Vicksburg in Warren County, Mississippi — The American South (East South Central)
LeTourneau
Photographed By Mark Hilton, May 25, 2017
1. LeTourneau Marker
Inscription.
LeTourneau. . In 1942, R.G. LeTourneau, the man largely responsible for the invention and development of earth-moving machines in wide use today, built his fourth manufacturing plant in Vicksburg. He brought with him a small group of talented men including Clyde Wilson and Eddie Florell. LeTourneau's factories supplied bomb casings and 70% of all heavy earth-moving equipment used by Allied forces during world war two. In 1955, he built his first mobile off-shore jack-up drilling rig at the Vicksburg plant for Zapata Drilling. During the 1970s, as many as 7 rigs were under construction by a workforce exceeding 2,000. To house the increasing population of employees in Vicksburg, he built a village complete with grocery store, post office, beauty shop, credit union, swimming pool, tennis courts, ball fields, airstrip, and concrete houses with heated floors, which were fabricated with a machine of his design. A devout Christian, "Mr. R.G." termed himself "in partnership with God." He tithed 90%, employed full-time chaplains, and offered weekly chapel services in his plants. He traveled the country in a converted A-26 glass-nosed bomber plane, giving his personal testimony as a Christian. His philanthropy extended around the world with missionary projects in Liberia and Peru. ,
Sponsored by C.H. and Jo Wilson and Friends of LeTourneau.
In 1942, R.G. LeTourneau, the man largely responsible for the invention and development of earth-moving machines in wide use today, built his fourth manufacturing plant in Vicksburg. He brought with him a small group of talented men including Clyde Wilson and Eddie Florell.
LeTourneau's factories supplied bomb casings and 70% of all heavy earth-moving equipment used by Allied forces during WWII.
In 1955, he built his first mobile off-shore jack-up drilling rig at the Vicksburg plant for Zapata Drilling. During the 1970s, as many as 7 rigs were under construction by a workforce exceeding 2,000.
To house the increasing population of employees in Vicksburg, he built a village complete with grocery store, post office, beauty shop, credit union, swimming pool, tennis courts, ball fields, airstrip, and concrete houses with heated floors, which were fabricated with a machine of his design.
A devout Christian, "Mr. R.G." termed himself "in partnership with God." He tithed 90%, employed full-time chaplains, and offered weekly chapel services in his plants. He traveled the country in a converted A-26 glass-nosed bomber plane, giving his personal testimony as a Christian. His philanthropy extended around the world with missionary projects in Liberia and Peru.
Sponsored by C.H. and Jo Wilson and Friends of LeTourneau
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Erected 2009 by the City of Vicksburg Riverfront Mural Committee.
Location. 32° 21.141′ N, 90° 52.996′ W. Marker is in Vicksburg, Mississippi, in Warren County. Marker is on Levee Street north of Grove Street, on the left when traveling north. The Vicksburg Riverfront Murals are located on the Yazoo Diversion Canal levee wall. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Vicksburg MS 39183, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Credits. This page was last revised on January 24, 2022. It was originally submitted on June 4, 2017, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama. This page has been viewed 595 times since then and 56 times this year. Last updated on January 22, 2022, by Carl Gordon Moore Jr. of North East, Maryland. Photos:1, 2, 3. submitted on June 4, 2017, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama.
