Grain elevator in Ohio   Save
Ohio Guide Photographs
Description: A photograph of a grain elevator in Ohio alongside a railroad track. A grain elevator is a tower containing a bucket elevator, which scoops up, elevates and then uses gravity to deposit grain in a silo or other storage facility. In most grain-producing countries, the term "grain elevator" is a pars pro toto which also covers facilities attached to the elevator itself, such as receival and testing offices, weighbridges, storage facilities and/or complexes of such buildings. It may also mean organizations that operate or control several individual elevators, in different locations. Early grain elevators and bins were often constructed of framed or cribbed wood, and were prone to fire. Grain elevator bins, tanks and silos are now usually constructed of steel or reinforced concrete. Bucket elevators are used to lift grain to a distributor or consignor, from where it falls through spouts and/or conveyors and into one of a number of bins, silos or tanks in a facility. When desired, silos, bins and tanks are emptied by gravity flow, sweep augers and conveyors. As grain is emptied from bins, tanks and silos it is conveyed, blended and weighted into trucks, railroad cars or barges, and shipped to grain wholesalers, exporters and/or local end-users, such as flour mills, breweries and ethanol or alcohol distilleries. Many Ohio cities, including Toledo and Cleveland, produced grain elevators during the early to mid 1800's because of the amount of grain produced in Ohio and the transportation capabilities Ohio had to ship grain via the Erie Canal and Lake Erie. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B06F02_039_1
Subjects: Agriculture--Ohio--History--20th century.; Grain elevators; Industries--Ohio; Ohio--History--Pictorial works; Federal Writers' Project
Places: Ohio