Haynes Auto Factory

The factory, which was constructed in 1916, served for roughly nine years as a main artery in the automobile enterprise of inventor Elwood Haynes, credited by some as the creator of the first gasoline-powered automobile.

With four floors, two of which were utilized for the storage of new materials, the factory provided the Haynes Automobile Co. with not only an assembly line for the production of new vehicles, but also a modern location for scientific experimentation, according to an April 1916 issue of the Haynes Pioneer.

Following the company's bankruptcy in 1925, however, Haynes' role as a reliable job provider in the community became non-existent. The building, following a stint of Chrysler ownership, has since stood as a relic of a time long passed and a reminder of what Kokomo once accomplished.

As Johnson stood roughly 30 yards from the building, witnessing as two excavators methodically tore through the nearly century-old structure, he reminisced about Kokomo's manufacturing past and expressed his desire that things had been different.

For a full listing of this article published in the Kokomo Tribune with permission to use click here:  Haynes Auto Factory Article