Grant Mackay Demolition starts work on demolition of International Harvester plant.
For those of us of a certain age, the name International Harvester conjures memories of a simpler time; machines without cabs but with levers long enough to give the operator forearms like Popeye. Indeed, there was a time when – in Europe at least – the instantly recognisable IH logo was a symbol of construction equipment, not of the agricultural tractors that gave the company its name.
But like flower power, glam rock and Betamax video recorders, the name International Harvester has long since been consigned to the file marked “History”. But the demolition of the company’s former plant at Springfield, Ohio is still tinged with sadness.
The building was erected in 1882 to serve as the administrative offices for the Warder, Bushnell & Glessner Co., which joined with four other companies to form International Harvester in 1902.
An attempt by the Turner Foundation to save the building failed, but efforts by the city of Springfield and the Ohio Historic Preservation Office ensured that parts of the structure — the vault door, safe and 1882 date stone — would be preserved.
Crews started taking down structures on the site in August, with the last two demolished on Monday, said Joe Vendetti, vice president of Grant Mackay Demolition Co.
An estimated 14,000 tons of brick and 78,000 tons of concrete will have been reduced to rubble by the end of the project, Vendetti said.
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