In my last
post, I shared a documentary on American manufacturing during
World War II. Just a few miles south of my hometown lies a small
town whose very existence is tied to that era. It was founded around
an ammunition plant built to fuel the war effort.
At its peak, the plant employed nearly 20,000 workers, producing
munitions on a massive scale. To house the influx of employees, two
small towns were created. The location was chosen not only because
it sat in the middle of the United States, but also because our
region experiences heavy cloud cover for much of the year, offering
natural concealment from potential aerial threats.
Though operations ceased in the 1950s, the site still retains many
of its original structures. Some buildings have collapsed into ruin,
while others have been repurposed by local industry. The storage
bunkers, however, continue to serve a practical role, now used by
private companies as secure facilities.
Large portions of the acreage remain sealed off, restricted due to
contamination and the lingering presence of improperly disposed
ordnance.
Photo I took in 2007 with my cell
phone.
Screen grab from googlemaps showing
concealed bunkers
There once stood several large buildings in the center of my
hometown. For decades it produced commercial tractors, but during
the war its assembly lines shifted to building M-6 tracked vehicles
for the military. The plant closed in the late 1970's. Those abandoned buildings stood until 2015, when
it was finally demolished to make room for a new commercial zone.
Probably for the best. We used to sneak into these buildings as
teens, and they definitely were not safe.
Allis Chalmer's ruins 2005 (left)
and 2024 (Right) Cropped from GoogleEarth
More information:
Places That Were - Kingsbury Ordinance Plant - Urban explorer's personal blog with Photos of the
plant and bunkers in their current state
US Auto Industry World War 2 - Excerpt on Allis Chalmers and
wartime production
