Chicago Historical Society
Archive Ref: #1871-WHEAT
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CHICAGO

GRAIN TRADE

THE RISE TO PROMINENCE

PRESENTED BY

TREVOR CARLSTROM

How Did It Start?

  • Farming expanded massively in the Midwest (The "Breadbasket").
  • Chicago became the central hub to buy, sell, and ship.
  • Grain elevators & trading systems made storage efficient as hell.
  • Not just one person—it was geography + technology.
Historic Grain Elevator

Why Chicago?

Jobs & Workers

  • The Jobs: Grain inspectors, dock workers, shovelers, traders.
  • The People: Mostly immigrants (Irish, German) grinding for survival.
  • The Conditions: Dangerous dust, heavy lifting, brutal winters.
  • Men worked the docks; families depended on the wages.

Inventions & Techniques

Impact on America

  • Made food cheaper and available year-round across the U.S.
  • Turned the U.S. into a global agricultural powerhouse.
  • Chicago's wealth exploded, funding skyscrapers and culture.
  • Created a model for modern global commodities trading.
Map of trade routes

Where in Chicago?

Decline or Change?

Interesting Facts

  • Fun Fact: Chicago invented the "Futures Market"—betting on the future price of wheat.
  • Key Org: The Chicago Board of Trade (1848) is one of the world's oldest exchanges.
  • Early elevators were highly flammable; grain dust explodes like dynamite.
Trading Floor

Sources

Encyclopedia of Chicago (Grain Trade)

Library of Congress (Railroads & Elevators)

Chicago History Museum Archives

Classroom Resources



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