Armour Meat Packing Plant Coming Down

Copyright St. Louis Patina -8250

On Saturday, probably in order to avoid interrupting traffic on nearby I-70 or the surrounding industrial areas, the first half of the Armour Meat Packing Plant, one of the coolest ruins I have ever had the opportunity to explore, was imploded in a giant cloud of dust.

Copyright St. Louis Patina -8252

I had been warned it was going to happen, but I didn’t know it was happening on Saturday, so I missed it. Ever since IDoT had published a map showing a new road going right through it, I was worried it was on borrowed time.

Copyright St. Louis Patina -8254

Well, technically only the refrigeration plant was destroyed on Saturday. The slaughterhouse was still standing when I went by that evening.

Copyright St. Louis Patina -8255

I took hundreds of pictures over the visits where the owners allowed me and others escorted by the guard to visit the property. It was stupendous, and I realize I still have some photos that I haven’t published yet.

Copyright St. Louis Patina -8256

Warning: To those urban explorers out there, under no circumstance should you visit the site in this state; there were hundreds of feet of tunnels under the complex, and I have no idea what has happened to their stability after the explosion-induced implosion on Saturday. Plus, it’s trespassing anyway.

Copyright St. Louis Patina -8259

9 Comments Add yours

  1. Heather says:

    This place was such a beauty, sad to see it go. There was equipment that seemed museum worthy to me. Hopefully there were things salvaged.

    1. Chris Naffziger says:

      Unfortunately, rumor is that it was all sold for scrap.

      1. Tdd says:

        That’s foolish of true. The large single cylinder engine was worth quite a bit of money

        1. Chris Naffziger says:

          Agreed.

  2. Josh Froese says:

    Video of the Implosion can be seen on my youtube page.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_-XtxB28tI
    There are also other videos from the day before the implosion of the inside with more to come.

    1. Chris Naffziger says:

      Thanks, Josh! I actually have your video hotlinked already up at the top. Do you know when they’re going to demolish the other half?

  3. Terry Garrett says:

    Well, i can happily say that i did get to visit it at least once before it came down. I had hoped to see it again. I’ll miss seeing that old smokestack from I-64 when i go visit my grandparents.

  4. K says:

    A beautiful wild great horned owl let my friend and I pet it up in the top of one of the buildings. It was a surreal and amazing experience and place.

    1. Tom Maher - Kirkwood says:

      WOW! I am jealous!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.