Peters Cartridge Company

Peters Cartridge Company
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Peters Cartridge Company
Location:	1915 Grandin Rd., Kings Mills, Ohio
Coordinates:	39°21′1″N 84°14′33″W
Area:	14.2 acres (5.7 ha)
Built:	1916
Architect:	Schilling VanLeyer & Keough
Architectural style:	Prairie Style
Governing body:	Private
NRHP Reference#:	85003115
Added to NRHP:	October 10, 1985

The Peters Cartridge Company was a company in Kings Mills, Ohio that specialized in gunpowder and ammunition production. Its historic buildings, built in 1916 at 1915 Grandin Road, were added to the National Register of Historic Places on October 10, 1985.

History

19th century

The Peters Cartridge Company was founded at 1915 Grandin Road, along the banks of the Little Miami River near Kings Mills. It began operations prior to 1900.^{[citation needed]}

During the years that Peters Cartridge was in business, there were several generations of buildings. Some of the previous buildings were mostly temporary wooden structures. Some concrete foundations of these buildings still stand covered with moss along the Little Miami Bike Trail.^{[citation needed]}

The Peters Factory gained national attention and headlines due to an explosion on July 15, 1890. At 3:50p.m., a deafening blast could be heard for 6 miles around the Kings Mills/Mason area, due to a train car colliding with two load cars packed with 800 kegs of gun powder at the site. Along with thousands of cartridges igniting, and a total amount of 1,600 kegs exploding in chain reaction, 11 employees were instantly killed, with several others later dying in emergency care.^{[citation needed]}

Much of the original building was destroyed, and was rebuilt in later years. Because of this, and the environment and atmosphere of the location and buildings, many urban legends associated with paranormal phenomenon and ghostly hauntings have been alleged to occur on the site throughout the years.^{[citation needed]}

20th century

World War I brought enormous growth to Peters Cartridge. In the 1930s during the Depression, Peters sold out to Remington, its competitor. World War II started off with great success for the Cartridge Company but in the middle of the war, the Peters plant in Kings Mills was shut down due to overproduction in favor of Remington's East Coast plants. Some of the buildings and shot tower still remain today, some buildings in use and others vacant.^{[citation needed]}

21st century

The Peters Factory is currently owned by Kings Mills Commerce Park. At one time, an artist named Greg Storer operated an art studio in the building, but he has since vacated. Several of the buildings are rented by small businesses, hobbyists, and theatrical group, with the remaining few empty buildings put to use by the Hamilton Township police department for SWAT training. The empty section is closed to the public due to safety risks. In December 2002, Criterion Technologies rented the facility as a studio to film Ghost Factory.^{[citation needed]}

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Warren County, Ohio

Further reading

• Thomas D. Schiffer. Peters & King: The Birth & Evolution of the Peters Cartridge Co. & the King Powder Co. Iola, Wisconsin: Krause Publications, 2002. ISBN 0-87349-363-X

External links

• EPA statement overview
• Peters Cartridge Company at Abandoned
• Peters Cartridge Company at Forgotten Ohio

• http://www.ghostplace.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=32988&SearchTerms=swinging,chains - audio taped and transcribed May 23, 1980 - Roy Gruber of Fosters Crossing ghost story