General view of an unidentified employee inspecting control switches at the Hercules Powder Company plant in Hopewell, Virginia. Per notations accompanying the photograph, the control switches were explosion-proof, one of the safety features employed for plant operations in which inflammable solvents were used.

Formed in 1912 as part of an anti-trust settlement with DuPont, the Hercules Powder Company (later Hercules Inc.) initially specialized in the manufacture of explosives and smokeless powders and subsequently diversified its business to encompass a variety of industrial products, including pine and paper chemicals, synthetics, pigments, polymers, and cellulose.