The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1920-01-02
WORLDS BIGGEST
NITRATE PLANT
Mammoth Explosives Factory
in Alabama Built in
Sight Months.
ALL SPEED RECORDS BROKEN
Could Supply 13 Per Cent OF
Allies Needs Had War
Continued.
Dy oARRET SMITH.

~ oARRET SMITH.
Lifting the ban Of war secrecy has
just now brought to light for the arst
time one Of the nest stupendous feats
OF construction In history-the plan
ming and building in less than one year
OF the largest ammonium nitrate plant
In the world and OF q city around II
for the housing OF Its $4,000 workmen
and their families. At the same time
Is revealed one Of the chief reasons
why Germany suddenly surrendered
year ago. The German high command
! knew that the United States was
ready at Muscle Shoals, Alabama, to
manufacture I3 per cent of all the
high explosives needed by oil the Al
lied armies on all treats In the expect
ed drive Of the following spring.
The FIRST person on conssructien
work reached Muscle Shoals on No
vember Is, 1917. On February 10,
permanent plant building. On Octo-
Der %, 1913 eight months and eight
days later, the mapufs curing plant
had begun the proSuction 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.
Fertilizer Process Turned to War Use.
At this juncture the Ordnance De
partment turned to cyanamid, a CON-
mercial fertilizer, which had for some
years been produced successfully at
Niagara Falls, by a process the Ameri-
can rights Of which were obtained In
1907 from Germany by Frank Sher-
man Washburn, head Of the American
Cyapamid Company.
duced by extracting nitrogen from the
air and combining 1t with calcium OBJ
| tanned from limestone rock and carbon
from coke BY putting cyanamid
through three more processes both am.
monia and nitric acid 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
bama, and n contract between his com.
pany and the United States was enter.
ed into under date of November 16,
1917.
To have general supervision OF plan
ming and carrying out the work an Or
ganization known as the Air Nitrates
Corporation was formed 10 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
plant. II also installed MI equipment
In the chemical plant. The various
other sections OF the work were sub
let Go organizations that were special.
lists In the directions In which they
were asked to help.
New City Built From the Ground.
II was necessary 10 build n new
town 20 house the laborers. For this
Job Westinghouse Church Kerr Com.
pany was called In ms contractor. This
company also built the buildings OF the
chemical plant Within. four month";
1900 workmen had been assembled
and city capable OF accommodating
$4,000 inhabitants had been completed.
with lodging. restaurants, stores, Of
fees. police headquarters. schools, IRE
departments. hospitals. motion picture
theaters, electric light and sewerage
systems
The construction OF the plant proper
was bogus on February 16, 1918 just
eight months and eight days later the
big plant began a steady output OF am
mOnium nitrate. The plant contains
113 permanent buildings, with q root
area OF over &c acres.
10 DTuNlUt IHt eleSttN tuitChl "a
was necessary 10 build a steam power
electric plant, for IT would have taken
three years or more 10 complete the
dam and hydro-eiectric station now IN
der way. This plant. built BY the J. G.
White Corporation, is one OF the larg
est steam plants for developing esec'
rical energy In the world.
The output OF the plant is 800 tons OF
ammonium nitrate a day. and this can
he produced al Muscle Shoals at cost
less than One-half the standard fixed
price paid by the Government for am
monium nitrate produced By other
methods and one-fourth TO one fifth the
cost OF other high explosives OF equal
strength. Compares with the older
process OF making ammonium nitrate
the savings made by this plant would
have paid the S6O.0O0.O 900 cost OF the
entire plant In about one and onehali
years OF operation.
As military weapon II Is one Of ths
yisest and most economical expendi
lures that the Ordnance Department
has undertaken. As an agent In stop
ping the war and as q future protec
ton TO the country Its value is lncalcu
liable.