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Detroit Wax Paper Company During World War Two
River Rouge, MI
1919-1945 as Detroit Wax Paper Company
1945-Current as Fabricon Products
This page added 3-22-2024.
The Detroit Wax Paper Company is an
interesting name for a company that produced $8,668,000 worth of
electrical generator sets for Army Ordnance, the Army Signal Corps, and
the USAAF. Its volume in generator sets was 96.5% of a total of
$8,979,000 major contracts during World War Two. This is an
extraordinary example of an American company producing a product totally
different from what it made before and after the war.
The company's original product in 1919 was wax
paper bread wrappers for bakeries. Today the company still makes a
line of packaging products for various applications. But, for
three years during World War Two it manufactured electric generators.
I have researched several other companies that converted from civilian
products to electrical generators during World War Two. However,
in those cases the companies had previously manufactured some sort of
hard goods. In this case, the Detroit Wax Paper Company made the
largest technological jump I have researched, by moving from bread
wrappers to electric generators.
In November 1944 the Detroit Wax Paper Company changed its name to
Fabricon Products to better reflect its current product line. In
August 1954 it was purchased by the
Eagle-Pitcher Company. At that time, the company had a product
line of fiber auto products, waxed paper, cellophane bread and candy
wrappers, and plastic products.
The company still exists as Fabricon Products,
in the same main plant on West Pleasant Street in River Rouge, MI.
Detroit Wax Paper Company World War Two
Products:
Table 1 - Detroit Wax Paper Company's
Major World War Two Contracts
The information below
comes from the "Alphabetical Listing of Major War Supply
Contracts, June 1940 through September 1945." This was
published by the Civilian Production Administration, Industrial
Statistics Division. |
|
Product - Customer |
Contract Amount |
Contract Awarded
Date |
Completion
Date |
| Generator Units -
Army Ordnance |
$894,000 |
5-1942 |
11-1943 |
| Generator Units -
USAAF |
$1,983,000 |
10-1942 |
11-1942 |
| Generator Sets -
USAAF |
$479,000 |
12-1942 |
2-1943 |
| Generator Sets -
USAAF |
$54,000 |
1-1943 |
3-1943 |
| Elec Generator
Sets - USAAF |
$54,000 |
6-1943 |
8-1943 |
| Power Units -
Army Signal Corps |
$109,000 |
6-1943 |
11-1943 |
| Elec Generator
Sets - USAAF |
$65,000 |
8-1943 |
2-1944 |
| Power Plants -
USAAF |
$183,000 |
10-1943 |
4-1944 |
| Electric Power
Plants - USAAF |
$2,314,000 |
12-1943 |
12-1943 |
| Electric Power
Plants - USAAF |
$859,000 |
11-1944 |
5-1945 |
| Power Unit Parts
- Army Signal Corps |
$1,509,000 |
3-1945 |
9-1945 |
| Ord Wrapping Matl
- US Treasury |
$126,000 |
4-1945 |
6-1945 |
| Greaseproof Paper
- Army Ordnance |
$185,000 |
6-1945 |
7-1945 |
| Electric Power
Plants - USAAF |
$165,000 |
6-1945 |
1-1946 |
| Total |
$8,979,000 |
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One of the generator sets the Detroit Wax
Paper Company produced was the Type B-6A Portable Power Plant for the
USAAF.
The manual specifically notes that this type
of generator is the product of the Detroit Wax Paper Company, River
Rouge, MI.
The engine was provided by Continental Motors
of Muskegon, MI and the 120/240VAC alternator came from Hobart in Troy,
OH.
The Plant: The
Detroit Wax Paper Company and Fabricon Products, Inc. have occupied the
same factory at 1721 West Pleasant Street in River Rouge, MI for over
100 years.
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