Key Number:	HS 66982
Site Name:	Castor - Alberta Pacific Grain Co. Elevator
Other Names:
Site Type:	0416 - Mercantile/Commercial: Storage Elevator

Location

ATS Legal Description:

			Twp	Rge	Mer
			37	14	4

Address:	49 Avenue
Number:	N/A
Street:	N/A
Avenue:	49
Other:
Town:	Castor
Near Town:

Media

Type	Number	Date	View	Source

Architectural

Style:	Single Wood Elevator
Plan Shape:
Storeys:
Foundation:
Superstructure:
Superstructure Cover:	Wood: Clapboard (Bevel or Drop Siding)
Roof Structure:	Elevator: Gable on Gable, Medium Cupola
Roof Cover:	Metal
Exterior Codes:
Exterior:	Plain facade; plain trim; "The Alberta-Pacific Grain Co Ltd. Castor" painted in white on S, E and W; door on south side; drive shed is attached to the north face of the elevator - has sliding wooden doors at N and E end; office is 1.3 m north of drive shed - plain facade and trim; rectangular windows on N, W and E sides; door on S.
Interior:	N/A
Environment:	Located at the southwest edge of Castor, accessed off of 49 Avenue. Is 18 m north of the CPR rail line (now abandoned, 2008). No other standing structures surrounding this complex; rail cars on a feeder line.
Condition:	N/A
Alterations:	Elevator has been re-roofed with metal.

Historical

Construction:	Construction Date:
Construction Started	1917/01/01
Usage:	Usage Date:
N/A
Owner:	Owner Date:
Alberta Pacific Grain Federal Grain Ltd. Alberta Wheat Pool United Grain Growers Government of Alberta	1917/01/01 1967/01/01 1972/01/01 1993/01/01 2004/01/01

