I have some friends that do old grain elevator demolition in a 4 state area, and a couple years back, I got with them and told them to bring me the old round pillars from grain elevator scales when they destroy one of the old buildings. I have purchased 3 or 4 sets from them, and sold them to other old gassers to use however they want. Some are short and rectangular while others are tall and round or short and round. It seemed to depend on who made the scale, as to how it was constructed.
Last night I received a call from these guys and they had just finished a job, and had rescued the complete scale this time and were wondering if I wanted it? I saw the pictures and made an appointment with them to look at it the next morning to inspect it a little.
I got a call at 6:45 this morning, as they had gotten up early, and would be coming by in a few minutes! I hurried up and got dressed and out the door to go and meet them.
When I got there, I was a bit concerned as this thing had gotten a ride strapped to the back of a semi drop deck, as they were on the way to pick up some machinery. It liked OK though, and just appeared to be severely dirty from a lot of years in a very dusty environment. We loaded it into the back of my pickup, and I headed home for breakfast.
I had several things to do before I could get to cleaning it up a little, but I finally got to it this afternoon, and these pictures show the results! You couldn't produce a better patina on the wood surface if you tried! The markings on the fluted columns are in great shape, and everything appears to be tight and in very good shape!
What a glorious piece of American history, and these things are disappearing fast. With the increase in the size of farms and the equipment that they use, these old elevators have fallen into complete non use, and often sit for years until someone finally tears them down. Sad! Glad I was able to rescue this fabulous piece of North Dakota history!
