The shorelines of the Lakehead has been populated with elevators since the early 1880’s, with the construction of Port Arthur’s King Elevator beginning in 1883. The grain industry fueled much of the development of the twin cities, with the first elevators being built by the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) at Fort William in 1885.

Construction of grain elevators proceeded so rapidly that Fort William was called “Elevator City” during the early twentieth century.

Today, there are eight operational grain terminals at the Port of Thunder Bay, one of these is Superior Elevator. Grain arrives here by rail where it is offloaded, inspected, cleaned (if needed), and stored until its journey continues east by ship. Watch the Superior Elevator, Port of Thunder Bay video to see this terminal in operation and learn more about its role in transporting grain to market.