- Michigan made aviation history during World War II at a factory in Ypsilanti Township that Henry Ford built
- Willow Run housed car production until General Motors closed it and filed for bankruptcy. Most of it was demolished
- Michigan entities bought the land to build the American Center for Mobility, which is experiencing financial pressures over a $35 million loan from the state
YPSILANTI TOWNSHIP — Michigan’s bragging rights as the arsenal of democracy started at Willow Run bomber plant, which churned out one B-24 “Liberator” bomber an hour and laid claim to employing the original Rosie the Riveter.
Ford Motor Co. built the bomber plant in Ypsilanti Township on the edge of Willow Run Airport, seemingly overnight transforming the former farm fields into a goliath. At the time, it was the world’s largest factory under a single roof and employed 42,500 people.
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