Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The former Allenbach knitted fabric, located on 11 rue de la Marne in Andlau (Bas-Rhin), is an industrial testimony of the mid-19th century. Founded by the Allenbach family, this knitting plant initially used hydraulic energy before being equipped with a steam boiler. Its 16.50 metre high brick and sandstone pyramid fireplace reflects the influence of the 18th century English models adopted in France after the 1820 legislation on steam appliances.

The site consists of three bodies of buildings organised around a courtyard, including a housing estate. The main workshop, joined to the fireplace, symbolizes the early era of industrialisation in Alsace. Production ceased in 1920, but the chimney, classified as a historical monument by order of 20 December 1988, remains a significant remnant of this industrial heritage. The architecture and spatial organization illustrate the manufacturing practices of the era, where home owners and workshops coexisted.

Andlau, located in the Lower Rhine (Great East), was then a territory marked by handicrafts and the first textile industries. Knitted fabrics like Allenbach played a key role in the local economy, combining traditional know-how and technical innovations. The region, under the influence of both French and German, saw the development of industrial infrastructures adapted to water resources and increasing energy needs, as evidenced by this emblematic chimney.

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