My Memories of Kinsey Distilling

[dave ziegler]

When I was at Ludys house this week He showed me a old Kinsey Pay Ledger from when He worked there after Mr Kinsey went Bankrupt A friend od Ludys saved this and years later gave it to him if you look on the two Pages you can see Harold Ludolph on the pages and his pay for that week in 1937. If I get there again soon I will get some better shots as I went out today and bought a higher end Digital camera and I am going to Kinsey tomorrow to test it. I got a Nikon P-80 Coolpicx Zoom Digital 10.1 Pixels so it should give me better shots then my old Nikon Digital with 5.1 Pixels!
Picture One Jan 21 1937 the second name down is Ludy and his pay for that week in 1937 was $12.00
Picture two is not good so I will try again later. but at least you can read one. This was Mr Kinsey's Pay book from all those years ago.
Dave Z
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Kinsey The Unhurried Whiskey

[dave ziegler]

I went to Kinsey today with my New Nikon Digital Zoom Camera and got almost 200 pictures which I will be posting here, the Bottle house and on the Fire Observation Tower Threads. I found something back it the woods I had completly forgotten was there if you look on the 1980 Aerial brosure of the Plant Looking to the back there seems to be a big tank out in the woods well there was back then. today Because of People taking pipes and as they did cutting a path through the woods I found the place way at the back where The tanks must have been back then in a fenced in area but they are gone now but the room and the Giant Cummins Engine to power the Pumps is still there I climbed over the wall and went into the room. I was amazed either this was built after I left or I just Plain forgot it. Most likely Forgot it. This is at the very end as you go toward the steer Pens you turn left and it runs along the game lands line. It is a giant cement pad big as a tennis court fenced in on a wall that goes all around it.

Where The Tanks or Tank went I will never know but all that remains is the small room like a bunker with heating tubes with the Cummins Engine and the wall and fence and pipes going out into the fenced cement floor area.

It is hard to believe that they went to all this to make sure to prevent Fires!
I will be posting all week here and on the fire thread I have at least 160 pictures yet everything from the Old Bottle House to the 1966 Bottle house which I was in today and will post those in the Bottle House thread.

One more thing the building had heat elements in it, to have this building Heated ment they ran Heating pipes all the way to it more then a mile, maybe mile and a half or more. There were heat pipes running along the field till this summer when the guys that do stuff there for the guy that owns the place cut them up, pipng heat down there all the way from the front to heat the room for safety pretty Cool. On one of my threads way back I had pictures of the very pipes going there yet could not see the fire saftey Bunker or walled in area do to heavy tree and weed growth that summr day. The second to last picture is looking back at the Plant and you can just see the top of Building T and building #38 in the distance that is how far out this is, then a fire Hydrent going back toward the plant on the last picture.

I also got some great shots of the small room Dickie worked on the trucks at, now that the weeds have died down. And I brought home the Old Light shade from his light in there as it was laying there fallen down and I have a picture of it too!
Dave Z
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It Seems All The Nicest People Drink Old Hickory
America's Most magnificent Bourbon
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[lohssanami]

Dave,

I've enjoyed reading all of your accounts on Kinsey. After looking at all of your pictures, I used Google Earth to find where Kinsey is, and I've attached some screenshots from the aerial view.

I can even see where you were most likely standing for some of these outside shots.

If you haven't used Google Earth, you might be able to use it now to plot different areas you have photographed, and maybe it will spur new adventures.

Thanks for sharing everything, and I look forward to more entries.

[dave ziegler]

Dave,

I've enjoyed reading all of your accounts on Kinsey. After looking at all of your pictures, I used Google Earth to find where Kinsey is, and I've attached some screenshots from the aerial view.

I can even see where you were most likely standing for some of these outside shots.

If you haven't used Google Earth, you might be able to use it now to plot different areas you have photographed, and maybe it will spur new adventures.

Thanks for sharing everything, and I look forward to more entries.

Great aerial shots thanks lohssanami! Thanks so much! I spoke to an engineer at work today and showed him the Pictures of this spot I found and he said it was the Main Pump station to bring water from down at the river to the Back water tower. That is why it is so hard to get into as They only went there when the tank needed to be filled up all the way and the Fireman Cal Robers would have done that. They also had a inlet on the river at the front and it is my thinking that they filled the front water tower by way of the Fire house. But this one is the biggest one in the plant and may well have done all the water tanks. Sure was alot of miles of Pipe it turned at the Scale House and traveled down to the Back tank.
Dave Z
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Kinsey The Unhurried Whiskey
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[dave ziegler]

Dave,

I've enjoyed reading all of your accounts on Kinsey. After looking at all of your pictures, I used Google Earth to find where Kinsey is, and I've attached some screenshots from the aerial view.

