Historian Cliff Kuhn Discusses This Day in 1942: Marietta to Build B-52 ATLANTA, GA (WABE) - Turn back the clock 67 years to February 19th, 1942. We'd find the city fathers of Marietta in a jubilant mood, as the War Department had just announced that a $15-million Bell bomber plant would be built there. That Marietta was chosen as the site for construction of the new B-29 bomber instead of Bell's hometown of Buffalo, New York, is explained by Georgia State University historian Cliff Kuhn. © Copyright 2012, WABE