Art & Inspiration Old I.H.factory soon history

GREED , then and now , I feel for our kids and grandkids .

 

I worked at the Canton, Il plant and Memphis plant. As previously stated lots of blame to go around! Work rules and incentive work (piece work) were way to generous. Archie and his crew were a disaster. They were brought in to try to shore up margins that had deteriorated horribly under the Mc Cormick family leadership. End result, a lot of people (including myself) lost very good paying jobs. 120,000 US employees in its heyday and now Navistar has around 12,000 I believe. For the true story of the demise, a well written account is "A Corporate Tragedy by Barbra Marsh. Lays the facts on the line!

 

Wow,...I amazed at the response to this thread, I actually thot it mite not be excepted on this site,...very interesting comments.
...the demo co. that is going to take this down had in my opinion a very low bid, leading me to think that they mite be going to recycle anything they can from the building,..at least I hope so.
The city of Rock Falls , at least the leaders, think it's an eyesore and want to improve the waterfront.
...I'd love to salvage some stuff from there, but doubt they'll let anyone near it, but I'm gonna check on it ....I do hope to get me a souveneer from there when it comes down.
...here's a few more pics, and one from back in the day...

 

Still like to have that cart...

 

That'd make some mighty nice water view apartments.

 

I agree, the strike of 1980 was the result, the company didn't go under, they just reorganized and got rid of the head guy Archie McCardell. One day after the UAW ratified the concessionary contract, Archie McCardell was fired by International Harvester. My friend Chris Ito (a renown automotive/hot rod designer), is the Director of Design at Navistar (IH), in Chicago and recently found a car I built in 1971, I recently bought it back and it is being delivered to me in the next few weeks. The car can be view in the thread "YOUR WILDEST STREET CARS". Navistar is doing quite well these days.

 

I miss IH. We used IH equipment when we farmed. Think we had an IH refrigerator on the farm even. Still got the Farmall Cub my grandmother's uncle bought back in the day. '52 or '53 model, can't remember. Ran hard and almost daily more than 20 or 30 years, about 2010 or so it had to be rebuilt. Even has it's original muffler though the bottom has been patched many times over the years. In 1962 he made a deal so the IH dealer could put a sign up in trade for a disc. Got the paperwork somewhere.

 

My neighbor bought a new 1066 when IHC was having labor issues it ran 45 minutes when the dealer tore it down they found wood plugs in the oil p***ages to the cam bearings. Why would management do that?

 

...views of the Rock River and dam...looking towards Sterling, Illinois across the river...

 

I have a hard time understanding the thinking of Americans sometimes. "Old " buildings, 100-150 years old, built of rock and brick,being torn down to make way for newer stuff. Those same buildings in Europe would be practically brand new, and they manage to thrive with old stuff. We are seeing a lot of the same things here in the south, all the old brick cotton mills are going down, except for a very few that have been refurbished into some high end loft apartments.Ironically, a lot of the old timbers from the floors are being salvaged and sent to Europe.

 

"My neighbor bought a new 1066 when IHC was having labor issues it ran 45 minutes when the dealer tore it down they found wood plugs in the oil p***ages to the cam bearings. Why would management do that?"

In 1969, I worked for GMC Truck & Bus. Building 7500, Pontiac, South BLVD. Where they shipped big cabs & ch***is out by rail - piggy-back stacked on flatbed cars. To piggy-back, stacks of lumber were built up, then banded to the frame rail of the bottom truck, then another truck craned up & over and resting front axle on these blocks & chained down.

That building is were all the felons & violent types were sent - kept 'em from the general population. There was a standing contest that would come & go several times during the year or so I lasted. The contest was to see who could drive the most 20 penny nails into the sidewalls of a rear dual (10.00 x 20 tires back then).

Later, I worked for a Chevy/Olds dealership. It was not uncommon to actually find beer & whiskey bottles stuffed in the rear quarter panels or doors & sometimes cigarettes under the carpet.

Now why would GM management do that? More importantly, why didn't GM go out of business?

I have run my own business and/or been in top management positions most of my working life. And I can tell you, that if you want to run your business into the ground, be authoritarian, treat your employees like the enemy, and you will surely and quickly reach your goal.

If you think like that, if you believe that somehow /you/ by virtue of position are somehow better, or more special than the employees or customers you serve, then I don't want you anywhere near my business.

 

Update:...by now I spose it's all just a pile of rubble,...the good news is enuf people wanted souveneers that they are going to let people get bricks or limestone from the clean up before it's all hauled off....will get more pics later...

 

Shame the shell couldn't be saved and built out from the inside out. I see a lot of that done to save old building shells here. They become condo's, lofts, offices, etc. The cost is as much or more than starting from scratch. Bringing those crumbly walls up to code was probably beyond feasible. Then there's the question of the foundation, contaminated soil (EPA), etc.
Wonder if the building has a cornerstone (with a date) that could be saved for the local historical society?

Surprised this thread is still up. The pro/anti union debate with both sides (right or wrong) firmly entrenched, usually side tracks threads right off the board. Might as well be a conservative/liberal political debate.

 

They should have at least used I.H. equipment to tear it down!

 

...here's a few pics from about one hour ago...

 

IHC construction equipment is now spelled Komatsu.

 

With that eyesore outta the way maybe they could put up a Wallymart/Starbunks combo.

 

^^^ there's aStarbucks & a Wallyworld on the south end of town...
here's a few pics from this AM,..only the elevator tower still standing...

 

Get those lights and the cart if you can.Use the lights at home and you will always have something to smile at when that old girl is leveled and vanishes.

 

Too late...... I didnt read to the bottom of thread.

 

Update,...it's all down,...yesterday I got my souveneers I wanted and then some...
...bricks have IBCo imprinted on em,...think it stands for Illinois Brick Company, but haven't found out for sure yet...

 

Rusty, it's a pity of something you
had a sentimental attachment to, get torn down.
I helped in the initial demo. and installing new windows in the old Allis Chalmers building. Building was built solid, we had to cut thick reinforcement
Beams out before putting in the large windows. Pretty cool being there first and seeing the building before renovation. A lot of cool old ****.

 

this set of buildings sit rite across the street to the south,(my new background for old car photos)...I spose they'll be next...they were part of the RB&W (Russell, Burdsell & Ward)steel factory

 

You guys and your politics just have to **** up a good thread, .Loved the pics. hated the political comments

 

Hope if we end up in WW111 with China, that they will sell us war fighting **** to keep things fair.

 

^^^ wtf?

 

I'm retired from the big green tractor factory in Waterloo, IA. After outsourcing much of their production, they tore down or gave away many of the old buildings. One, that I spent about 5 years in, is now called the Techworks. Basically a rat hole to throw government grant money into. Another is being turned into a hotel. I have been told it will have a gl*** bottom swimming pool on one of the upper floors with a bar directly below it.

Gary

 

^^^ Gary,...don't think I'd like that bar, at least til I was drunk enuf.
...neat they are saving those old bldgs tho...any pics?

 

They did the same thing to the Birmingham International Raceway here. Now there is nothing built on it and you can still the where it sat.

 

This pic is of the back side. The nearest 6 story building is going to be the hotel.The other one is the Techworks building. The far end of the single story in the upper right is a real nice museum of Deere products from Waterloo. One of the buildings in the lower right used to be full of automatic screw machines and are still part of the factory but I don't know how it's used now. Lower left corner used to be a plumbing supply warehouse and is now condos.

Gary