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.

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