HEART OF LOUISIANA: Ford Assembly Plant

ARABI, La. (WAFB) – The building is massive, a quarter-of-a-million square feet under roof, tucked away on 25 acres of land along the Mississippi river in Arabi, Louisiana. From the second floor of the century-old building, you get a stunning view of the New Orleans skyline upriver. History was being manufactured here in the 1920s. Model T Fords that revolutionized America were being built at this facility. The assembly lines were mass producing cars that people could afford.

“Automobiles were being driven from town to town. They had to build roadways. They needed motels for those who were going on longer trips. There were places for people to eat,” said Sidney Torres III.

Torres, a Saint Bernard Parish attorney, owns the old Ford building. It’s one of the regional production plants that Henry Ford built across America. He figured it was easier to ship parts than finished Model T’s. So car production moved out of Detroit to assembly plants like this one in Arabi. I wonder as you walk through here, if you ever imagine what it was like back in the 1920s when they were building thousands of Model T’s right here.

“I do,” Torres said, “and it’s fascinating because it’s a trip back in history. Henry Ford probably was standing right here at some point in time. There may have been 400 people who were actually working, assembling the vehicles. There’s just this feeling that the energy is still there.”

The Arabi location was strategic. It was located near a major city. It had access to the Mississippi River and port for shipping cars to South America. And it was located alongside rail lines. The massive building was designed by famed industrial architect Albert Kahn, who helped shape the skyline of Detroit. You can still see signs of the state-of-the-art car production facility. Torres couldn’t resist finding one of the old Model T Fords that still runs after more than 100 years.

“And it’s a little bit complicated. There’s three pedals down there and none of them do what you think they will do,” said Torres.

Do you have any idea if this was actually built here in Arabi?

“I could not trace it back to this actual facility, but it very well could have been,” Torres said.

Torres is planning a future for this old assembly plant that will feature 21st century businesses from film and interactive media to esports and a multi-purpose event center.

“There‘s just something about this space that brings you back in time and it also causes you to have the visions for the future to say, wow, this could really be something special,” said Torres.

This massive building was clearly something special when it opened here in 1923 and now it has a chance at a new type of production in its future.

More information on the old Arabi Ford plant and other local features can be found on Heart of Louisiana’s website.

Click here to report a typo. Please include the headline.

Click here to subscribe to our WAFB 9 News daily digest and breaking news alerts delivered straight to your email inbox.

Copyright 2024 WAFB. All rights reserved.