Holston Army Ammunition Plant, Military ammunition production facility in Kingsport, Tennessee, United States.
Holston Army Ammunition Plant is a military explosives and ammunition manufacturing site in Kingsport, Tennessee, made up of hundreds of buildings across a large area of land. The site includes chemical processing facilities and storage structures built specifically to handle explosive materials.
The site was built by Tennessee Eastman in 1942 under the name Holston Ordnance Works to produce explosives during World War II. After a brief pause, production restarted in 1949 to meet Cold War defense needs.
The plant has shaped the economic identity of the region for decades, providing employment for generations of Tennessee residents. It reflects the intertwining of military production needs with the area's industrial heritage.
The plant is operated by BAE Systems and is not open to the public, as strict security measures apply throughout the site. Anyone visiting the Kingsport area should respect the posted boundaries and avoid approaching the perimeter.
The plant produces an explosive called RDX, which is found in nearly every modern American weapons system. Very few production sites anywhere in the world are capable of making it at this scale.
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