The Irish town of Clare, Iowa lucked out with a ‘leprechaun’ elevator in 1949

by baggyparagraphs
Black and white aerial view of a grain elevator complex featuring large silos and smaller buildings labeled 'CLARE CO-OP ELEV. CO.' with agricultural fields in the background.

By Ronald Ahrens

With its namesake in Ireland, the town of Clare, Iowa brings to mind leprechauns and four-leaf clovers. With its dwarfish cupola and four tanks, the Tillotson elevator there suits the tenor of the town.

It’s one of Tillotson Construction’s orphans, as Kristen Cart put it in an earlier post. “Orphan designs were unique storage plans, made to meet unusual customer needs.” she wrote.

Built in 1949, this single-leg 88,800-bushel elevator is unique in the Tillotson catalog. It towers above its setting at the eastern edge of an impact crater, one created when a 10-billion-ton asteroid struck millions of years ago; yet it’s among the company’s lesser concrete elevators. For the sake of comparison, consider that, at the same time as this job in Webster County, there was also a 310,000-bushel elevator project in Dalhart, Tex.

Clare’s new concrete elevator joined two wood elevators and at least two-dozen gleaming metal bins that were well within reach of the Minneapolis & St. Louis Railway.

The town had fewer than 200 people, and elevator construction in this obscure location didn’t merit coverage in the newspaper from Fort Dodge, the county seat and largest town. What we know about the elevator is from Tillotson’s records:

  • Four tanks measuring 15.5 feet in diameter and reaching 120 feet in height
  • 46 x 36 slab
  • 800 cubic yards of reinforced concrete, 18 tons of plain concrete for hopper
  • 36.8 tons of reinforcing steel
  • 18-inch main slab
  • 4,530 tons gross weight loaded
  • 13 x 19 x 12 cupola
  • Pulley centers 138.0 feet apart
Historic document featuring handwritten notes and numerical data in a tabular format, labeled 'CLARE' and 'DALLAS', with references to locations in Iowa and Texas from 1949.

While finding nothing on elevator construction, we did learn from the Fort Dodge Messenger & Chronicle that in December of 1949, not long after the elevator’s completion, the co-op held its annual meeting:

“The Farmers Co-op elevator held the annual meeting recently, at which time the following members were elected to the board of directors for a period of three years: Tom Crilly, Julius Albrecht and Walter Seltz. Mr. Seltz was also elected president of the Co-op.”

A rustic building with a red roof and wooden exterior, located at 107 Co Hwy C66 in Clare, Iowa, next to large white grain silos and agricultural equipment under a clear blue sky.

The Clare co-op merged into New Cooperative in 1978, and a recent photo indicates the Tillotson elevator’s luck is holding.

Co-op’s storage annex at Churdan, Iowa uprooted a family of three in 1955

by baggyparagraphs
Black and white image of a large building with a wide entrance, surrounded by trees and power lines, set in a rural landscape.

By Ronald Ahrens

Six years after building a 102,000-bushel single-leg concrete elevator for the Farmers Cooperative Elevator Co. of Churdan, Iowa, Tillotson Construction Co. returned to that village in 1955 for a storage annex.

That meant another 198,960 bushels of capacity in six tanks. Each one measured 20 feet in diameter and reached 105 feet in height. The run was 16 x 62.5 x 8.

The project started on July 11, and the the continuous pour was expected to last about two weeks.

A series of large, cylindrical grain silos with a loading platform and machinery, set against a cloudy sky.
Photo by Kristen Cart in 2014
Close-up view of industrial silos with a metal structure and pipes against a cloudy sky.

To have space for the annex, the co-op purchased a house that sat just to the west of the elevator. The Jefferson Bee reported on March 22 that the house was owned by Mr. and Mrs. Ray Stream. The occupants, Mr. and Mrs. John Lundy and Barbara, had but short notice about moving. Work on the annex was to start around April 1.

It seems the Lundys relocated elsewhere in Churdan and continued with life as normal. The Jefferson Herald reported Aug. 4 that Mr. and Mrs. Lundy and Barbara were Sunday dinner guests of Mr. and Mrs. Stream, who evidently wanted to make up for uprooting their former tenants.

