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Origin and history

The Charles Houille mill is a textile factory located in Elbeuf (Seine-Maritime), built between the 2nd half of the 18th century and the 3rd quarter of the 19th century. Organised in a U-shaped plan around a rectangular courtyard, it includes three wooden workshops with brick filling, raised in the 19th century, as well as a brick employer housing overlooking the Rue de la République. The western and northern workshops retain traces of their original use, such as stables on the ground floor or an old chestnut smelt. The site, with an area of 1,125 m2, also attested to a horse ride for spinning, which disappeared today.

The factory belonged to the manufacturer of sheets Charles Houler, as attested the cadastre of 1831. His home was rebuilt in two phases: the eastern part around 1835, and the western part around 1865. Textile activity, combining yarn spinning and weaving, ceased around 1870, although the cadastre still mentioned production in 1882. In the 20th century, the site was converted into a fine grocery store and then rehabilitated into a residential building. The facades, roofs and workshops bordering the courtyard were listed as historical monuments on 28 November 1997, thus preserving a major testimony of the Norman wool industry.

Architecturally, the workshops have typical characteristics of pre-industrial manufactures: square floors surmounted by attices, skylights, and an attic-extent (today closed). The western workshop, the most imposing with three square floors, retains original elements like partially obstructed bays. The entrance porch, extended by a brick edicle serving as concierge and office, closes the whole on the street. This site reflects the evolution of textile production techniques, from the 18th century craftsmanship to the early 19th century mechanization.

The spinning takes place in the economic context of Elbeuf, an emblematic city of Norman drapery since the Middle Ages. In the 18th century, the region was a major centre of wool production, combining artisanal know-how and technical innovations such as mechanical looms or horse rides to operate the machines. The conversion of the site to housing in the 20th century illustrates the decline of the local textile industry, replaced by new economic activities.

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