Hawthorne Naval Ammunition Depot, Carpenter Shop, U.S. Highway 95, Hawthorne (HABS NEV,11-HAWT,2C-)

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The Carpenter Shop, Building No. was built in December after the tremendous expansion of the Depot during the World War II period. The Hawthorne Naval Ammunition Depot (NAD) is a nationally significant military district. It was built for state-of-the-art ammunition storage in the late (criterion C); it is by and far the largest depot of its kind known in the world with magazines and storehouses, 212 miles of railroad track, 418 miles of blacktop, and 232 square miles of land (criterion C); and it is significant for its role in World War II. Producing a vast amount of ordnance, it was THE Naval Ammunition Depot for the Pacific Theater during World War II.

Operations have included: production of propellant charges, projectiles, bombs and rockets; demilitarization of all types of munitions; and storage of national stock piles of munitions. Since the until the facility was turned over to the Army in Hawthorne'NAD was the country's largest producer of Navv mines and depth charges. The Depot is also significant for the role it plaved in the military history of the State of Nevada. It represents 50 plus years of federal military operation in Nevada. The Hawthorne NAD is the oldest twentieth century U. S. military reservation in Nevada. It has been in continuous active operational status since its commissioning in (criterion A). The Depot is the best collection of early twentieth century military, cultural resources in Nevada (criterion C).

The Hawthorne NAD represents the largest industrial activity in the State of Nevada during World War II, as well as during the Korean and Vietnam conflicts. The operation has been the local area's major employer and has represented relative economic stability to the town of Hawthorne since its commissioning. The Depot significantly changed the fortunes of the town of Hawthorne. Over 90% of the buildings within the plus acres of the Hawthorne NAD date from World War II or before. The district as a whole and great majority of the individual buildings within it retain integrity of design, setting, materials, workmanship, feeling, and association.

Hawthorne Naval Ammunition Depot

Carpenter Shop No. HABS No. page 2 Description: The Carpenter Shop, Building No. is 24' by rectangular-in-plan, one story with no visible foundation. The exterior siding is corrugated asbestos sheets. The windows are wood framed casements of nine lights Many of the windows are board ^"T The building has vertical board wooden doorc. ^mgle and double leaf. A low pitched, side facing, gable roof of corrugated asbestos covers the building. A porch with a wooden deck on the ground and a shed roof supported by plain posts runs along a portion of the southern elevation. The interior of the building is primarily unfinished with exposed stud walls and roof trusses; some interior walls are finished with 10" horizontal wood siding. The floor is wooden planks.

A small oifice is the onlv interior division in the building. The building is wired for eiectricitv. Historv: The Hawthorne NAD was created by an Act of Congress following the destruction of the Navy's East Coast main ammunition facility in In million were allotted for the development of the Naval Ammunition Depot at Hawthorne. Starting in plans were laid to increase the size of the depot. In the expansion began in earnest and the depot began producing ammunition and shipping it to classified locations. With the bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 7, Hawthorne MAD took on new importance; the Hawthorne depot was the principal west coast naval ammunition plant.

Over construction workers increased the size of the depot tenfold during World War II and workers produced a tremendous amount of ammunition. Bombs, mines, and rockets were filled and assembled at Hawthorne NAD. Mines and rockets were also being developed and tested here. The Hawthorne Depot continued to plav an important role in the Navv's chain of producing, storing, and destroying munitions after World War II. After YV.W.II the depot was responsible for the destruction of thousands of tons of munitions. During the Korean and Vietnam conflicts the Hawthorne NAD provided back-up storage of conventional ammunition and mines for the entire Pacific theater.

In under directive of the Department of Defense, Hawthorne Naval Ammunition Depot was transferred to the Armv and became the Hawthorne Armv Ammunition Plant.

Source document Quoted word for word from HABS NEV,11-HAWT,2C-. Not written, edited or summarised by this site.

Ana B. Koval, Rainshadow Associates, Hillview Road, Berkeley, CA October 1,

Hawthorne Naval Ammunition Depot

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