Distant overview of the Whirlpool plant complex, located on U.S. Hwy. 41 North (south of St. George Rd.) In 1942, Republic Aviation built a plant on this site, and during WWII built almost 1/2 of the P-47 Thunderbolts. Whirlpool, headquartered in Benton Harbor, MI, moved in circa 1956. In 2010 all production was shut down, and in 2014 the plant closed entirely. The buildings still stand today.