I can even see where you were most likely standing for some of these outside shots.

If you haven't used Google Earth, you might be able to use it now to plot different areas you have photographed, and maybe it will spur new adventures.

Thanks for sharing everything, and I look forward to more entries.

Just a quick note for those that do not know the biggest building in the aerial Pictures 2 & 3 is the 1966 Bottling House even in a aerial Picture it is giant in size. In its day it was a power House for Bottling Whiskies and Gin's and every type of Spirit! When it was operating it was amazing to walk in there and see so many people around 450 + busy doing stuff and so much stuff coming off the Lines!
Dave Z
________________________________________
It Seems All The Nicest People Drink Old Hickory
America's Most Magnificent Bourbon
__________________________________________

[dave ziegler]

Here are some more Pictures starting with a couple from the Government Building O and then the rest walking toward the front of the Plant. The Next set I will put up will be the old Buildings out front I will put some of those shots here tomorrow.
Pictures are
1. O Government Building main staircase walking into the Plant from out back.
2. O Building Lunch and Break room & 2. A is Water Distilling room at Building O
3. Looking down at the warehouse going front from O building
4. Looking Toward the Back of the Plant from O Building
5. Shot of the back side of O Building
6. Great Shot walking down the steps on the bank from O building of the Complete 1966 Bottling House, now that winter has come and the weeds are dying This shot really shows how long this building is!
7. Incoming Whiskey Tanks at far side of Bottling house
8. Front Water Tower
9. Old 1958 Ford sitting abandon under the graffiti it says Continental Distilling Corp Linfield Pa!
10 Warehouse L
11. 1958 Ford sitting
12. Stainless tank sitting on its side
13. Front Water tower
14. Bottling House Power room next to Bottling house mantaince across from Case Warehousing inside.
15. Water Tower in front Looking from beside old Warehouse H
Hope these Pictures are enjoyable for the Most part except when the Sky Darkened they turned out pretty Good with my New Nikon, I will Post more tomorrow!
Dave Z
__________________________________________
It seems All The Nicest People Drink Old Hickory
America's Most Magnificent Bourbon
__________________________________________

[dave ziegler]

Just a quick Note I just got off the Phone with Ludy and He told me the 1966 Bottling House was as long as two Football fields or around = 600 Feet Long. He was thinking about it as I told him how very Big it is and I had been in it again and He said he was pretty Sure that was how long it was across the front from one end to another. As the other warehouses were it was totally Explosion proof and He worked in it Many years from about when it opened in late 1965 till Fall 1980 in mantaince.
Dave Z
______________________________________
Kinsey The Unhurried Whiskey
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[Jono]

Time to restore that 58 Ford!

[dave ziegler]

Here some good pictures taken Sunday at the front of the Plant!
Pictures are
1.Front of 1966 Bottling house
2. Last Grain Building before grain went to the #12 Still
3. & 4. Old Plant Mantaince Barn
5. Old Grain Drying Building Where Charlie Kept his Buggy
6. Looking at the Old Kinsey Bottling House roof now having fallen down and knocked the Wall down too
7.Kinsey #10 Rye Barn

Note Picture 10 is looking out from the Back of Dickie Peifers shop Picture 12 is the back door out it goes between the Old Warehouse A wall and the front door there is into old Warehouse A built in 1892.

8,9,10,11,12 These are Pictures of the Shop where Dickie Kept all the trucks and cars running He even put Motors in them here! It is a space Between the old Kinsey A&B Warehouses and the #10 Rye Building. I have a good many Pictures yet of the #10 Barn and Maitaince Barn and the Old Kinsey Bottling House which i will Post tomorrow here!
Dave Z
________________________________________
Kinsey The Unhurried Whiskey
Join The Swing To Kinsey
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[Jono]

Dave, you must be quite happy with the new camera! Nice shots...I like the guardian fire extinguisher standing at attention.

Were the old buildings left to fall down while the plant was operating in the new facilities? Most of them appear too far gone to rehab...those would have been the ones to save for a future distillery tour.