In the wartime 1940s when the US military was looking for safe places in America to serve as storage stations, Shelby was chosen as the site for an Army Air Force Supply Depot.
Opened in 1943 as the Parsel Supply Depot, the facility survived the war and was renamed, after the Air Force became a separate service, as the Wilkins Air Force Specialized Depot.
With 60 acres of storage space under roof, the depot distributed more than 40,000 different parts, before it was decommissioned by the government in 1961. Today as Central Ohio Industrial Park, it serves as a warehousing headquarters for numerous industries.
Images from the collection of the Shelby Museum of History.
