Silo City for Students 1 2018 School Tour Grid During this tour, some important themes are: Industrialization, Technological Advancements, Local Economy, Adaptive Reuse Tour Stop & General Info Primary K-4 Middle 5-8 Secondary 9-12 What is a community? Individuals in a Community Regional & Global Communities #1 Main Parking Area Welcome students to Silo City. Welcome to Silo City, once a busy Welcome to Silo City, explain Ask them what they see. Prompt industrial site packed with workers & that this was once a busy Silo City is a campus of 4 grain them to point out forms of activity. It fell mostly vacant, & then Rick industrial site, fell vacant, & elevators: American, Perot, transportation (train tracks, Smith purchased the site. He turned it into eventually purchased by Rick Marine A, and Lake & Rail. They boats). Let the students know a cultural center where people like us can Smith. were purchased by Rick Smith for that this used to be a busy site come on tours to learn about Buffalo’s past $40,000 each. Smith originally filled with workers. & see it up close. Discuss forms of transportation wanted to convert the site to an and how grain would have been ethanol plant; that didn’t work The grain elevators were built Prompt students to point out forms of shipped from the Midwest to the out, so it became the cultural here because this spot is on the transportation. Discuss how transportation Atlantic ocean, eventually over center it is today. water, and Buffalo was an helps us move goods around. Erie Canal - the Erie Canal. Buffalo became a important port because of the connected Great Lakes to Atlantic Ocean - major transshipment site, Swannie Jim lives at Silo City as Erie Canal. cut down shipping time from situated right at the juncture of the site manager. weeks/months to about 7 days. Cut down the Great Lakes & the Erie Canal. The Erie Canal was a human- cost from ~$100/ton to ~$10/ton. Erie Discuss the Erie Canal & its The Erie Canal was the main made waterway that was built Canal was a leading factor that transformed impact on grain shipment. catalyst for Buffalo’s becoming a almost 200 years ago! It Buffalo into a thriving city. major grain port. Buffalo became a connected the lake and the gateway to the west, and a ocean. Thanks to the Canal, These grain silos were built here because transshipment site where grain people & goods could now go Buffalo was an important port. In order to travelling in lake ships was directly across New York State connect the Great Lakes to the Atlantic transferred to canal barges. Grain in only about 7 days! It was Ocean, the Erie Canal was built.Existing was originally unloaded into the much cheaper, too. towns expanded and grew along the canal. silos manually by dockworkers. The Erie Canal was the leading factor that helped Buffalo transform into a thriving city. Ships stopped in Buffalo before delivering goods to other places. Silo City for Students 2 2018 School Tour Grid During this tour, some important themes are: Industrialization, Technological Advancements, Local Economy, Adaptive Reuse Tour Stop & General Info Primary K-4 Middle 5-8 Secondary 9-12 What is a community? Individuals in a Community Regional & Global Communities #2 Outside of Marine A Explain that grain is a part of a Grain is a crop; it’s like the seed Grain is a crop, the seed part of a Near Kayak Launch plant, like a seed. Grain grows in the part of a plant. It grows in plant. It grows in Midwestern states Midwest, the middle of our country, Midwestern states like Iowa, like Iowa, Illinois, Nebraska, & Grain is a small, dry hard seed, often in states like Iowa, Illinois, Illinois, Nebraska, & Kansas. Grain Kansas, where it is harvested & with an attached hull or fruit layer. Nebraska, & Kansas. The grain was is harvested there & then shipped then shipped along the Great Lakes Grain is harvested for both human harvested in the Midwest, then along the Great Lakes to Buffalo, to Buffalo, where it is stored in silos and animal consumption. A grain shipped to Buffalo, where we stored where it is stored in Silos until it is until it is ready to be used. crop is a grain-producing plant. it until we were ready to use it. We ready to be used. stored it in these structures called Explain how grain is ground into After they’re harvested, dry grains silos, or tall towers shaped like Grain is ground into flour & made flour & used in a variety of foods. are more durable than other staple cylinders/pop cans. into a variety of goods. You Explain General Mills’s local foods. Because of this, grains are probably ate grains for breakfast! production. well suited to industrial agriculture What foods have grain in them? It’s used in cereals like Cheerios & since they can be mechanically What did you eat for breakfast Lucky Charms, which are both harvested, transported long today? Bread, cereal, oatmeal, made in Buffalo by