Silo City

There’s a cool trend happening right now where cities are re-purposing defunct industrial spaces in ways that keep the history and charm, without the waste. They’re being used for arts, food, and music events, weddings, historical and photography tours, and many other affairs to huge success. That’s what’s happening now with Silo City, or Elevator Alley.

This is the birthplace of the steam-powered grain elevator. While a few of these things are still functioning, most of the century plus-year-old elevators are abandoned today. The past couple years, the space has had a sort of rebirth as an event and historical location, which I think is pretty cool.

When I planned to visit, I wasn’t sure how much “abandoned” photography I’d really get. Clearly there was a lot to see and shoot. I don’t find myself shooting industrial spaces as much these days, but I really should do more. I was reminded how great the colors, shapes, and textures are in an environment like this.

I really don’t have a fear of heights, but while crossing one of the aerial “brides” between elevators I happened to look out the broken window and realize it was a pretty long way down to the river below. That made even me a little dizzy.

I wasn’t paying attention in the moment, but when I started editing I realized these big metal boxes were rat traps. As you can imagine, a place such as a massive grain silo would be susceptible to rodent infestation.

Usually, I enjoy the smell of dry rot and decay in an old building. Here, it was masked by the sourness of rotting grain. Definitely different.

This particular elevator has incredible potential. There are many art installations hidden throughout the silos, with new ones appearing all the time. Musicians perform and record here, too. While the city is still figuring out what to do with it in the long run, I personally think with the right tweaks, this elevator would make a fantastic gallery venue. (No one knows why the playhouse is there, or where it came from.)

I have two more abandoned posts in the queue. I’m reveling in these last few shoots that I’ve crammed into the past two weeks, since I won’t have time to visit another spot until at least July. Cheers.