Rock Island Arsenal

Located on the Mississippi River, on the Arsenal Island – also referred to as Rock Island, Rock Island Arsenal is a military base that covers almost 1000 acres. It is between Iowa and Davenport, in the northwestern part of Illinois. The island was initially set up as a place for multiple governmental operations at the beginning of the 19-th century. These days, it is the widest weapon manufacturer in the United States of America.

History

The history of this site dates back to 1816. The island was used by the government. It hosted Fort Armstrong, one of the multitude of military bases established after the second independence war from 1812 in order to ensure the defense of the United States of America. The fort only resisted for 20 years. By 1836, it was gone. Over the American Civil War, it hosted a huge prison to host the Confederate troops. The first prisoners got there in 1863. The building was still under construction. More than 12000 prisoners of war got there and only 41 of them managed to escape. The jails didn’t operate for too long, but just 2 years. By 1865, the latest prisoners of war were released. The local cemetery brings back some memories related to the escaping attempts. It includes almost 2000 Confederate and 125 Union graves.

Between the American Civil War and World War I, the site was maintained by the government and used in insignificant operations. Around 1880, the government observed the necessity of a weapon manufacturer and this is how the arsenal got established. During World War I, the new center managed to prepare 100 Liberty Mark VIII armored vehicles to be sent in war. Unfortunately for the plant, the war was over by the time the tanks went out, in 1920.

These days, Rock Island Arsenal is the one and only active foundry of the US Army. It manufactures equipments like small sized guns, mounts, artillery weapons, recoil mechanisms, simulators, launchers and even aircraft systems. The most important achievements of the depot include the M119 and M198 howitzers, not to mention about the mount for the M1A1 weapon.

The depot has been marked as a NHL (National Historic Landmark), among about 2000 other objects with a significant importance for the history of the United States of America. Aside from the Confederate cemetery, the site also hosts some “ancient” workshops dating since the 19-th century and built out of stone, a national cemetery, Davenport’s house and the place of the first bridge that was ever constructed over the Mississippi River.

Units

Just like many similar depots, Rock Island Arsenal doesn’t require too many individuals to be successfully operated. There are no permanent units hosted on site. Instead, the place only requires 250 military troops. About 6000 civilians are also employed for less important non-leading activities. A small part of the site is a census designated place and hosted 145 inhabitants in 2000. At the same time, the depot is among the largest single civilian employers around Illinois.