Today’s page from the 1951 Mississippi edition of Manufacturer’s Record highlights a building that still survives on Highway 80, across from Battlefield Park in Jackson, the former General Electric Lamp and Glass Works. According to the MDAH Historic Resources Database, the big industrial building was built in 1941 and designed by Jackson architect R.W. Naef.
Categories: Industrial, Jackson
Preservation in Mississippi 
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My grandfather retired from there. In the 80s GE had some sort of anniversary celebration and we got to tour the factory. I wish I had been older as most of it didn’t really make a lot of sense to me when I was 12 yo.
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G.E. had two glass furnaces. The locations are under the big U or something shaped roof vent things. One there on west end of building close to US 80 and the other was farther back off the highway. See picture. The furnace close to US 80 was for borosilicate glass which was used in flashbulbs, neon sign tubing, chemical lab glass apparatus, etc. The other furnace was for soda-lime glass which was used for fluorescent lighting. Of course, glass types could have been changed over the years. http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y109/cjs555/GE%20Glass%20Plant_zpstht2nwga.jpg
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Is this place of business in operation at the current location?
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The General Electric Building successfully housed the Jackson Enterprise Center, a small business incubator, for many years. The center closed abruptly in the first months of 2017; the owner evicted all the tenants without explanation. Although well-occupied, the owner had not invested in repairs for years causing roof leaks in places, but it was still in inhabitable condition. It would not stay that way. Source: Jackson Enterprise Center shutting doors for good, WLBT3, February 1, 2017.
Within a year, the building was a post-apocalyptic disaster. Metal thieves brazenly looted the building in broad daylight. They ripped off metal warehouse walls; they ripped out the metal window frames; they ripped out electrical wiring and, for good measure, burned off the plastic insulation on the premises. Jackson Police and the Fire Department were repeated called about the unfolding disaster, but the property owner refused to sign an affidavit to file charges or trespass the looters, tying the hands of law enforcement. Source: Metal thieves destroying Jackson Enterprise Center, WLBT3, March 23, 2018.
The General Electric Building burned in February 2022. The remnants were demolished after the fire. Source: Fire breaks out at old GE building in West Jackson, WAPT16, February 17, 2022.
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