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Posted in Wisconsin Attractions April 02, 2017 by Sophia

Hundreds Of People Used To Work At This Decaying Coffin Factory In Wisconsin

This abandoned factory in the midwest was once a bustling hive of activity. Today, its quietly decaying under the effects of years of cold Wisconsin winters. Photographers Ken Fager and Dan Turner captured these eerily beautiful photographs of the abandoned furniture plant.

Buckstaff Furniture in Oshkosh Wisconsin was founded in 1850.

It produced home furniture, but was widely known as a casket and coffin company as well.

Early in its history, fire threatened to destroy the growing company.

In 1886 and 1891, a pair of fires almost brought the Buckstaff plant to ruin. Luckily, the woodworking floors were saved and work could continue.

The factory officially closed in 2011 after 161 years of business.

The factory closed so suddenly that the last order was abandoned mid-production.

This means that materials and tools are still exactly where they would have been on a normal day of work.

Production targets and plans for February 17 still hang on the walls.

Patterns for the coffins are still neatly filed away on the shelves.

Even though the plant has been abandoned for years, the smell of cedar and wood shavings is still in the air.

Well-worn paths between stations are cut into the floorboards from a century of workers' feet.

Buckstaff's biggest order came from the US Pentagon in 1951. They supplied the furniture throughout the Pentagon restaurant.

The last Buckstaff to run the company retired in 2007 after selling the enterprise to local businessman Martin Cowie.

Profits took a nosedive after the sale, and the town eventually cut the utilities to the Buckstaff Company in 2011.

After a century and a half of industry, Buckstaff Furniture quietly passed into memory.

Demolition of the Buckstaff plant was slated to begin in September 2016. The historic building was still in the midst of demolition as of February 2017.

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Sophia

Massachusetts native. Freelance writer and strawberry eater.