Perth Amboy evening news., 1919-01-04
MORGAN PLANT To CEASE
As MANUFACTURING CONCERN
FEB. |; REMOVE EXPLOSIVES
Future Of Big Plant Reservation
In Doubt, But Indications Are
That It viii Be Used by Ord
nance Department as Arsenal
for Storage Purposes NEWS
Man Told Of Reoving Of Ex-
pIOsiveS.

The T. A. Gillespie Loading Com
pany, agents for the United States
government Ordnance Department,
will cease to function as a manufac-
turing organization or unit on or
about February /. BY that time the
huge plant at Morgan will be swept
clean of all munitions and explosives,
and the entire Gillespie organization
will be removed and the plant used
solely, for the time being, as gov
ernment reservation. The future OF
the huge site of 1000 acres is in
doubt but from information and ru-
NOR CLEANED about the plant and in
this city, 1t Is to be used by the ord
nance department as an arsenal for
the storage of ordnance materials.
Robert E. Eldridge, superintendent
of the Gillespie plant at Morgan, was
authority for these statements. He
gave, yesterday, q comprehensive re-
port of the work now being done at
the plant, the shipments being sent
out, the number of men employed
and on guard there and various other
factors of the work at the present
time, at the same time predicting that
all munitions and explosives Will be
out of the plant within two, three or
four weeks and that by February 1
the Gillespie Loading Company Will
pass out of existence.
rhe huge operation, which cost
the government about $20.000,000
and which was destroyed in few
hours In the disaster of October 4 and
sand which was on the road to re-
construction when the armistice was
signed, ending operation there, will
lose its identity as a shell loading
plant at that time and become, 80 1t
is reported. a government arsenal for
the storage of such materials as gun
castings, wagons. component parts OF
ordnance materials, etc, but not for
the storage of explosives.
Frequent rumors in this city to the
effect that shipments of explosives out
Of the plant had stopped and that car
loads of shells were being received
there led to the questioning OF Mr..
Eldridge on these matters and later
developed into frank statement from
him of the true condition there now.
Mr.. Eldridge said that shipments
af explosives which had been held up
for a time were recommended yester-
day on telegraphic orders received to
continue the work. He said that
eighteen car loads of loaded shells
which had been received at the plant
on Monday of this week were sent
there to be loaded onto barges and
scows, to be taken out to sea and
dumped there. He denied the story to
the effect that the shells were sent
To the plant to b stored and said that
they were Immediately placed on
scows. and as soon as possible had
been and are being sent out to sea-
Store Defective Shells.
The shells. he maintained, had been
stored at Cliffwood and were "duds.
or detectives. They were sent from
Cliffwood to Morgan and thence onto
the barges for transfer TO sea. There
were no new storage buildings under
construction. he said. and nothing was
benig stored at the plant except parts
of shells which were being sent to the
plant from other loading concerns.
connected with the Gillespie concern
which have ceased operation and are
being dismantled.
Whe masked how much explosive
material there was at present in the
plant the superintendent said he
could not tell and referred the mat
ter to the ordnance department. He
said that he XIV that considerable
quantities were being shipped to Fort
Wingate, New Mexico, as had been
done since the first order came from
the war department at Washington
during the month of November. More
was being sent to Fort NVinigate yes
terday, he claimed. No shipments are
being made to the Raritan arsenal
up the Raritan river. he said. and
remarked that he believed explosives
were likewise being shipped out OF
there.
tContinued on page 3D.