driven leg.
National Elevator
The Northern Elevator Company constructed the elevator immediately
next to UGG’s in 1922. The National Grain logo was added in
the 1940s, after it acquired Northern Elevator. Cargill briefly
owned the elevator before it was finally acquired by Paterson in
1979.
In the final years of operation the grain cleaner was removed from
the ceiling of the elevators driveway to make room for large trucks
to unload. The elevator has two annexes - a balloon annex built
in the 1940s and a permanent vertical cribbed annex built in the
50s. The office was built in the 1930s, with a storage room occupying
half the space. There was also a coal storage shed on the site.
The chemical shed and office have been fully restored and now serves
as the site’s gift shop.
Exterior renovation almost complete
The exteriors of the elevators have been fully restored, apart from
the National Elevator, which will be completed once funding for
the $275,000 project is raised.
Abandoned track part of history
A CN freight car sits on the now abandoned track to remind visitors
of the vital part the rail services played in the development of
grain-growing communities in Western Canada.
Visitors can relax and enjoy the outdoor picnic area while visiting
the site. The Inglis site once boasted an award-winning garden of
dahlias in the Golden Age, when railway gardens were as common as
the elevator sites they adorned.
Inglis Grain Elevators National Historic Site was established
in 1996 to protect and sustain this architectural symbol of the
Western Canadian agriculture and the Prairies. The Regional Municipality
of Shellmouth, the Historic Resources Branch of Manitoba Culture,
Parks Canada and many elevator companies support the community of
Inglis in the restoration of these landmark buildings.
For additional comment please contact:
Allan Sawchuk
Project Manager
Inglis Grain Elevators National Historic Site
(204) 564-2243
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