It was an arduous task but in the end the last of the Lake Lenore grain elevators did not go down easily.
On Jan. 23, the Lake Lenore skyline lost its final grain elevator as the Pioneer Grain Company elevator was destroyed by demolition crews.
People were scattered around the village waiting as the demolition company picked away at the wooden structure. This included longtime Lake Lenore residents Beryl Bauer and Eric Yeager.
By 11:20 a.m., the structure was starting to tip but stopped at a 45 degree angle with debris built up at the base and by 2:46 p.m., according to Bauer, the building was completely destroyed.
Tracey Shelton with Richardson Pioneer says they had not been receiving grain at the Lake Lenore location for the past several years with the focus being on the modern Ag Business Centre at Dixon located outside of Humboldt on Hwy. 5.
“We still have sales people working in the area but they’re working out of Dixon. Dixon is where we will serve our customers.”
Bauer has seen the majority of Lake Lenore elevators torn down and it is still difficult to see it go.
“It’s the last elevator so the skyline has changed. You’re not going to see town until you get here. It was kind of like a beacon where you could find your way home.”
Yeager worked at the elevator before heading off to university. It is sad to see the destruction of the last landmark in town.
Seeing the elevator always meant you were almost home, he says.
According to the Lake Lenore history book, Sharing Our History, Lake Lenore and Area, the Pioneer Grain Elevator was the last of six elevators remaining in Lake Lenore.
When the book was published in 1986, the six elevators in the village were operated by three companies in town, including Pioneer Grain, Saskatchewan Wheat Pool, and United Grain Growers.
Pioneer Grain at one point in time had a total capacity of 170,000 bushels and had handled half a million bushels in the three years before the book was published.
According to the history book, “the elevators continue to dominate the skyline and the companies continue to make an important economic and social contribution to the village.”
