Towns and Nature: Detroit, MI: 1910 Dodge Main Plant

Thursday, November 16, 2023

Detroit, MI: 1910 Dodge Main Plant

(Satellite, GM totally rebuilt the area to create their Hamtramck Assembly Center.)

Detroit Historical Society posted
On November 14, 1914, John and Horace Dodge built the first Dodge automobile - the four-cylinder Dodge Model 30 - at their production facility in Hamtramck. This sketch shows "Dodge Main" as it looked upon completion in 1914.
Reinis Sipols: Last cars built there were the Dodge Aspen and Plymouth Volare. Closed 1979-80. Torn down when the property was included in the General Motors Poletown Assembly Plant Project.
Jerry Stewart: My Dodge Dart was built there. Still have it.
Mike Harnois: Believe the Charger was built there?
Rick Reid: Mike Harnois Challenger and Barracuda in the 70’s. Also, the Dart, Scamp, and a few others.
[Some comments indicate that it stopped production in Jan 1980. It was then torn down, along with the Poletown Neighborhood, to make room for the GM Poletown Assembly Plant.]

JP Joans commented on the above post

Ronald Plesz posted
A long time ago. This is the Dodge Brothers plant built in 1910 that built parts for Henry Ford's Model T, Horace Dodge's bicycle and the the first Dodge Car. This was ground zero for the total Dodge production for over 60 years til the Plymouth Valiant came out and the compact Dodge Dart was introduced. In 64 the The V1 Barracuda was made here and in the summer of 1969, The E Body Plymouth and New Dodge Challenger.the Chrysler Hamtramck Assembly Plant made the E Barracuda/ Challenger till 1974. In 1975, The Plymouth Volare/ Dodge Aspen became the last vehicles to be made. Hamtramck Assembly Plant was closed in 1980 and demolished. Now GM rebuilt a new plant and today is the GM Zero plant to build electric vehicles.
Glenn Zielinski: This is the Ford Rouge Plant in Dearborn. The eight smoke stacks is the Rouge power house. In the background is one of the blast furnaces. In the middle right is the pedestrian overpass crossing Miller Rd., site of the famous "Battle of the Overpass." [I leave the photo here because the comments pertain to the Dodge Main Plant.]
John Shoe: After Dodge Main was demoed, G.M. built a 'B.O.C.' plant for the then-new 1986 Riviera, Toronado, and Eldorado.
Rick Whitford: I believe the dodge brothers used to build transmissions for ford. Denis Welden: Rick Whitford they buitl the whole drivetrain for ford. Ronald Plesz: Rick Whitford They built parts for Ransom E Olds when his plant was ind Detroit. Horace Dodge made Bicycles in the plant that featured a sealed bearing, the Dodge Bros, built the parts needed to make the Model T and were on the board of directors of Ford Motor Company til Henry Ford screwed them out of dividends. They made their own car. Jeffrey Hart: Plant was very expensive to operate due to the assembly being on multiple floors, instead of spread out along one long building. For many years, with the exception of rubber, wiring, cloth, switches and light bulbs, every single part on cars it produced was made all in house, down to nuts and bolts. Jack Davis shared

Since Dodge produced cars here until Jan 1980, Dodge did a major rebuild of the plant between 1934 and 1940.