And the Lundys continued to live the good life. On Sept. 1, it was reported they had visited the Iowa State Fair.

The concrete elevator at Churdan, Iowa exceeded the water tower’s height in 1949

by baggyparagraphs
Close-up of a vintage grain elevator with a flat roof and two cylindrical silos, featuring windows and a sign.

By Ronald Ahrens

Villagers in Churdan, Iowa marveled that the new concrete elevator going up in the spring of 1949 would be even taller than the water tower.

Work on the single-leg 102,000-bushel structure started on Monday, May 23. It was estimated the continuous pour would be finished in two weeks, by Monday June 6.

Tillotson Construction Co. won the contract to build the elevator for Farmers Cooperative Elevator Co. of Churdan. The village in Greene County, located in west-central Iowa, had a population of about 600 people. The venerable co-op dated from 1912, according to available records.

A tall grain silo with a rounded top, shown in black and white. Power lines run across the image, and trees can be seen to the left. The base of the silo features a large door.

The Churdan Plan consisted of four tanks measuring 14.5 feet in diameter and reaching 100 feet in height. With dimensions of 17 x 34 x 22, the curved cupola would definitively crown the elevator. This element was labeled on two sides with “Farmers Co-Op Elevator” in black letters.

A vintage advertisement or illustration showcasing the Churdan elevator, highlighting its new features.
Photo from the Jefferson (Iowa) Herald, June 2, 1949

Tillotson used the Churdan plan for at least six additional country elevators between 1949 and 1952

Kristen Cart visited Churdan in 2014 and created a post (link here) with all dimensions and specifications. She noted:

“It is immediately obvious that the old Tillotson structure has been updated at some time in the past with a leg that extends above the headhouse, thereby keeping the machinery most prone to overheating far from accumulations of grain dust.”

A gallery of her photos is seen below.

A rural landscape featuring a cornfield in the foreground, with several grain silos and farm buildings in the background under a cloudy sky.
A grain elevator complex with large silos, a water tower labeled 'Churdan', and agricultural equipment in the foreground under a cloudy sky.
Industrial storage silos with a metal framework and pipes, under a cloudy sky.

A Tillotson crew returned in 1955 to build 198,960-bushel storage annex. A follow-up post will include details of this project.

Quad States arrived in 1969 to add another elevator, this one with a stepped headhouse.

A piecework history of Tillotson’s 1955 concrete elevator in Boyden, Iowa

by baggyparagraphs
Aerial view of the Farmers Co-Op grain elevator in Boyden, Iowa, surrounded by farmland and buildings.

By Ronald Ahrens

Expansion of Farmers Cooperative Association grain storage at Boyden, Iowa culminated with a 246,870-bushel single-leg concrete elevator in 1955.

This came after a series of moves by the co-op on a timeline that’s hard to pin down. One June 8, 1950, Henry De Groot, secretary, placed this ad in the Boyden Reporter:

“The Board of Directors and the help wish to thank the stockholders for the wonderful support received on the subscription of preferred stock for the new Elevator. The goal of $90,000 was reached before Saturday evening of June 3. The Board of Directors will do everything in their power to have the construction completed before government delivery begins. Thank you again for your very fine support.”

Mr. De Groot likely refers to the building for flat storage or milling, as seen in the ad, below, which appeared in the Reporter on Nov. 9, 1950.

Black and white advertisement for Diekever's Truck Service in Boyden, Iowa, featuring a photograph of a rural landscape with buildings and trees. Text promotes truck services for local and long-distance hauling.
A black and white photo showing the interior of a building under construction, featuring a worker using a ladder, welding equipment, and industrial machinery. The image includes congratulatory text for the Farmers Cooperative Association from Vander Maten & Grooters.

There were also also four cylindrical tanks with a rectangular cupola. Whatever the chronology and purpose of this collection of structures, there was still insufficient capacity at Boyden until Tillotson Construction Co. came along in 1955, as we find in the company records.

Alas, I find no mention of the new elevator in the newspaper.

Aerial view of a grain elevator featuring the sign 'FARMERS CO-OP. BOYDEN'.

