Philip Armour sought to control all aspects of the grain trade, from purchase to transport to storage to ultimate sale in order to control costs at his packinghouses and as a means of controlling the lucrative grain trade. To that end, the first grain elevators on Goose Island were built in 1887 by the Chicago, Milwaukee, and St. Paul Railroad (of which Armour was an major investor) to hold grain brought into Chicago from its north/northwest hinterland.

Creator: Chicago Tribune
Source: Chicago Historical Society (ICHi-38015)