Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1919-12-25
Mammoth Explosives Factory
in Alabama Built in
Eight Months.
ALL SPEED RECORDS BROKEN
Could Supply 13 Per Cent OF
Allies Needs Had War
Continued.
ey GARRETT SMITH.

just now brought to light for the first
time one OF the most stupendous feats
OF construction In his,ory--the plan
ming and building In less than one year
OF the largest ammonium nitrate plant
in the world and OF a city around 10
for the housing OF it's $4,000 workmen
aud their families. At the same time
Is revealed one OF the chief reasons
why Germany suddenly surrendered a
year ago. The German high command
knew that the United States was
ready at Muscle Shoals. Alabama, to
manufacture Is per cent OF all The
high explosives needed by all the Al
lied armies on all fronts In the expect
ed drive OF the following spring.
The first person on construction
work reached Muscle Shoals on No
venber 70, 1917. On February 16.
1918, ground was srst broken for
permanent plant building. On Octo-
Der &c 1918, eight months and eight
days later. the manufacturing plant
had begun the production OF ammo
MUM nitrate.
When America entered the world
war in April. 1917. she had no means
of producing the enormous quantities
Of high explosives necessary TO pro-
vide the huge army she planned to
raise. The very fact that our indus
tries were already worked TO capacity
providing ammunition to the allies
seemed to make further production for
our own use impossible.
Al this juncture the Ordnance De
partment turned to cyanamid. com
mercial fertilizer. which had for some
years been produced successfully at
Niagara Falls, by process the Ameri-
can rights OF which were obtained In
1907 from Germany by Frank Sher-
man Washburn. head OF the American
CyaDamid Company.
BY this process cyanamid was pro-
duced by extracting nitrogen from the
air and combining it with calcium Oh
tanned from limestone rock and carbon
from coke BY putting cyanamld
through three more processes both am
monla and nitric scid-can be extracted
from II and combined into the explo-
sive. ammonium nitrate Mr.. Wash
burn was invited to present plans and
estimates for the construction in the
shortest possible time OF an ammonium
nitrate plant at Muscle Shoals. Ala
hanna. and Il contract between his com
pany and The United States was enter
cd into under date Of November l6
1917.
TO have general supervision Of plan
ming and carrying out the Work Nh or
ganiZatiOn known AZ the Air NilrateS
Corporation was formed "a act as
agent of the Ordnance Department
This corporation provided the general
designs. supervised all the work and
operated the camp. the town and the
nlant. II also installed all equipment
I'm The chemical plant. The various
other sections Of the work were sub
let To organizations that were special
lists i'm The directions in which they
were asked 10 help.
-
II was necessary 10 build new
town Ia house thc laborers. For this
ioh Westinghouse Church. Kerr Com
pany was called i'm rs contractor This
company also built The buildings of the
chemical plant Within four months
~ 600 workmen had been assembled
and City capable OF accommodating
- 600 inhabitants had been completed,
with lodging. restaurants, stores. of
fees. police headquarters schools, fire
departments. hospitals. motion picture
theatcrs. electric light and sewerage
systems.
The construction OF the plant proper
vas begun on February 16, 1918 Just
| eight months and eight days later the
big plant began steady output Of am
monium nitrate. The plant contains
| I13 permanent buildings. with roof
area of over 26 acres.
70 provide The electric current II
| was necessary 10 build steam power
! electric plant, for II would have taken
three years or more 10 complete the
dam aud hydre-electric station nov an
dtr way. This plant. built by the j. q
white Corporation. Is one Of the larg
-, steam plants for developing elec
rlcal energy in the world.
TIT output Of the plant Is 300 tons oi
! ammonium nitrate day. and this csf
he produced al Muscle Shoals at cos
less ilIan- one-half the standard tiNed
| uricc ,aid by the Government for am
moul,mt nitrate produced by Other
| itcilinds aud one-f0urth Ia 0ne-fiflh til,
cost az other high explosives Of equa
strength. Compareo with the oldel
process of making ammonium nitrate
The ,.;,, ngs made 10y this plant wOult
race paid The $6o,o00000 cost OF the
entire plant in about one and one.hal
| wears ~ operation
~ military weapon Il is one of ih'
wisest and InOSi economical cXpendi
. irc~ that the Ordnance Department
ins undertnlSen A. al agent ia stop
ping the war and as future proicc
tinn 20 tie country its value Is incalcu
I lul4l..