Peavey-Haglin Experimental Concrete Grain Elevator
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Peavey–Haglin Experimental Concrete Grain Elevator
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The Peavey–Haglin Experimental Concrete Grain Elevator from the southwest, now advertising Nordic Ware
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| Location | 5005 County Road 25, St. Louis Park, Minnesota |
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| Coordinates | 44°56′32.6″N 93°20′42.7″W / 44.942389°N 93.345194°WCoordinates: 44°56′32.6″N 93°20′42.7″W / 44.942389°N 93.345194°W |
| Area | Less than one acre |
| Built | 1899–1900 |
| Architect | Charles F. Haglin |
| NRHP Reference # | 78001547 |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP | December 19, 1978 |
| Designated NHL | December 21, 1981 |
The Peavey–Haglin Experimental Concrete Grain Elevator is the world's first known cylindrical concrete grain elevator. It was built from 1899 to 1900 in St. Louis Park, Minnesota, United States, as an experiment to prove the design was viable. It was an improvement on wooden elevators that were continually at risk for catching fire or even exploding. Its cylindrical concrete design became the industry standard in the United States, revolutionizing grain storage practices. After its initial experiments, the Peavey–Haglin Elevator was never again used to store grain. Since the late 1960s it has been maintained on the grounds of the Nordic Ware company and is painted with their name and logo.
The Peavey–Haglin Elevator was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978, proclaimed a National Historic Landmark in 1981, and a Historic Civil Engineering Landmark in 1983.
Frank Peavey (1850–1901) was a native of Maine who moved to the Midwest as a young man and became a grain merchant. His business was buying grain from farmers and storing it in elevators before delivering it to flour mills. Basing himself in Minneapolis in 1881, he became known as the "Elevator King", owning elevators across Minnesota and Iowa and expanding into the Dakotas. However the wooden elevators of the day were quite vulnerable to fire, as they were built of flammable material, filled with volatile grain dust, and usually stood next to railroad tracks with their spark-spewing locomotives. Numerous elevator fires were causing insurance rates to skyrocket.
Peavey was convinced that new construction methods could produce a large, fireproof grain elevator. He hired Charles F. Haglin (1849–1921), a local civil engineer, to work on the problem with him. They quickly recognized the promise of reinforced concrete, a recent innovation popularized in the 1880s.
Even though other engineers argued that their design would explode when filled or crack when emptied, Peavey and Haglin proceeded with their plan for a cylindrical, concrete structure. Construction began in the summer of 1899. Skeptics dubbed it "Peavey's Folly". Haglin built a section of round formwork braced with steel hoops. Concrete was poured in and given time to harden, at which point the framework was removed and reassembled above to produce the next section. In this manner the elevator was built up to a height of 68 feet (21 m). The interior diameter was 20 feet (6.1 m), while the walls tapered from 12 inches (30 cm) thick at the base to 8 inches (20 cm) at the top. By fall the elevator was ready, and Peavey had it filled with grain. The form held and the grain was left to see how it would fare over the winter.
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