Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

The Creusot-Monceau Museum, originally named the Museum of Man and Industry in 1972, was one of the first ecomuseums in France, officially designated as such in 1973. Its mission is to preserve and enhance the industrial heritage of a territory marked since the end of the eighteenth century by metallurgy, coal mining, glassware and ceramics. In collaboration with residents, communities and researchers, he saved heritage sites, collections and archives documenting local industrial civilization. Its actions include exhibitions, publications and educational activities to transmit this story to local, tourist and school audiences.

The site is located in the Château de la Verrerie, former Imperial and Royal Manufacture built in 1786 by architect Barthélémy Jeanson, pupil of Soufflot. At the beginning of the 20th century, the castle was renovated by Ernest Sanson and Duchêne landscapers, while André Felz decorated the interiors. Acquired in 1837 by the Schneider family, master of forges, the place symbolizes the industrial paternalism of the Creusot. Its neo-classical decorations, its frontons evoking the War and the Navy, as well as its former ovens transformed into chapel and theatre, bear witness to this past. Since 2012, the Ecomuseum has been part of the Creusot Montceau Urban Community.

The flagship collections include a historical crystallary, portraits of the Schneiders, a lounge with panoramic wallpapers, and industrial models such as Joseph Beuchot, a twenty-year-old worker dedicated to an animated miniature factory. Paintings from the 19th and 20th centuries, including those of Rochette, illustrate labor. These elements make it possible to understand the urban and social evolution of Creusot, a factory town born from a foundry, as well as the local know-how, from glassmakers to railway makers.

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