The Cost of Farming – New Technology: Bigger Equipment

Grain wagons, like these used by Jerry Wisted on his farm near McLean in 1974, made the transportation of grain from the field to the farm or elevator easier. Each wagon carried 200 bushels, or 5­6 tons of grain.

By 2000 grain wagons had more than doubled in size. In 2015 some grain carts (wagons with their own auger for unloading) sold for as much as $75,000 and had the capacity to hold 1,300 bushels of grain.

Prior to the railroad, McLean County farmers built their own wagons or had them constructed by a local wagon maker. Once the railroad arrived, so too did manufactured wagons. This one was made in Racine, Wisconsin, then shipped by rail to Harber Brothers in Bloomington.