Architect:	N/A
Builder:	N/A
Craftsman:	N/A
History:	CASTOR - ALBERTA PACIFIC GRAIN CO . HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE The first elevator was built at Castor in 1910 by the Alberta Pacific Elevator Co. By 1916 there were there more companies in competition at Castor: North Star Grain Co., Planet Elevator Co. Ltd., and the United Farmers Elevator Co. of Castor Limited. (The United Farmers Elevator Co. changed its name to United Farmers Elevator Co. of Castor Ltd. in 1914). The extant Alberta Pacific Grain Co. elevator was built in 1917 to replace the 35,000-bushel elevator built by the company in 1910. ARCHITECTURAL SIGNIFICANCE This elevator is typical of elevators built according to traditional standard plans. STRUCTURAL HISTORY Built in 1917 this 45,000-bushel elevator operated without annex storage until 1953 when an annex was built on the west side of the elevator. In 1967 the elevator was taken over by Federal Grain Ltd. and in 1972 was sold to the Alberta Wheat Pool. In 1993 or 1994 it was taken over by the United Grain Growers. INTEGRITY The elevator has had few structural alterations. The roof and driveway roof has been reclad with metal sheeting. The trackside loading area has had two sliding plywood doors installed and a hopper car-loading spout has been installed. The office has undoubtedly moved fro its original position closer to the driveway. SITE CONTEXT The elevator is located on the west end of the row of three elevator complexes remaining at Castor. The rail line runs south of the elevators. The town of Castor lies to the north and northwest of the elevators. ***** Description of Historic Place The Alberta Pacific Grain Elevator site comprises approximately 0.19 hectares of land in the Town of Castor and includes two early twentieth century buildings - a traditional 45,000-bushel grain elevator with attached drive shed and an office building which also houses the motor. The two buildings are connected by a walkway. The elevator was built on the standard square design and features "ALBERTA-PACIFIC GRAIN CO. LTD CASTOR" painted in white against the structure's maroon exterior. Heritage Value The heritage value of the Alberta Pacific Grain Elevator lies in its association with grain storage and marketing in the province and in iconic value as a symbol of Alberta's agricultural and social history. In 1909, the Premier of Alberta, Alexander Rutherford, initiated an ambitious campaign to expand the province's railway network. His offer of lucrative bond guarantees to major railway companies willing to extend Alberta's transportation infrastructure initiated a flurry of railway line construction. One of the new lines laid proceeded west from Stettler to the Beaver Dam Creek; at the "end of steel", a new station was erected and a townsite named Castor was subdivided. The new settlement quickly became an agricultural boomtown, boasting 500 residents by 1910 and acting as a service centre for the vast agricultural hinterland in the region. The first grain elevator in the community was constructed in 1910 by the Alberta Pacific Grain Company. In 1913, the railway line was extended east past Coronation, eventually reaching into Saskatchewan and linking Castor into the vast rail network stretching across the Prairies to the grain terminals at the Lakehead. Several new elevators were erected shortly after to capitalize on Castor's integration into the domestic and international grain marketing system. In 1917, with Europe's increased demand for wheat during World War One and bumper crops on the Prairies, the Alberta Pacific Grain Co. Ltd. decided that its original 1910 elevator with a 35,000-bushel capacity was too small and replaced it with the current 45,000-bushel elevator. This elevator was sold to the Federal Grain Co. in 1967 and subsequently owned by the Alberta Wheat Pool and the United Grain Growers. The elevator is one of the earliest of these Prairie icons still standing in the province. It remains a striking visual reminder of Castor's prosperity during World War One and an enduring symbol of Alberta's agricultural and social history. The Alberta Pacific Grain Elevator site features an elevator with attached driveway and an office building housing the motor. The elevator exemplifies the standard square elevator design with traditional wood crib construction and is a fine embodiment of the Prairie Vernacular Industrial architectural style. Possessing a capacity of 45,000 bushels, the Alberta Pacific Grain Elevator contains all the essential elements of a functional grain elevator, including a drive shed, conveyor, Gerber wheel, and man lift, as well as square vertical woodbins, weigh scales and hoppers. The office is a bi-level frame structure finished on the exterior with horizontal siding. The motor for powering the distribution system is located in the basement of the office building. Source: Alberta Community Development, Heritage Resource Management Branch (File: Des. 2088) Character-defining Elements The character-defining elements of the Alberta Pacific Grain Elevator include such features as: Grain elevator with attached drive shed: - mass, form, and style; - steel tank at grade level and below the area between the outside foundations; - traditional wood crib construction; - sheathing and horizontal siding painted maroon; - "Alberta-Pacific Grain Co. Ltd Castor" signage painted in white; - cupola; - fenestration pattern and style; - arrangement and style of doors, including large drive shed doors; - trackside platform, doors, ladder, and spout; - drive shed; - original design elements, material, and machinery such as manlift and Gerber wheel. Office building: - mass, form, and style; - exterior wooden clapboard siding; - fenestration pattern and style, including original windows. - original fittings and machinery, including motor. Landscape: - walkway between elevator and office; - grassy berm leading up to drive shed. * * * D-2088 – CASTOR GRAIN ELEVATOR HISTORICAL CONTEXT When the Canadian Pacific Railway began to survey a grade west from Lacombe to Kerr Robert, Saskatchewan in 1904, a number of prospective farmers began to apply for homesteads on land off of the rail grade. By 1906, interest began to subside, for the line had not gotten east of Stettler. In the spring of 1909 however, the government of Alberta announced lucrative bond guarantees for the extension of branch lines, and, during the following summer, construction activity was intense throughout the province. This included the CPR line east from Stettler to the Beaver Dam Creek. Here, at the end of steel, a station was erected and a townsite subdivided called Castor, the French word for Beaver. As the agricultural hinterland instantly filled up with settlers, the community of Castor became an agricultural boom town. In November 1909, it was incorporated as a village, and, in June of the following year, it became a town with over 500 people, holding all the commercial and social facilities required of a farming center. Among the necessities for such a town were grain elevators. As early as June 1910, it was announced that the Alberta Pacific Grain Company was building at Castor, Halkirk and Tees. The 35,000 bushel structure at Castor would be completed later that fall, and, during the winter of 1910-11, local farmers were able to market their grain. In an unusual move, the elevator was located on the same side of the railway track as Main Street. In 1913, the rail line was extended eastward past Coronation, eventually reaching Kerr Robert. This gave Castor a direct line to the grain terminals at the Lakehead. As a result, three other elevators were soon built, and Castor soon began to benefit from the high grain prices of World War I. Indeed, by 1917, the original Alberta Pacific elevator was proving too small, and so the Company constructed a larger one, designed to store upward to 45,000 bushels. Although Castor soon began to decline as a community, its population dropping to 625 by 1941, the elevators continued to survive, being in the center of such a rich agricultural district. In 1967, The Alberta Pacific structure was taken over by the Federal Grain Company, and, in 1972, by the Alberta Wheat Pool. Its most recent owner/operator was UGG, which closed it down in the mid 1990’s in favor of a larger and more efficiently run concrete structure in the district. The 1917 Alberta Pacific structure however has been acquired by the Castor District Museum Society, which is attempting to undertake its restoration. The two other grain elevators which stand nearby (including a 1913 building) are slated for demolition. HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE The historical significance of the Alberta Pacific Grain Elevator in Castor lies in its provision of structural evidence of the method of storing and marketing grain in rural Alberta during most of the 20 th century. This structure is particularly important in that it dates from 1917, a period in time when crops were bountiful and the demand for wheat was high because of the war in Europe. It is important also for the role it played in the development of Castor, a community which sprang to life in 1910 with the arrival of the railway, and continued to serve a large agricultural hinterland, the existence of which depended upon the marketing of grain.

Internal

Designation Status:	Designation Date:
Provincial Historic Resource	2004/02/13

Register:	N/A

Links

Internet:
Alberta Register of Historic Places:	4665-0876