Since Burns Headquarters where in Parkway Center West they had the security for the complex of 9 buildings and there where 2 posts the 1st post you walked every 2 hours and patrolled all the buildings at night to make sure doors locked lights off no water running heat was on when it was cold etc. the complex has grown considerably since then . It was built on a land fill site and there was a coal mine fire underneath when they finally got that out they where able to expand including a now closed mall. The second post was to walk around Building 7# which had a Disco named Giraffe . Remember this was the 70's .
It was always interesting the characters you ran into going to and from the disco while I was there we had no incidents other than couple drunks who you made sure you took there keys and called them a cab or police if they got rowdy . It was a great assignment till they lost the contract to Pinkerton . One snowy evening when I called for assignment they asked could I cover PAB in the North side I said sure but had no way to get there since I use buses and with snow they where running very late if at all when I got to Burns office that evening . No problem the dispatcher said and a supervisor picked me up and dropped me at the plant which made very large boxs of anealed steel used to seal products.
A big old block long steel building right next to a casket manufacture along the river Which the supervisor told me a story about how a supervisor got shot one night by a guard thinking he would be funny hiding in one of the coffins well you guessed it he made his move to be funny and got shot, also at one time they used the National Casket Company's big long basement to teach guards to use shotguns when they where allowed to carry them we where strictly unarmed.Great talk about creepy old buildings . So I put on couple extra lights so I could find my way around this shit pit of a building pre OSHA days which had rats and mice from the river and shook and made all kinds of noise from river breezes and railroad next to it the roof leaking and danger every where with open pits and shaky wiring .
They even had a company cat to help take care of the mice and when I worked any of these old places it was good to know they where there as they usually sat in foreman's office only place there was a working phone as was custom they out phones on night service and it was only one in plant that worked and if something was wrong they would perk up to alert us. If they brought you a dead mouse they had a box of treats and you would give it one. the plant also had an extremely loud door buzzer which scared the shit out of you when the plant was quiet and the first worker showed up for his shift to be let in.I only worked there 2 evenings and first evening I did not get dinner before I worked so no problem most plants had vending machines with sandwiches not this shit hole just old coin machines and not much selection and all I had was $3.00 in bills after that I always made sure I had change in my carry bag and some crackers or pop tarts with me. I could have been a jag off and left the plant and walked up street leaving the shit pit unguarded as many guards did between when you punched in on your Detex tour clock which weighed abut 5 pounds you carried and went from station to station and turned the key in your clock which recorded when you did tours ,and half the time the clocks never worked right .
PAB was acquired in the in 90's and the old North side plant closed and moved to a modern faculty the National Casket Company was closed has become upscale office spaces and PAB sits empty of machines and now a homeless hangout and they catch the place on fire several times each winter trying to stay warm building fires in the old plant.They have finally knocked it down
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| Old national casket on left Old Plant I guarded sat on right all thats left is the office |
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