Friends,
The 224-foot-tall Headhouse (grain elevator) building at Pillsbury is under active demolition this week. It is the tallest building ever demolished in Springfield. The Headhouse was one of the first buildings built at Pillsbury. When completed in the Fall of 1929, it was second in height only to the State Capitol building standing at 361 feet. It became the third tallest building in 1974 when the 352-foot-tall Forum-30 Plaza Hotel was built (Wyndham).
The Headhouse was the central part of the grain moving operation at the Springfield Pillsbury Plant. All the wheat that came into the facility was moved vertically in the Headhouse and up to the weight tanks near the top where it was tested and graded. From there the wheat would then be stored in the silos prior to milling.
The materials from the Headhouse demolition will nearly all be recycled. The metal will be separated on-site from the concrete. The metal will then go directly to a recycling facility. The concrete will then be crushed on-site and used for future construction projects in the area. Very little of the materials from the demolition at the former Pillsbury Plant will go to the landfill. We are estimating that total recycling at the site will exceed 95% of the bulk materials by weight. Thus, making this the largest ongoing recycling project in Central Illinois. Well over 150,000 tons of material recycled!
Thanks for being a part of this important community project!
~ Team Pillsbury