a company distances, stored for long periods, muffins, donuts, cake… called General Mills. That’s why and milled for flour/pressed for oil. sometimes the air smells like Thus, there are major global Cheerios & Lucky Charms are both Cheerios. markets for grains much more so made in Buffalo, by a company than for other crops. called General Mills. Sometimes the air smells like Cheerios! Silo City for Students 3 2018 School Tour Grid During this tour, some important themes are: Industrialization, Technological Advancements, Local Economy, Adaptive Reuse Tour Stop & General Info Primary K-4 Middle 5-8 Secondary 9-12 What is a community? Individuals in a Community Regional & Global Communities #3 Inside Ground Level What shape are these silos? What These silos are in the shape of Discuss the reasoning behind using of Marine A - Close End other kinds of containers can you cylinders – why do you think that a cylindrical shape for the silos, and think of that are the same shape? shape was chosen? Why not a compare other The silos are constructed in a The silos are like large pop rectangular or square shape? What industrial/commercial containers circular, cylindrical shape, with cans/oatmeal containers/etc. other containers also use a that also use a cylindrical shape. interstitial spaces in between that cylindrical shape? were also used for grain storage. These huge silos were completely Explain the use and activity at the The circular shape was used since it filled with grain for a very long These silos were in active use for silos at the height of Buffalo’s grain has smooth edges and no corners time. It took many workers to move many years. The silo we’re standing industry. for grain to get caught in. the grain into & out of the silos. in & all the other around here were completely filled with grain, and Explain some of the reasons for the Buffalo’s grain industry fell into However, Buffalo went through a many employees worked here to decline in Buffalo’s grain industry, decline for several reasons, time when many of its businesses keep the grain storage, use, and including the rise of railroads & including the rise of railroad & closed down. Many of the silos shipment moving smoothly. automobiles rather than water the automobile use rather than water stopped being used, and the transport goods, and the opening of travel to transport goods, as well as workers lost their jobs. The silos Do we still use water to transport the St. Lawrence Seaway. the opening of the St. Lawrence stayed empty for a long time. goods today? As the use of Seaway in Canada, which diverted automobiles and airplanes grew, Though most of them are no longer traffic from the Erie Canal. the use of water fell, and Buffalo’s in use, Buffalo’s grain elevators are grain silos started to fall into disuse. still very important to our city Buffalo has the largest collection of because it’s the largest collection of grain elevators in the world (13 still Even though they’re not all in use, grain elevators in the world. standing) – which makes us an Buffalo has preserved some of its important cultural/architectural grain elevators – today, we have destination. the largest collection of grain elevators in the world! Silo City for Students 4 2018 School Tour Grid During this tour, some important themes are: Industrialization, Technological Advancements, Local Economy, Adaptive Reuse Tour Stop & General Info Primary K-4 Middle 5-8 Secondary 9-12 What is a community? Individuals in a Community Regional & Global Communities #4 Inside Ground Level Using the subterranean and the Using the subterranean and the Using the subterranean and the of Marine A - Far End elevator, describe to students how elevator, describe to students how elevator, describe to students how grain would have been transported grain would have been transported grain would have been transported Just outside the far end of Marine A, from trains into the silos. from trains into the silos. from trains into the silos. there is an open ‘pit’ where trains would have dumped grain into a Have you come to this space before Have you come here before with Have you come here before with subterranean hopper. Once you’re with your family? You can! They put your family or friends? There are your family or friends? There are inside Marine A, you can see the on plays, poetry readings, music tours, parties, concerts, festivals, tours, parties, concerts, festivals, subterranean hopper (now filled performances, and festivals here! weddings, plays, poetry readings, weddings, plays, poetry readings, with water) and explain using the People from all over the world and more! Today, people come from and more! Today, people come from existing structures how grain would come to Silo City to see the grain all over New York, the United all over New York, the United have been scooped our of the elevators and to enjoy this space.