The Tillotson elevator had eight tanks measuring 18 feet in diameter and reaching 117 feet in height. Here are other dimensions and capacities:

  • Main slab 64.5 x 77.5 feet, 4,856 square feet (Tillotson’s measurement) or 4,998.75 (my measure)
  • 2,343 cubic yards of reinforced concrete, 57 cubic yards plain concrete for hopper
  • 121.03 tons of steel
  • 13,108 tons gross weight loaded
  • Pit depth 15.0 feet
Aerial view of a construction site featuring a large cylindrical structure, with scattered building materials and equipment visible on the ground.

The construction record has an unusual number of notes about the job, which I interpret to my best ability.

Handwritten notes detailing specifications for a main slab, including dimensions and thickness information.
A handwritten note detailing various items, including 'Also Saucer, Lid of,' and other fragmented notes related to tubes and a basement door.
Handwritten notes with measurements: 'Split Bins 13 & 14 24 C.Y. Cleaner 6 Bin Floor'
Text on a chalkboard detailing measurements for a boot pit and wing pins, including '22" Pad Under Boot Pit', '1.5" Pad Under Wing Pins', and 'Outside Dust House'.

The first note indicates there was a two-foot additional slab projection and three inches added to the thickness, which consumed 78 cubic yards of concrete.

A second note refers to 17.0 cubic yards for a “saucer,” which I can’t explain. An elaboration mentions “aeration tubes” and “previous hot spot.”

There was an outside basement door. This well-featured elevator also had a cleaner floor. Yet another note says “Split Bins 13 & 14, 24 cu. yd., 6 bin.” There was a 22-inch pad under the boot pit and 15-inch pad under (each?) wing pit. A final reference is to an “outside dust house.”

An industrial building viewed from the front, featuring tall silos and a loading area, with parked cars in the foreground. The setting appears to be in an agricultural region, specifically in Boyden, Iowa.

The Google Street View photos shows the 71-year-old elevator still in the thick of things on behalf of Boyden farmers.

While I learned no more about construction of the Boyden concrete elevator, nor its social history, I did pick up one item from Oct. 13, 1955 that may be of interest. Richard Burggraaf, a Boyden farmer, and his Holstein cow named Burg Ormsby Veeman Segis Gay, achieved a one-year production record of 16,563 pounds of milk with 657 pounds of butterfat. The Holstein-Friesian Association of America certified the record after Iowa State College supervised the weighing and testing.

It’s also of significance that in October of 1957, the seventh grade class visited Burggraaf’s home, and he showed them his stamp collection.

Comic strip, newspaper ad bring back a bygone era of genuine optimism

by baggyparagraphs
Comic strip featuring a conversation between two characters discussing a personal letter, with one character joking about being the most inquisitive person and concluding that the Farmers Co-op Association is well-regarded for service.

Searching archives for news of elevator construction leads one to some interesting items and fills the mind and heart with nostalgia.

A comic strip, for instance, or a newspaper ad had a way of saying more than its creator may have suspected. And the news items evoke richer meanings

For example, on Aug. 11, 1960, The Boyden Reporter of Boyden, Iowa looked back to the same date at the turn of the century and found some automotive and elevator news.

“An automobile was a street attraction here for a few minutes this morning. It was from Sioux Falls, So. Dak. Nic Knewell and his gang of elevator boys expect to go to Minnesota next Monday where they will erect a big elevator on one of the new lines of railroad in southwestern Minnesota.”

Advertisement for Farmers' Cooperative Association, featuring services like grain, coal, feed, and livestock management. Includes the phrase 'There is no substitute for a Farmers' elevator.' Located in Hull, Iowa.

Editors and publishers Marion J. Kempers and Charles G. Sawyer also looked back to August 5, 1910:

“Jake Eppinga has moved his family to Perkins and is occupying the Schouten property. Jake is manager of the Thorpe elevator. While working on the Betts Elevator yesterday morning the scaffolding upon which Paul Rehm and Emmet Wintermantle were working gave way and both fell some ten or twelve feet. Emmet escaped, but Paul was not so fortunate, as he struck his head on the edge of a barrel and cut a severe gash over one of his eyes.”

These items hold a significant interest from the traditional culture and values represented and the general optimism they embody. Even the lively graphic design strikes a note.

Small Midwestern towns in the midcentury period seem now like perfect gems on the lost bracelet of a bygone era.

