A small wooden grain elevator along Highway 5 near Baldur, in the Rural Municipality of Argyle, was constructed in 1936 by landowner and farmer John Einar Gudmundson [Goodman] (1890-1963). It is a square box topped by a central cupola, with four storage bins (one with a capacity of 1,200 bushels, two of 300 bushels, and one of 600 bushels), and an internal leg for moving grain. The pit for adding grain to the elevator is located immediately inside double doors at the front of the elevator. The entire exterior is covered in wooden shingles.
A grain wagon would back up to the doors and dump its load into the pit. Gudmanson invented a wagon-straightening tool installed at the door. A raised metal arc was implanted in the concrete pad outside the door. If a grain wagon did not back up straight to the door, the arc jostled the wagon and straightened it.
The elevator was used for on-farm grain storage into the 1980s but, at the time of a 2022 site visit, was used only for incidental storage. The site has been sold to the Trileaf Hutterite Colony, which took possession in April 2023. The expectation is that the elevator will not survive after this time.
Gudmundson Family Grain Elevator (August 2022)
Source: Jean McManus
Gudmundson Family Grain Elevator (August 2022)
Source: Jean McManus
Leg in the Gudmundson Family Grain Elevator (August 2022)
Source: Jean McManusSite Coordinates (lat/long): N49.41705, W99.31737
denoted by symbol on the map above
Come Into Our Heritage: R.M. of Argyle, 1882-1982 by Rural Municipality of Argyle, 1981, page 433.
We thank John Goodman, grandson of the original builder, for providing information used here.
This page was prepared by Jean McManus and Gordon Goldsborough.
Page revised: 31 December 2024
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