Unknown Factory w/ Spur??

[TribuneFreightFanatic]

Hello all,
I was recently doing some "Google Maps" panning over Goose Island and the surrounding area when I stumbled upon an interesting site. I was wondering if anyone knew of the former factory that is now a large abandoned lot used to park excess taxis. It is located between Elston & Division, and Elston & Chestnut, right by the Metra/ UPY overpass. What also caught my eye was that it appeared to have been served by rail at one point in time! At the other end of the abandoned lot is where the Prairie Cement plant is.. (In between the two factories is where Ogden av. terminates before the river). I have attached two photos--one before, and one after the demolition.  Using the Google Timeline, it was torn down between 2004-2005. Any ideas on what this industry used to be? Thanks.

[TribuneFreightFanatic]

....and here is the photo of the site after demolition. (Original posting was too big to fit both images).

[TBurke]

In later years before it was torn down I recall that this factory complex was used by a recycling company.  It will take some additional digging to find out what it was originally used for.

historicaerials.com has some interesting photos of it over the years.  1973 view shows spur coming off the C&NW is still intact.  Between 2002 and 2005 the building disappears from their photos of the location.  1962 shows some interesting and criss-crossing trackwork inside the grounds of the plant.

1952 shows a number of tank cars parked alongside the south end of the building and to the west so my guess was that it was either a chemical plant or some kind of food processing plant.

[TBurke]

1914 Smoke Abatement map shows that the Chicago Packing Box Company was at that location.  It probably changed hands over the decades.

[Brianbobcat]

The tracks all appear to still be there right up until the Tribune line.  In the spring and fall, you can see then approach the existing tracks but are shy by just a couple feet.  This site hosted a BMX bike or some X-games type venue after the south loop alderman and neighbors claimed the event didn't get the appropriate permits to hold the event on, ironically enough, another former rail site, that being the corner of Wells and Harrison on what used to be Grand Central Station.  One last note, the tracks going to Tribune appear to be in quite bad shape.  The ballast is virtually non-existant in most places, and the ties and track look not upkept either.  I wonder how long they'll be in this condition before either something happens or they get repaired.

[TBurke]

Answer from Joe via the C&NW Yahoo Group when I posted the question...he gave me permission to repost here.

> > In a old freight tariff from 1974 I found that Container Corp. of America
occupied this site and was served by the CNW. The tariff listed two addresses
for this site, 900 North Ogden and 949 North Elston. Besides paper product like
pulpboard, corrugated boxes, and paper stock, it also made some types of
plastics. This location also went by the name of The Pioneer Paper Stock
Division of CCA. I hope this helps.