The Marietta Manufacturung Company

On a recent trip to Point Pleasant, I came across this abandoned manufacturing site. My husband and I were out intentionally exploring and looking for new places for me to photograph. Of the many trips I have taken to Pt. Pleasant, this is a location I have overlooked. I was unfamiliar with what this plant was even used for and did not notice the company name on anything in the area in which I took photos.

I have only, for the most part, visited places right in the main part of town, or along Rt. 2 and have never ventured much farther around the town to see what Pt. Pleasant may be hiding. As we drove up to this fenced in property, I jumped out and took several shots through the fence. We drove down the road that is adjacent to the fence line of the site until we reached a turn in the road at the Ohio River. It was obvious there had been a boat docking area attached to the site, I assumed the manufactured goods were likely loaded on boats to ship out or to receive supplies. There were also several rail lines running through the yard, with some trains parked on those tracks. I presume at least part of the property, the tracks, are still in use.


I do like to research the history of these old places, but I really didn't give this place much thought after I left. I pulled out my Images of America series book for Pt. Pleasant, searching for any information I could find on an old house I was interested in, but I came across some photos and information for the Marietta Manufacturing Company, boom there it was!

The Marietta Manufacturing company open up inside the city limits of Pt. Pleasant, West Virginia in 1917. Originally, it began as a stove manufacturing company for the steamboat industry, but due to the high demand of ships, it became a full-scale shipyard. This type of manufacturing was not new to Pt. Pleasant, but the MMC company greatly enhanced the existing industry, employing 3,000 people. Within its first decade of operations in Pt. Pleasant, MMC was one of the leading ship construction companies in the nation. MMC not only produced ships for the river industry, but also oceangoing ships for the military. Whenever a boat was launched from MMC, crowds would gather at the river to watch the newly build ships slide into the water.

The Marietta Manufacturing Company closed up shop in 1970, then it was purchased by Point Pleasant Marine and operated until 1984. From the looks of it, it has been sitting abandoned since its final closure. This is such a historic piece property, and no doubt was a huge part of Pt. Pleasant and the lives of people that once worked there.