What seems to be but a graveyard containing the skeletons of some rather large buildings was at one time one of the country’s greatest shipyards. The most intriguing part of it all is that ocean going vessels were made on the Ohio River at an inland site located in the north end of Point Pleasant, West Virginia. Though small in overall size the Marietta Manufacturing Company, originally involved in stove making, took advantage of a land offer from the small river community and transformed itself into a highly successful shipyard that made major contributions to ship building as well as the local economy.
MMC was not only the company’s initials but also the acronym for its motto “Made Mechanically Correct”. This was one of the most highly known mottos that rang throughout the Mississippi Valley and covered a lot of other western rivers. Point Pleasant had not always been the company’s home and it had not always been a shipyard. This small but strong company deviated from conventional business wisdom. Its’ story involves stoves, floods, and a literal trip down the river, but through all of this turmoil a successful business emerged. This company did its part to improve ship building standards, as well as being the site of the first successful side-ways launching of a water craft.