Grain Trains Gone By

Harvest is upon us and we see combines and semi trucks any time we venture away from our city environment. This makes me think of a picture I have of a “grain train” heading to Glasgow from the North Country. The picture was actually taken about 10 miles north of Glasgow in the early 1920s. I would guess these people were in the second or third day of their trip. This stopping place had a barn that would hold 100 head of horses. The total number of horses on this particular run was listed at 194, and the total bushels of grain were 5,811. Most of us could not imagine the various types and styles of wagons used to haul the grain. On this particular grain moving event, a prize was given to the man having the most horses and the biggest load. The prize being horse blankets.

Compare that scene with the huge harvest equipment today. Of course, today the acres farmed are also staggering compared to the average acres farmed in the early 1920s.

Just a thought, I doubt grain in the early days was transported down the main road either. I understand that this particular picture I am talking about was in part instrumental in getting the railroad interested in establishing a rail line in our country.