Reconstructing the life of James George Russell, a 1958 casualty in Aurora, Nebr.

by baggyparagraphs
Aerial view of a farm facility featuring large silos, a storage building, and fields in the background. Several piles of material are organized on the ground, with a road and railway visible nearby.

By Ronald Ahrens

A windy night of calamity in the summer of 1958 claimed the life of James George Russell.

As foreman of the overnight crew that started work on Friday, July 25, Jim rode the slip and was measuring the progress of the 250,000-bushel elevator that Tillotson Construction Co. had undertaken at Murphy, six miles west of Aurora, Nebr.

The wind caught Jim’s measuring tape, which was made of steel, and blew it into a 2.200-volt power line. The shock knocked him off the formwork, and the young man fell sixty feet. He died early Saturday morning, July 26, at the Aurora hospital.

A large, full moon in a night sky above a silhouette of grain silos and storage facilities, illuminated partially from the ground.
Murphy elevator photo by Jerry Jacobs

We have found new details to go with an earlier post.

Born in 1936, Jim was fourteen years old at the time of the 1950 census. By then, William and Alma Russell had eight sons. The entire family was involved in elevator construction.

A black and white scanned image of a census record listing names and details of family members, including ages, relationships, and origins.

“We lived in Vermillion, South Dakota, but that summer I was in Aurora,” Dennis Russell recalled in a 2013 interview. “We were staying with Dad. I remember Mom taking that phone call.”

So many mothers had received similar calls during wartime. Now, thirteen years after the war’s end, Alma had lost her son to this accident.

Jim’s father William, born in 1900, had done construction of ammunition depots during World War Two. Known as Bill, he went to work for Tillotson Construction Co. after the War.

“He worked for them a long time,” Dennis said. “He left Tillotson’s and started Mid-States Construction Company with Gordon Erickson and another individual. I think he was a partner for a brief period and then ran jobs for them as a superintendent until his retirement.”

Bill retired in 1972, but he “always had fond memories working for Tillotson, I know that,” Dennis said. “I remember he was awful fond of Mary.”

First load of grain being dumped at Alta, Iowa. Elevator employee, left, Bill Russell, right.
Worker, left, and Bill Russell, right
Bill Russell, left, unknown man on right
Tillotson Construction’s Bill Russell, far right, instructs (from left) Stanley Kittleson, Adrian Dahl, and Merlynn Nelson on operation of the elevator’s distributor controls.

Dennis recalled that, at his death, Jim had one year of law school remaining at the University of South Dakota in Vermillion. He was married to Shirley, a nurse.

Our search turns up this obituary:

“When James George Russell was born in 1936, in South Dakota, his father, William Ruston Russell, Jr., was 36 and his mother, Alma O. Nelson, was 26. He lived in United States in 1949 and Vermillion, Clay County, South Dakota in 1950. He died on 26 July 1958, at the age of 22, and was buried in Vermillion.”

Jim enrolled in the university’s ROTC program. He and other South Dakota men received six weeks of training at Fort Riley, Kan. The training included weapons, tactics, and bivouac.

Ten months later, in May of 1957, he was commissioned second lieutenant in the U.S. Army’s Transportation Corps. We have no information on active-duty service.

Grain silos and storage facility in a rural landscape under a clear blue sky

The aerial photo at the top of this post was provided by Kurtis Glinn. It shows Tillotson Construction’s Murphy elevator, probably in the early 1960s. Note the ground storage of grain sorghum on the right.

“I was the manager at the Aurora Cooperative Murphy location in central Nebraska,” Kurt Glinn said. “I was told from the old timers in the area that were around when the elevator was built in the late-’50s [that an] accident happened there, shutting down construction for about a week.”

Our search turns up no photo of Jim Russell but we hope still to find one to complete a proper tribute to this man of obvious diligence and high character whose promise was cut short by a freak accident.

A 200,000-bushel Tillotson elevator added to the bustle at Boxholm, Iowa in 1955

by baggyparagraphs
Aerial view of a rural landscape featuring grain silos, a water tower, and several structures, with open fields in the background.

