The Hardin tribune-herald. [volume] (Hardin, Mont.) 1925-1973, 1945-07-12

From Two Jima, Maj. Gen. Keller
E. Hockey. commanding the fifth
marine division, wrote to his friend.
Roland D. Doane, Ingersoll sales
manager: Naturally the tail-gate
jobs were much more useful. but all
of them HVTs) really saved our ba-
con in the early days of the show
because they were the only vehicle
that could negotiate the sand hills
leading from the waters edge to the
fighting one
$50 the LVTs carried the beans
and bullets directly from the ships
to the front line units and carried
the wounded on the return trip and
they did this for some five or six
days before we could get our mo-
tor transportation running"
Such reports heartened the Inger-
soil workers. But production sched-
ules were upped again and again.
In the fall Of 1914 additional en-
ployees were sorely needed. and In
gersoll officials tried a novel expert
ment.
Into such typical rural Michigan
communities as Paw Paw, Augusta,
Vicksburg. Schoolcraft, Decatur and
Lawton-10 towns. all told, within a
30-mile radius Of Kalamazoo-moved
a caravan in whose success the
American people had a stake.
The caravan was fashioned around
a newly completed Beach-Buster.
Accompanying it were navy veter-
ans, including a navy nurse. just
home from battle duties. The vets
told their stories. And follow-up
crews received job applications the
next day from those who wanted to
join Ingersoll. Many were farmers
who had harvested their crops. The
caravan idea rates as the spearhead
that helped Beach-Buster employ
ment rise at Ingersoll's from a
peacetime 300 to more than 1900
persons.
National recognition of the produc-
I4O1l 1SSO4o VI IlCSC "O1 hC4S III.
lowed last March 26 when Vox Pop
broadcast its regular weekly pro-
gram from Kalamazoo. interviewed
plant employees. 1t came again on
May 81 when the Army-Navy "E"
was awarded the Borg-Warner fac
tory.
Ingersoll inaugurated another nov
city with free rides on the amphibi-
ans as a reward to workers for u
perior attendance records. The
practice interfered not at all with
routine as all tanks are battle test
ed" on land and one in every so is
tested on water before they are
placed in pairs on fiat cars and start
ed westward from Kalamazoo.
With the help of navy engineers.
constant tests r being conducted
on the amtracks and refnements
that are indicated by battle perform
ance added. The headquarters Of
Ben Swennes has been moved to
Kalamazoo and the results of his re-
search are proved daily on lake.
land and in swamp.
Co-ordinator of all this activity is
R. S. t"Bob'D Ingersoll, son of Roy
and grandson of the late S. A. In
gersoll, founder of the company. His
two uncles, Harold G. and Stephen
l.. Ingersoll, are directors of the
Borg-Warner organization. Harold
manages the Ingersoll plant at New
Castle, Ind; Stephen L. established
the West Pullman works in 1929.
When the emergency of World
War II arose. four %Ingersoll plants
at Chicago, Chicago Heights. New
Castle. Ind. and Kalamazoo. Mich.
were in operation.
Those who knew him say that had
S. A. Ingersoll been alive to p~artici-
pate he would have found abiding
satisfaction in the promptness with
which all four we're converted from
producing implements of peace to
instruments of war. For here truly
is a company that has beaten plow-
shares into swords.