Walker / Tenneco Automotive  

Walker's comes to Culver at former McGill building. The world's leading producer and marketer of ride control and exhaust products and systems.

Skip Higgins writes:

First, let me explain that my first Maxinkuckee experiences began in about 1950. My grandparents rented a home on the east shore, near the general store and its flowing well or spring... They were only there until about 1952... As early as 1964, when I served as a Woodcraft Camp counselor,...

I've been back to Culver and Maxinkuckee many times over the years. I live in Indianapolis now. I have many friends and acquaintances from here who own places on the east shore...

I was involved in helping McGill Manufacturing find a tenant for their plant when they decided to close it down. I worked at F.C. Tucker at the time, and we were fortunate to find Walker Muffler in Racine, WI to rent the plant and make mufflers. One of the McGill executives from Valpo and I drove to Racine in about 1985 to discuss their buying the plant. I think that's about the time Walker was being acquired by Tennaco, and so it was too complicated or distracting to consider buying real estate, so I don't think they did.

Changes names to Tennaco

Tenneco Automotive Culver, Indiana manufactured parts for Chrysler and Ford vehicles.

1986 - the 14 year period is questionable as found is:

a sale which finally took place in 1991. Walker-Tennaco, "the world's leading producer and marketer of ride control and exhaust products and systems," would occupy the building for nine years.

1991 - October 23 – Walker Manufacturing has announced it may hire 70 people in preparation for its role in supplying the exhaust system for a new Chrysler car to be introduced in 1993…

1999 - Oct 13 - Tenneco to close Indiana muffler plant,

CULVER, Ind. -- Walker Manufacturing Co. will lay off close to 600 workers when it closes its automobile muffler plant in Culver by March.

Walker's parent company, Tenneco Automotive, had excess production capacity, and the 13-year-old Culver factory's high turnover rate and the difficulty in finding trained workers figured in the decision to close it, Tenneco spokesman John McDonald said Monday.

The Culver plant also made catalytic converters.

"This is a painful and hard decision for all of us. ... We have been looking at various scenarios, and the final decision was not made until September," McDonald said.

Much of the Culver production will be shifted to plants in Ligonier, Elkhart, Litchfield, Mich., and Marshall, Mich., he said.

The Culver, Indiana exhaust plant was closed on July 14, 2000, after remaining open beyond the first quarter at the request of the customer