Nebraska's hidden WWll Story
The story of the Cornhusker Ordnance Plant near Grand Island, Nebraska.
Back in 1942, life in central Nebraska was quiet. Just farms, families, and open land as far as you could see. Then everything changed almost overnight.
That February, Senator George Norris announced the government had picked a spot northwest of Grand Island for a new military ordnance plant. It was huge. About 12,800 acres, close to 20 square miles, stretching four miles east to west and five miles north to south through Center and Harrison Townships.
On March 25, 1942, the government filed papers in court to take over 92 farms. Families got 30 days to move out. Barns and sheds were kept for tool buildings and machine shops, but homes had to go. People could move their houses if they got permission, but that wasn’t easy.
A lot of families had to sell everything they owned. Cattle, equipment, even the family furniture. One farmer joked in heartbreak, calling his sale a “Hit by a Bomb Plant” farm sale.
Construction started fast. In just months, the Cornhusker Ordnance Plant went from cornfields to a fenced, high-security factory city. It had its own power, roads, rail lines, fire department, and hundreds of buildings.
Over 4,200 Nebraskans worked there. Together they made more than 22 million bombs, shells, and explosive parts for World War II. Some were small 90-pound fragmentation bombs. Others were massive 2,000-pound demolition bombs. The very first bomb came off the line on November 11, 1942.
Not everything was victory and pride though. In May of 1945, an explosion in Building 10 killed nine workers and injured several more. There’s a memorial for them today near the old site.
When the war ended, the plant shut down for a while, then started up again during the Korean and Vietnam wars. Years later, the land was found to be contaminated from all the explosive waste. It’s now an EPA Superfund site, still being cleaned up and monitored.
Most of the land is quiet again. Some areas are farmed. Some are fenced off for safety. A few old concrete pads and roads are still there if you know where to look.
The Hall County Historical Society and History Nebraska put up markers to honor the families who were forced to leave their homes in 1942. Their sacrifice helped power America’s victory.
If you ever drive northwest of Grand Island, picture it. A sea of cornfields turned into one of the busiest bomb plants in the country. Ordinary Nebraskans working day and night, building the weapons that helped win a world war.