Manitoba Business: McCabe Elevator Company / McCabe Brothers Grain Company / McCabe Grain Company

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Chairmen | Presidents | Vice-Presidents | Country Elevators | Sources

This company was founded in 1889 by brothers W. J. McCabe and George McCabe, operating a grain and lumber business at Glasston, Dakota Territory (now North Dakota). They acquired a line of country elevators and, in 1896, moved to Duluth, Minnesota. In the early 20th century, when James J. Hill began to build an extension of the Great Northern Railroad into Canada, the McCabes built grain elevator along its right-of-way in Canada and formed the McCabe Elevator Company to operate them.

By 1912, the firm had 24 elevators in Canada and it organized the Victoria Elevator Company in 1916 and the Crescent Elevator Company in 1922. All companies were merged to form the McCabe Brothers Grain Company in 1928. It became the publicly-traded McCabe Grain Company in 1946. Its feed and seed assets were sold to National Grain in 1967 and 68 of its country elevators were sold to United Grain Growers in 1968. The remaining McCabe assets were merged to form National Grain Limited in 1971.

Chairmen

Period

Chairman

1946-1952

Ben C. McCabe

1952-1954

Carl Eugene Austin (c1882-1954)

1954-1967

?

Presidents

Period

President

1928-1933

W. J. McCabe (c1863-1933)

1933-1945

?

1945-1952

Carl Eugene Austin (c1882-1954)

1952-1968

Charles Kroft (1906-1984)

Vice-Presidents

Period

Vice-President

1928-?

George McCabe

?-1946

?

1946-1952

Charles Kroft (1906-1984)

General Managers

Period

General Manager

c1915-1946

Carl Eugene Austin (c1882-1954)

Country Elevators

Location

Rail

Opened

Closed

Capacity
(bushels)

Annex
(bushels)

Comments

Alcester

GNR

1908

1935

25,000

 

 

Bannerman

GNR

1908

1936

30,000

 

 

Bergman

GNR

1908

1926

25,000

 

 

Boissevain

GNR

1908

1967

28,000

40,000

Sold to UGG (1968)

Bradburn

GNR

1908

1926

25,000

 

 

Brandon

CPR

1937

1970

40,000

 

 

Bunclody

GNR

1908

1936

30,000

 

 

Carman

GNR

1908

1956

30,000

 

 

Carroll

CPR

1936

1967

20,000

30,000

Agent: George Bartley (?)

Desford

GNR

1908

1936

30,000

 

 

Dunn

GNR

1908

1925

30,000

 

 

Ebor

CPR

1929

1929

25,000

 

 

Fairburn

GNR

1908

1936

25,000

 

 

Fairfax

CNR

1935

1967

35,000

50,000

Sold to UGG (1968)

Fort Whyte

CPR

1957

1968

75,000

 

Manager: Bert Lytle (?), sold to UGG (1968)

Foxwarren

CPR

1929

1937

30,000

 

 

Glencross

GNR

1908

1937

23,000

 

 

Graham

CPR

1908

1935

23,000

 

 

Gretna

GNR

1908

1966

25,000

 

 

Griffin

GNR

1908

1935

23,000

 

 

Haskett

GNR

1908

1938

23,000

 

 

Hayfield

GNR

1908

1936

23,000

 

 

Heaslip

GNR

1908

1936

35,000

 

 

Holland

CPR

1929

1947

35,000

 

 

Kronsgart

CPR

1908

1946

25,000

 

 

Magnus

GNR

1908

1926

25,000

 

 

Manitou

CPR

1929

1967

52,000

 

 

McKelvie

GNR

1908

1935

26,000

 

Moved to Newstead Siding (1936)

Minmar

CNR

1929

1946

32,000

 

 

Minto

CNR

1908

1968

83,000

30,000

Sold to UGG (1968)

Morden

CPR

1908

1968

70,000

30,000

Agent: Jake Hoeppner (?), sold to UGG (1968)

Newstead

CPR

1936

1968

54,000

25,000

Agent: Jake Unrau (?), sold to UGG (1968)

Orthez

CPR

1936

1964

28,000

 

 

Plum Coulee

CPR

1908

1968

100,100

30,000

Sold to UGG (1968)

Portage la Prairie

CNR

1938

1968

158,800

30,000

Sold to UGG (1968)

Reston

CPR

1929

1942

30,000

 

 

Roland

GNR

1908

1936

26,000

 

 

Roseland

GNR

1908

1936

26,000

 

 

Ste. Anne

CNR

1937

1968

55,000

 

Sold to UGG (1968)

St. Boniface (542 Plinquet)

CPR

1930

?

30,000

 

Elevator and feed plant

St. Boniface (627 Plinquet)

CNR

c1950

?

40,000

 

Elevator, seed cleaning plant, bagged seed warehouse

St. Boniface (600 Archibald)

?

c1935

?

40,000

 

Elevator and flour mill

Souris

CPR

1938

1968

250,000

 

Agent: Doug Armour (?), sold to UGG (March 1968)

Winnipeg Beach

CPR

1937

1968

55,000

30,000

Sold to UGG (1968)

Sources:

“W. J. McCabe, leading grain man, dies at Duluth, Minn.,” Winnipeg Free Press, 16 February 1933, page 6.

“C. E. Austin is elected President of company,” Winnipeg Free Press, 10 October 1945, page 15.

“McCabe Grain directors elected at annual meet,” Winnipeg Free Press, 21 October 1950, page 28.

“Elevator sale confirmed,” Winnipeg Free Press, 29 February 1968, page 53.

Grain: The Entrepreneurs by Charles W. Anderson, Winnipeg: Watson & Dwyer, 1991.

This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough and William J. Neal.

Page revised: 20 May 2024