Last edited Thu Dec 10, 2015, 12:29 PM - Edit history (1)
The last new Packard that was really a Packard rolled off the line in 1956. In 1957 and 1958, Packards were rebadged Studebakers. After that, there were no more built.
Packard Automotive Plant
The Packard plant was opened in 1903 and at the time was considered the most modern automobile manufacturing facility in the world with skilled craftsmen involved in over eighty trades. The factory complex closed in 1958, though other businesses operated on the premises or used it for storage until the late 1990s.
I don't know who owns that facility or what use is proposed for it now.
Detroit's infamous Packard plant to be razed. Finally.
Mar 2nd 2012 at 6:20PM
Chris Paukert
Despite its various and sundry dangers, urban spelunking has become something of a rite of passage for adventuresome types living in and around Detroit. And while Corktown's legendary
Michigan Central Station is probably illicit explorers' favorite quarry, the derelict 3.5-million square foot
Packard Plant is likely a close second.
Built in 1903, the sprawling
Albert Kahn factory complex hasn't churned out any
Packard Motor Company vehicles since the plant was closed in 1958, and it's long been on the city's "To Do" list to force the plant's owners to raze the area. In fact, the city ordered the plant's leveling in April of last year.
According to
The Detroit News, that long-in-coming demolition day appears to be close at hand, as the facility's purported owner (there has been
much debate about who is actually responsible for the 40-acre complex), Dominic Cristini, says he plans to start the teardown process within a month and is working to obtain the necessary permits. According to the report, Cristini estimates it will take $6 million to tear down the
Packard Plant, but he believes that recovered scrap metal will be enough to pay for the dismantling. Cristini further states that his crew may try to save historically significant portions of the facility if possible. It isn't immediately clear what – if anything – Cristini plans to do with the land once the Packard Plant's remains have been cleared.
For an eerily beautiful slideshow of the Packard Plant, check out
Detroiturbex.com.
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