By Ronald Ahrens

In the first part of 1955, Bud Lane, manager of the Farmers Cooperative Elevator Co. in Boxholm, Iowa, told Farmers’ Elevator Guide that construction of the concrete elevator would be finished by July 15. It would join a complex of three wood elevators and a mill.

Tillotson Construction Co. of Omaha built the concrete elevator on the same plan used in 1950 at Drummond, Okla.

A black and white aerial view of a small, brick building with several windows, surrounded by sparse vegetation and dirt roads. An old truck is parked nearby, and there are utility poles in the foreground.

Boxholm, a central-Iowa town of Swedish immigrants, was served from 1906 by the Newton and Northwestern Railroad, which later became the Fort Dodge, Des Moines & Southern. Origins of the grain-storage complex dated back to the early 1900s.

Aerial view of a rural area featuring several buildings, including a large grain elevator, smaller storage structures, and a clear expanse of farmland in the background.
Black and white image of a water tower with an 'M' on it, surrounded by buildings and greenery.

The Boxholm elevator had eight tanks measuring 15.5 feet in diameter and rising to 120 feet in height. All other specs are listed in our earlier post that includes original photos by Kristen.

Frank Nine worked on the Boxholm job and shared these recollections: “Early 1955 we started the job in Boxholm, Iowa, where I met Jim Sheets, and we became friends. I worked the master jacks and run jack crew. Later on, finished cement with Jim–among other jobs as needed. This is where George, Jay, and an old welder, Jesse, became friends.”

Pages 10 and 10A of Tillotson Construction record, 1955, Boyden, Iowa to Dallas Center, Iowa

by baggyparagraphs
Close-up of a white, cylindrical industrial building with a blue railing and an overhead conveyor belt, set against a cloudy sky.

Pages 10 and 10A of the Tillotson Construction record show the boom in construction of reinforced-concrete grain elevators was winding down for the Omaha company in 1955. Tillotson continued to build new elevators until at least 1958, but the number of jobs diminished. We lack further proprietary records of the work.

Led by Reginald O. and Mary V. Tillotson, the company produced 1,626,770 bushels of new capacity in ’55 with country-elevator jobs in Nebraska and Iowa.

Here’s the complete list of eight locations: Waverly, Nebr.; Boyden, Churdan, Boxholm, Thornton, Palm Grove, Vail, and Dallas Center, Iowa. A view of Dallas Center is seen at the top of this post.

A black and white construction record document titled 'Concrete Elevators' listing various construction items, their units, and data for multiple locations including Boyden, Churdan, Waverly, and others, with numerical values and annotations.
A detailed construction records document listing concrete elevator specifications, including estimated data, machinery details, and remarks, organized in a table format with multiple columns and rows.

The largest jobs were at Thornton and Dallas Center, where 252,000-bushel single-leg elevators were completed.

Smallest was a 126,140-bushel storage annex at Palm Grove, an unincorporated town in Clay Township, Webster County, Iowa. The Facebook page titled Fort Dodge Iowa Memories, Stories, Photos offers a description of Palm Grove:

“Palm Grove historically served as a vital interurban station. Interurban railways were electric-powered rail lines that connected rural agricultural regions to major industrial hubs during the early 1900s. Before it became known as Palm Grove, the railway station went by the name of Crooks.

“The community maintained its own federal post office under the name Crooks Post Office, which operated from 1909 until 1914. During this era, such rural post offices were usually built inside general stores or situated directly at rail stops to sort mail arriving by train before it was distributed to local farming families.

“When the postal services consolidated and the reliance on electric interurban transit faded with the rise of automobiles, the community lost its status as an independent commercial village. It transitioned into a quiet, unincorporated farming community.”

Tall white grain silos next to a gray feed mill building, with blue trim and a clear blue sky.
Waverly, Nebr. in 2012, photo by Kristen Cart

Another storage annex was at Churdan, where Tillotson put up six tanks measuring 20 feet in diameter and reaching 105 feet in height for a total of 198,960 bushels of capacity. Under the headline “Churdan Elevator Co-op Buys Site,” a March 22, 1955 news item from The Jefferson Bee announced preparations.

“Churdan—The Farmers Elevator Co-op has purchased the ground and house just west of the elevator. It was owned by Mr. and Mr. Ray Stream. Mr. and Mrs. John Lundy and Barbara lived in the house. The work on the new storage space at the elevator will start about April first.”

