On at least three separate occasions, there have been attempts in the area to build industrial complexes that would process coal into Synthetic Fuel for combustion in vehicles.

They began about 30 years apart, starting in 1948. So, if the trend continues, the next offer should appear sometime in 2037 or so. But this seems unlikely.

On January 29, 1948, The Gleaner ran a lengthy interview with U.S. Representative Gerald W. Landis of Indiana, who said he thought building a federally funded synthetic fuel Plant in Henderson County was a great idea.

In 1944-45, the Acting Chief of the Synthetic Fuels Division, which was part of the US Bureau of Mines, led research in the Tri-State. He had several meetings with city commissioner Robert Posey.

More:Uncivilized controversy marked the civil service controversy of 1948.

“They spent a lot of time” in Henderson County, Landis said. “They spent too much time in Henderson to give up all their finds.” He said the research team thought the locations in Western Kentucky and Southern Indiana were “luxury” and noted that the idea at the time was to convert the ammonia plant – an Ohio River munitions plant – into a for the production of synthetic fuels.

Gleaner on January 30 published an Associated Press article citing Mining Director James Boyd, who said the synthetic oil and gas industry would require the construction of 75 to 100 plants across the country at a cost of about $9 billion. The Secretary of the Interior, Boyd’s boss, recently recommended that Congress spend that amount over five to ten years.

Gleaner’s final report on that first synthetic fuel encounter appeared on March 12, 1948. A story written by Jack Hudjons states that a $400 million bill has been introduced in Congress to build three Synthetic Fuel Plants.

Each plant will need 600 acres of land, 25 million gallons of water per day, and 30 million tons of coal to keep it running for 25 years. Each plant will be “designed to produce 10,000 barrels of oil a day”, employ between 1,500 and 3,000 people and have its own power plant. (This last point was important to Henderson, who was limping in his 1896 power station at the time.)

“Military leaders have linked the need for synthetic fuel plants to the current global crisis and are very supportive of the three plants and several others,” Hudjons wrote.

Later, in 1948, $60 million in federal funding was approved. Small synthetic fuel plants were built in Louisiana and Missouri (the latter converted from an ammonia plant), but federal funding for the program ended in 1953.

Henderson County’s closest encounter with synthetic fuels came three decades after the 1973-74 oil embargo.

In August 1977, state officials selected 800 acres near Newman—on the border of Henderson-Daviss County—for a $175 million plant to be operated by Wheelabrator Frye Inc. This project later became known as SRC-I (Solvent Refined Coal-I) when it grew to $1.4 billion and was supported by the US Department of Energy, the State of Kentucky and the International Coal Refining Co.

A few months later, in December 1977, the State of Kentucky bought 680 acres near Baskett where a $300 million plant was to be built, to be operated by WR Grace & Co.

But until 1980, this activity did not arouse much interest. Synthetic fuel dominated the front page of The Gleaner that year, helped no doubt by the 1979 oil embargo. In late April 1980, the partnership of Texas Eastern Corp. and Texas Gas Transmission Corp., doing business as Tri-State Synfuels Co., have confirmed plans to build a $3.5 billion plant near Geneva that will employ 3,000 people.

All of these proposed plants, as well as others scattered throughout the country, were heavily dependent on government subsidies. Ronald Reagan was elected president in 1980, and his administration was lukewarm about synthetic fuels.

Environmental and health issues have also been raised at the local level. By the end of 1980, the front line was stretched.

Henderson News:Coroner identifies victim of fatal accident in Henderson

Throughout 1981 and 1982 there were meetings, studies and evaluations of all kinds to find out how the plants would affect the local quality of life. In the spring of 1982, city manager Russell Sites testified before Congress, noting that thousands of new hires would be a burden on infrastructure and things like the police and fire department. According to him, local communities should not bear these costs alone.

By mid-1982, the Geneva plant was relegated to the background. And by the end of the year, the Baskett plant had shrunk to a quarter of its original size.

The Newman plant applied for additional federal funding, saying it was necessary to keep the project viable; this did not happen, and WR Grace gave up in January 1983.

By the end of 1983, it became clear that none of the local plants would ever become a reality because the federal government’s Synthetic Fuel Corporation had run out of resources. By mid-1984, it was a hollowed-out hull.

The third time failed to live up to the expectations of local synthetic fuel plants. In fact, it was nothing more than a flash compared to dozens of stories written in 1980-1982, mostly by my former colleague Chuck Stinnett.

A May 3, 2007 article by Stinnett in The Gleaner reported that the local head of economic development told his council that several proposals were under consideration in the Three County area.

“They are very big and very real,” said Kevin Shaley, president and CEO of Northwest Kentucky Forward. One plant represents a potential $3 billion investment and will employ between 150 and 200 people. “He’s moving fast,” Shailey said.

The other will be a $1.2 billion project that will also employ between 150 and 200 people. Shaily declined to name the companies involved, but said they appeared to be serious and were “very large multinational companies in the energy business.”

Several other firms have also considered building local synthetic fuel plants, working with hedge funds or other large investors, he said.

In general, the companies were looking for plots of land ranging from 150 to 1,000 acres.

“Some are serious, some kick tires, some see what others are going to do,” he said. “We have two who have the means and the willingness to carry out these projects. But we may not get anything.”

In any case, he said, local officials would have to wait if they wanted to catch big fish.

“The thing about these big projects is that they take longer,” he said. “It’s such a big investment that none of it is going to be quick.”

Waiting didn’t help because none of the projects came to fruition. And given the current political and economic situation, it looks like it never will.

100 YEARS AGO

According to The Gleaner, January 31, 1923, the new manager of the Washington Street cotton mill told the Kiwanis Club that he planned to expand the company’s living quarters used by the mill workers.

The first apartments, two-story duplexes between 1200 and 1338 Washington Street, were built around 1885, the same time the cotton mill opened. But the company’s housing continued to expand throughout the 1920s. Factory manager V.K. Johnson said Consolidated Textile Corp. plans to build 18 duplexes at Powell and Mill streets. Construction was supposed to begin in the early spring of 1923.

Hosiery company Bear Brand, which bought the cotton mill in 1937, did not want to own part of the company’s housing, so a separate real estate company was formed to manage what had grown to 94 housing units, some of which have since been demolished. The entire property, including the mill and residences, occupied about 30 acres east of Meadow Street between Center Street and Powell Street, extending almost to Atkinson Street.

50 YEARS AGO

According to The Gleaner on January 30, 1973, the Henderson Police Department issued warrants to the Illinois Central and L&N railroads for blocking traffic along the city’s eastern edge for an extended period of time.

At that time, the city had a regulation that allowed blocking the streets for no more than five minutes. Particularly problematic was the Second Street crossing until the overpass was completed in late 1981.

“Police said they received a large number of calls complaining that the railroad had shut them down and blocked them for an extended period of time.”

The Gleaner newspaper on February 2 reported that L&N was found guilty and fined the minimum amount of $50. The fine was suspended for 60 days to see if the railroad would be more civil.

25 years ago

The Gleaner newspaper of January 29-30, 1998 reported that BellSouth was urging the Kentucky Public Service Commission to approve the creation of a new area code, because otherwise the numbers were expected to run out by mid-1999.

The problem was the proliferation of cell phones, fax machines, pagers, and wireless devices.

Area code 502 was split and area code 270 became operational on April 19, 1999.

Readers of The Gleaner can contact Frank Boyett at @[email protected] or on Twitter at @BoyettFrank.

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