In 1994 the abandoned Republic Aviation Corporation plant was demolished.  It looked nothing like it did below, circa 1953.

Top photo from the collection of Guy LaMotta.

I feel very bad about it, like the place has been desecrated.  I spent a lot of my lifetime there, and we built all those historic places.  It should have been preserved, part of it anyway.  But there’s nothing we can do about it.

- Josephine Rachiele

I had a lot of friends who worked at that plant.  I wanted to play the taps as they were taking the building down, as a dedication to them.  I been watchin’ it as it came down.

- Theodore Padova