International Harvester Engineering Building
2911 Meyer Road, Fort Wayne
Heavy Duty
On Fort Wayne’s east side, one prolific manufacturing complex contributed significantly to the success of International Harvester, producing over 1.5 million heavy-duty trucks and 500,000 Scouts (an early sports utility vehicle) from 1923 to 1983. The site’s 1952 Engineering Building and nearby test track played an important role in the story, serving for decades as the place where every International Harvester truck was designed, developed, and tested.
Designed by notable architectural firm Albert Kahn and Associates, the Modernist building on Meyer Road takes inspiration from the shape of the International Harvester logo. It’s been a rallying point for preserving the company’s heritage since 2019, when nonprofit Harvester Homecoming hosted its first festival at the site, drawing thousands of Harvester fans and former workers to share memories and show off vehicles once manufactured there.
Inside the Engineering Building, 65 International Harvester and Navistar trucks, engines, blueprints, photos, models, toys, and other artifacts were on display—a collection Harvester Homecoming had hoped would be granted permanent museum space inside the building and become a tourism destination.
That outcome now appears unlikely, after Allen County Commissioners acquired the site in 2023 with plans to build a new jail on the undeveloped land. Since the building first appeared on last year’s 10 Most Endangered list, commissioners have terminated Harvester Homecoming’s rental agreement for the Engineering Building and approved funding to study remodeling the site as county offices. No design plans have been approved yet, and preservation advocates want to ensure that any new use respects the building’s architectural significance and important role in Fort Wayne’s manufacturing history.
Paul Hayden
Director
Indiana Landmarks Northeast Field Office
574-289-886
phayden@indianalandmarks.org
Ryan DuVall
CEO
Harvester Homecoming, Inc.
260-241-0963
harvesterhomecoming@hotmail.com
Saving threatened buildings takes teamwork. You can be a part of that team. Reach out to local leaders. Let them know these buildings are important to you. And support state and local preservation groups.