Hill Field, Engine Storage Warehouse, 5834 A Lane, Layton

Source document Quoted word for word from HAER UTAH,6-LAY.V,2W-. Not written, edited or summarised by this site.

Aircraft engines were completely overhauled and tested at Ogden Air Depot/Hill Field, and then stored in the Engine Storage Warehouse (Building This building provides particularly vivid images of the processes involved in the repair and maintenance of aircraft, a crucial component of Hill Field's overall mission to support Pacific and European theaters of military operation during World War II. In addition, it contributes to a deeper understanding of the early development of the U.S. Army Air Corps, a branch of the Army which eventually became the U.S. Air Force. Hill Field was one of only two air depots established in the United States during the tumultuous years immediately preceding World War II.

History: Aircraft engines were removed from planes in the Aircraft Repair Hangars (Building and brought to the Engine Repair Building (Building for disassembly and complete overhaul. Completed engines were tested in the Engine Test Cells (Buildings 267 and and then either reinstalled on planes in the Aircraft Repair Hangars or transferred to Building 273 for storage. Hill Field, Engine Storage Warehouse HAER No. UT-85-W Page 2 An overhead engine conveyor to take the engines from the test blocks to the Engine Storage Warehouse was considered in Operations Inspectors believed it would eliminate many of the hazards previously encountered in the manual transportation of newly overhauled and tested engines. The conveyor was never installed, though, according to Base real estate records.

General Description: Building 273 is a large, square, one-story, industrial structure with a flat roof. The building is constructed from wood frame over a concrete foundation. Exterior walls are covered with wood shingles and feature a continuous of wide double-hung windows along each facade. Most of the original windows are still in tact. They are fixed, eight-pane wooden sash windows with wood sills. The windows on the west wall, however, have been replaced with fixed plate glass windows. There are four roof ventilators made from wood, which cannot be seen from the ground. The eaves have a continuous metal capping. Workshops are located along the north wall and administrative spaces are located along the east wall. The rest of the interior space is an open, column- filled space.

The columns are located 20' by 50' on center. The room partitions align themselves to this structural grid. There have been minor modifications to the building since its completion. Most of the original wooden sash windows have been replaced with contemporary double-hung windows. In October of a mezzanine was built inside the warehouse. The interior has remained almost the same since Hill Field, Engine Storage Warehouse HAER No. UT-85-W Page 3 feli^-r-*j\ .: ? * * -" --- *&- >*-^^j^,at *$