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Origin and history

The Cour de l'Industrie is a route to the 11th arrondissement of Paris, created in the 19th century in an industrial district. It is distinguished by its set of workshops and worker housing, organized around three cobbled courses. This site, unique in Paris, was threatened with demolition in 1991 before being classified as a historic monument in 1992.

The project was initiated in 1853 by Baron Georges de Heeckeren, banker Louis Raphaël Bischoffsheim and English forge master Robert William Kennard. They bought the ruins of the Royal Manufacture of Réveillon wallpapers, destroyed in 1789 during a workers' revolt, an event considered a trigger of the French Revolution. The new buildings, built in 1855, housed furniture workshops on the ground floor and workers' houses on the floors.

The Industrial Courtyard is located on the site of the former Folie Titon, an 18th-century marina. The Manufacture Réveillon, installed here in 1765, was the scene of an uprising in 1789, where 300 workers rebelled against new taxes. The site was then transformed in 1855 to meet the needs of social housing, financed by an imperial law of 1852 using the property of the Orléans family.

The first courtyard retains wood-paned facades and a 19th century staircase. The second, more modest, features two-storey buildings dating from 1853, where the ground floor served as a workshop and stable. The third courtyard houses an old 1902 power plant, made of bricks and wooden panels, as well as low constructions. The ensemble, restored after 1991, remains a living place combining artisans and artists.

Ranked for facades, roofs and stairs, the Industrial Courtyard illustrates 19th-century industrial architecture. It is now managed by an association of local residents, preserving its artisanal heritage. Its history reflects the social and urban changes of Paris, between industrial revolution and workers' heritage.

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