A short drive from the incredible abandoned Newburgh Masonic Temple lies the the ruined headquarters of Victoreen Instrument Company.
Built in 1925, the crumbling brick structure originally housed Clark Controller Company, which manufactured electrical controls for cranes, presses, mills, and other industrial machinery.
When Clark Controller Company merged with A. O. Smith Corporation in 1965, the factory was sold to Victoreen Instrument Company.
The company specialized in the production of x-ray dosimeters and other devices that measured the intensity and dosage of X-ray exposure.
In the early 1940s, Victoreen became a contractor for the United States military. The company developed portable devices that measured radiation exposure for use in the Manhattan Project and during Operation Peppermint. After World War II, Victoreen supplied equipment used during the nuclear tests on Bikini Atoll.
The company saw many changes throughout the 1950s and 60s, including numerous acquisitions of, and mergers with, other electronics companies.
In the years since Victoreen left, the property has changed hands several times.
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| An artifact from 2007 |
Plans for demolition were approved in 2009.
Portions of the structure were razed. Rubble and an outer wall mark where they once stood.
Quite a bit of furniture and other objects remain inside the old factory, but all the manufacturing equipment has been removed.
Many of the massive rooms are now empty except for rows of pillars and a layer of fallen ceiling tiles covering the floor.
Though demolition has been temporarily halted, it is likely that the remaining structure will be torn down before long. Until then, nature slowly creeps back in.
After exploring the ruins of Victoreen, I headed across town to visit the abandoned industrial complex of Warner & Swasey Company.
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Thank you!
Another great article mate, thanks for letting us have a view to places we will probably never get to visit ourselves!!!
ReplyDeleteThanks, buddy!
DeleteAlways look forward to reading your articles David. Great adventures!
ReplyDeleteAnother great glimpse of the past. Keep up the good work.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much!
DeleteThanks for the back story on this interesting and important piece of Cleveland's industrial history. I'm finding the more time I spend in the CLE the more it's clear the hit this cool old city has taken. It will take quite an effort to turn the city around.
ReplyDeleteSo after attempting and failing an explore of the Masonic Temple recently I found this post both amusing and exciting, and planned another trip to check it out. I had much better luck this time, thank you very much!
I find I appreciate the work of others more after I've checked out these places myself and see my own photo results. So if I haven't told you lately, nice work! Between your visit and mine, a bit more of the building has been demolished and cleaned up. And like so many other sites, a new fence has been installed on one side of the complex--but the adjacent side is completely open. However, I would appreciate your giving me a heads-up about the feral cats, dogs, deer, and other critters that scattered and yapped at me when I made my way onto the property! You never know when you're going to run into nature's security force!
Thank you, Greg! I'm glad you got to explore the Masonic Temple. It's a really interesting place.
DeleteIt's funny that they went through the trouble of putting up a fence, but left the other side totally open. I didn't run into any feral animals when I was there. I'm glad they didn't give you too much trouble!
Funny how rot can make for such cool pics.
ReplyDeleteI couldn't agree more! Glad you like the pics.
DeleteHas there been any discussion about radioactive contamination? The manufactured equipment had to be calibrated which involved radioactive isotopes. Where were they stored in the building?
ReplyDeleteThe city of Cleveland recently began demolishing the remaining portions of this old plant.
ReplyDeleteI lived right across the street from this building from July 1961 until august 1967. So sad to see it deteriorated so bad. Lots of history made within those walls. Harshaw Chemical on Harvard at Jennings Rd. Also had a hand in the Manhattan project.
ReplyDeleteDemolished. Rubble as I write this. I used to meet my then-boyfriend, who worked at Victoreen, for lunch. This was in the early 1970s. We went to the Woolworth's lunch counter on Buckeye Road. Woodland Av is a shadow of what I remember. And now the fucking "Opportunity" Corridor.
ReplyDeleteAlways look forward to reading your articles David. Great adventures!
ReplyDelete