We visited Churdan in 2014 and found an active elevator with stress cracks and an ugly appendage rising from the cupola. Quad States added a second elevator in 1969.

Newell elevator was part of 10-million bushels of Iowa expansion in 1954

by baggyparagraphs
Aerial view of a large white cylindrical building surrounded by fields of corn.

By Ronald Ahrens

The Farmers’ Co-operative of Newell, Iowa needed a replacement for their wood elevator, which had burned in September of 1953. When Tillotson Construction Co. built a concrete giant for them the next spring, the need for a replacement was met.

It happened when the trend across Iowa was to increase storage.

The Farmers Grain Dealers Association reported 10.5 million bushels of new capacity were being added statewide.

In Des Moines, the state capital, a 5.0-million-bushel structure was under construction.

Twenty-five other locations from Albert City to Woodstock accounted for the other 5.25 million bushels. Among them, the largest job was at Ellsworth: a 500,000-bushel concrete elevator.

Black and white image of a vintage truck parked near a large grain silo structure with a doorway, surrounded by sparse vegetation and railway tracks in the background.

Besides Newell, Tillotson was busy in Albert City, Iowa Falls, Pocahontas, Rockwell City, Dayton, and Goldfield. With capacity of 150,000 bushels, the Newell elevator was one of the smallest projects in the state. Smaller still, two locations, Titonka and Sutherland, were building wood annexes of 75,000 and 70,000 bushels respectively.

Newell measurements and dimensions:

Built on the Manson plan with five tanks, each measuring 16 feet in diameter and reaching 120 feet in height for a capacity of 150,000 bushels, 15 bins and overflow, dust bin over driveway. A special note says bin #9 was split.

  • 1,515 cubic yards of reinforced concrete
  • 37 more yards for hopper 
  • 68.69 tons of reinforcing steel 

3 boys, 2 boxes of matches, 1 new elevator at Newell, Iowa in 1954

by baggyparagraphs
Aerial view of a grain elevator next to railroad tracks, surrounded by farmland and houses.

By Ronald Ahrens

You could buy a penny box of matches in those days and get a lot for your money.

Take this case from Newell, Iowa, for instance. Three boys–two aged nine and one aged 12–spent two cents on the afternoon of September 3, 1953. With a good supply of matches, they went to Fullerton Lumber Co. to experiment. Dipping a stick into flammable liquid, they lit it. When the stick flamed up and became a torch, the boy holding it suffered a burned finger and flung it away.

The lads were spared additional injuries, but the inferno they started around 5.15 p.m. burned for six hours. The lumber yard was consumed, and with a stiff south breeze and dry conditions, flames jumped to the Farmers Co-op elevator. By 6.45 p.m., this wood elevator was declared a total loss.

Besides the force commanded by Newell fire chief Paul Wilfong, crews arrived from Fonda, Sac City, Early, Storm Lake, and Nemaha.

The fire spread to three refrigerated freight cars in a string of fifteen cars on a nearby railroad siding. The three reefers were left to burn after the rest of the string was detached and moved along the track.

Firemen succeeded in preserving the Galbraith Elevator next door and oil tanks fifty yards off.

Franklin Willadsen, manager of the Galbraith Elevator, said the flames were controlled by 11.30 p.m., although the grain smoldered overnight.

The Illinois Central estimated all damages at $500,000. A subsequent report put the losses in the range of $275,000 to $500,000.

Industrial grain storage facility featuring tall silos and a loading dock, with power lines visible in the foreground.
Google Street View in 2026

Newell Construction Co. built the Farmers’ elevator in 1915–the same year the Iowa Cooperative Law (Iowa Code Chapter 497) was passed.

“It will handle all kinds of grain,” a news report said. “A feed house is also being built and will be complete in a few days, and feed and coal will be handled here. The elevator is just north of the Milwaukee coal chute and J.R. Timms, who has been assistant of the Farmers’ company at Alburnett, has been engaged for a year, and assumed charge Monday.”

The Newell Farmers Co-op decided on a reinforced-concrete elevator as a replacement and arranged with Tillotson Construction Co. to build it. The new 150,000-bushel single-leg concrete elevator was completed in 1954.