abandoned cement factory

by Kaylah Stroup
Jesi, and I discovered this incredible abandoned cement factory on our last adventure together. We were in an area we didn’t really know very well so while we chowed down on lunch we decided to quickly look around online to see if there was anywhere we could find nearby. We found photos of this place but couldn’t find an address so with nothing better to do decided just to drive and hope for the best. Fifteen minutes later we spotted it off in the distance. Guess some things are just meant to be!

The first unit of this plant was built in 1924. It produced 2,500 barrels of cement per day. After another year another unit was built and production doubled. In 1955 the company announced it’s plan to expand yet again, this time to be able to produce 11,000 barrels per day. During the 1960’s this factory was the largest in the state and employed many of the residents of the surrounding area.

In 1973 the plant’s parent company decided to sell in an effort to get rid of all non-essential businesses.  It was all down hill from here. The plant went through a handful of new owners in quick succession. In the 80’s there were strikes, and eventually in 1993 the company declared bankruptcy and closed down. A few years passed and the EPA stepped in to clean up the area. A great majority of the buildings on the property were demolished.

Since then what’s remaining has been left to rot. Most recently the building has been used by local military and police for training purposes. Much of the land around the plant has been declared off-limits by the EPA after large sinkholes began to develop.

It’s actually pretty crazy to think that so many buildings on the property were demolished. This is easily one of the largest places I have ever explored. It is MASSIVE. Jesi, and I barely made a dent on the place before declaring we were both too hot, and tired to do anything else here.

Although it was almost completely cleared out inside with nearly everything gone, it was still a super interesting building. One of my favorite parts was all the “no spitting’ signs painted on the walls. There were a handful of them throughout the building, particularly near stairwells. It’s kind of hilarious to me that it was such an issue they had to do that.

The second floor was covered in stalactites, and stalagmites. I was particularly interested in the stalagmites covering the floor. They had such a strange appearance. They looked fluffy, almost like shaving cream or something of a similar consistency.

Beautiful view from one of the upper levels.

I’d like to get back here sometime in the near future and finish checking out the area. There was so much we didn’t get to see!
xoxo

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19 comments

Lostvestige October 1, 2014 - 12:54 pm

These pictures are beautiful! I especially love the one of the chair overlooking the water.

Kaylah October 2, 2014 - 8:31 pm

Thanks!

Thats one of my favorites too! I love the idea that someone was sitting there admiring that view.

Jenn Punsalang-Cloutier October 1, 2014 - 1:03 pm

This is such a neat place to explore, those stalagmites are super interesting, the close up almost looks like something otherworldly!
And I absolutely love that photo of the chair facing the water. It captures such an ominous presence that seemingly goes hand in hand with abandoned buildings.

Kaylah October 2, 2014 - 8:31 pm

Definitely one of my favorite shots too!

Kate October 1, 2014 - 1:21 pm

It's crazy to me how many abandoned places there are. Factories, schools that are just "forgotten" and left to rot. It's sad this place was a huge employer at one point, but I guess that's kinda what the rust belt is, isn't it?

Kaylah October 2, 2014 - 8:32 pm

Yep! I mean, it's definitely not just in the rust belt though. It blew my mind how many abandoned places I saw on my trip out west!

Ali Whittemore October 1, 2014 - 1:45 pm

Have you ever thought of making a photo book of your abandoned location adventures? "Abandoned Cleveland" That is something I would definitely buy.
Hope your day is going well!
-Ali

Kaylah October 2, 2014 - 8:39 pm

Oh Ali, I would LOVE to!

Emma Deerful October 1, 2014 - 2:30 pm

This is so cool! Really interesting how untouched it is except for the monster painted on the wall. And I wonder how the couch got there. Amazing photos!

Emma x
Deerful

Kaylah October 2, 2014 - 8:46 pm

There were a few other small pieces of graffiti but yeah, for the most part this place was pretty untouched. It was really cool! 🙂

Maria October 2, 2014 - 2:29 pm

I love these photos of abandoned buildings! I wish there was any buildings like that around where I live!

Kaylah October 2, 2014 - 8:46 pm

Glad you enjoy them, Maria!

I'm sure there are if you look around hard enough! 🙂

Gabby October 2, 2014 - 9:36 pm

How do you normally find all of these great places to explore? Do you just Google "abandoned structures" or something?

Kaylah October 3, 2014 - 5:07 pm

A lot of places are found by just driving around an area, but if I'm far from home, or traveling I'll use google to help me get an idea of some places that might be out there and then research from there.

jesi rodgers October 3, 2014 - 11:13 am

your shots of the place came out awesome!

hopefully we can adventure again soon! <3

Kaylah October 3, 2014 - 5:08 pm

No, not hopefully, we WILL adventure together soon! 😀

Audrey October 3, 2014 - 1:05 pm

Your posts about abandoned places are some of my favorite posts to read on the internet ever. How do you find these places? This is my dream to explore similar sites!

Kaylah October 3, 2014 - 5:08 pm

A lot of places are found by just driving around an area, but if I'm far from home, or traveling I'll use google to help me get an idea of some places that might be out there and then research from there.

Ashley Lutton October 17, 2014 - 2:22 pm

This is my favorite thus far.

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