American Potash and Chemical Company (sometimes abbreviated as AMPOT) was a large chemical manufacturer in the United States from the 1920s through the 1960s. It produced various chemicals for US industry and the US military. It was bought by

Kerr-McGee The Kerr-McGee Corporation, founded in 1929, was an American energy company involved in oil exploration, production of crude oil, natural gas, perchlorate and uranium mining and milling in various countries. On June 23, 2006, Anadarko Petroleum ...

in 1967, which reformed it into the

Kerr-McGee Chemical Corporation The Kerr-McGee Corporation, founded in 1929, was an American energy company involved in oil exploration, production of crude oil, natural gas, perchlorate and uranium mining and milling in various countries. On June 23, 2006, Anadarko Petroleum ...

(KMCC) around 1970.American Potash and Chemical Company with corporate offices in Los Angeles at W. 6th St. & South Virgil AVE were closed 15 July 1969 and moved to Oklahoma City. 551 F.2d 790

History

The company started by producing

borax Borax is a salt (ionic compound), a hydrated borate of sodium, with chemical formula often written . It is a colorless crystalline solid, that dissolves in water to make a basic solution. It is commonly available in powder or granular form, ...

and

potash Potash () includes various mined and manufactured salts that contain potassium in water-soluble form.

from

Searles Lake Searles Lake is an endorheic dry lake in the Searles Valley of the Mojave Desert, in northwestern San Bernardino County, California. The lake in the past was also called Slate Range Lake and Borax Lake. The mining community of Trona is on its ...

, at

Trona Trona (trisodium hydrogendicarbonate dihydrate, also sodium sesquicarbonate dihydrate, Na2CO3•2NaHCO3•3H2O) is a non- marine evaporite mineral. It is mined as the primary source of sodium carbonate in the United States, where it has replace ...

, California. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

it diversified to other chemicals. In 1948, the company was

San Bernardino County San Bernardino County (), officially the County of San Bernardino, is a county located in the southern portion of the U.S. state of California, and is located within the Inland Empire area. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the population was 2,181, ...

's second-largest employer, with 1,600 of Trona's 5,000 residents on the payroll. In the 1950s it bought Eston Chemicals, Western Electrochemical, and the Lindsay Chemical Company and further diversified its product line. During the

Cold war era The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...

it produced

ammonium perchlorate Ammonium perchlorate ("AP") is an inorganic compound with the formula NH4 ClO4. It is a colorless or white solid that is soluble in water. It is a powerful oxidizer. Combined with a fuel, it can be used as a rocket propellant called ammonium pe ...

for U.S. missile industry, particularly for

Falcon Falcons () are birds of prey in the genus ''Falco'', which includes about 40 species. Falcons are widely distributed on all continents of the world except Antarctica, though closely related raptors did occur there in the Eocene. Adult falcons ...

Hawk Hawks are bird of prey, birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. They are widely distributed and are found on all continents except Antarctica. * The subfamily Accipitrinae includes goshawks, sparrowhawks, sharp-shinned hawks and others. Th ...

Minuteman Minutemen were members of the organized New England colonial militia companies trained in weaponry, tactics, and military strategies during the American Revolutionary War. They were known for being ready at a minute's notice, hence the name. Mi ...

Nike Zeus Nike Zeus was an anti-ballistic missile (ABM) system developed by the US Army during the late 1950s and early 1960s that was designed to destroy incoming Soviet intercontinental ballistic missile warheads before they could hit their targets. ...

, Pershing,

Polaris Polaris is a star in the northern circumpolar constellation of Ursa Minor. It is designated α Ursae Minoris ( Latinized to ''Alpha Ursae Minoris'') and is commonly called the North Star or Pole Star. With an apparent magnitude that ...

Scout Scout may refer to: Youth movement *Scout (Scouting), a child, usually 10–18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement **Scouts (The Scout Association), section for 10-14 year olds in the United Kingdom **Scouts BSA, sectio ...

Sergeant Sergeant (abbreviated to Sgt. and capitalized when used as a named person's title) is a rank in many uniformed organizations, principally military and policing forces. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and other uni ...

Tartar Tartar may refer to: Places * Tartar (river), a river in Azerbaijan * Tartar, Switzerland, a village in the Grisons * Tərtər, capital of Tartar District, Azerbaijan * Tartar District, Azerbaijan * Tartar Island, South Shetland Islands, Ant ...

missiles.Ammonium Perchlorate Has Been Qualified in Performance by Every Manufacturer and Program in Solid Propellant Technology
// ''Aviation Week & Space Technology'', Mid-December, 1960, v. 73, no. 27, p. 330. In the 1960s it bought a large interest in ''Compagnie des Potasses du Congo''. In 1967 AMPOT was bought by Kerr-McGee. Around 1970 Kerr-McGee reorganized and AMPOT became the KMCC which in 2006 was spun off as

Tronox Tronox Limited is an American worldwide chemical company involved in the titanium products industry with approximately 6,500 employees. Following its acquisition of the mineral sands business formerly belonging to South Africa's Exxaro Resources ...

. When AMPOT bought the Lindsay Chemical Company it also got the

Rare Earths Facility The Rare Earths Facility was a production plant for various chemicals and metals including thorium, uranium, and radium. It was located in West Chicago, Illinois, USA. (based partly oUS EPA NPL narrative Searchable by license number 12-0493 ...

West Chicago, Illinois West Chicago is a city in DuPage County, Illinois, United States. The population was 27,086 at the 2010 census. It was formerly named Junction and later Turner, after its founder, John B. Turner, president of the Galena and Chicago Union Railroa ...

References

External links

Alprazolam PowderSSD Chemical Solution
Chemical companies of the United States Mining companies of the United States Defunct manufacturing companies based in California Mining in California Searles Valley Kerr-McGee {{Chemical-company-stub