SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WAND) - The first large structure to collapse at the former Pillsbury site was a smoke stack, built almost 100 years ago. Dozens of neighbors, former employees and volunteers of Moving Pillsbury Forward watched as a wrecking ball tore apart the smoke stack over several hours.

Among the onlookers was Herb Wilkinson, whose history with the site spanned generations.

"My dad worked there, my uncle worked there, I had a cousin who worked there, my brother-in-law worked there, my mother-in-law worked there, so did my father-in-law," Wilkinson said. "I know it has to come down, but it's sad to see."

That bittersweet sentiment was shared by many former employees, who got emotional watching the smokestack fall to the ground. It marks the beginning of a large-scale demolition p

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