Plymouth Township is now officially an American World War II Heritage City.
Members of the township Historic District Commission nominated the Phoenix Mill, originally a dam and grist mill, which was converted to a manufacturing operation during World War II. Women employees at the facility produced electrical parts for B-24 Liberator aircraft. The building is currently operated as an event planning space.
Only eight communities were named for the Heritage City designation by the National Park Service this year. The program was created to honor the late Sen. John Dingell as part of more than 100 bills introduced to commemorate him as the longest-serving member of congress from Michigan. The program currently includes 38 states and one U.S. territory as World War II heritage cities. Each state is limited to only one location for the prestigious historic designation, according to the National Parks website.
Female employees at the mill plant built electrical harnesses used for assembly at the Willow Run plant for B-24 bomber planes along with electrical wiring for the M7 machine gun. Called “Rosies” after the iconic Rosie the Riveter wartime poster, the women had to be unmarried or widowed as a condition of employment. They were paid at the same rate as men working in other plants converted by Henry Ford to produce military supplies during the war.
The Phoenix Mill site was one of several village industries in Southeast Michigan and Canada owned by Ford. The building, with architectural work by Albert Kahn & Associates, opened in 1922.
“The Rosies played an integral role in the United States’s war efforts and their patriotism is a critical aspect of the American Story in World War II,” said U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Ann Arbor, in a letter supporting the Plymouth Township bid for the designation. American World War II Heritage Cities are featured on the National Park Service website.
