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Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The production of Martinique, located in Athis-Val de Rouvre, Orne, is an industrial complex founded around 1818 by Pierre Hardy during the Restoration. Installed on the edge of the Vère, it initially exploited cotton from the West Indies, where its name became a key supply centre during the Civil War. The factory, rebuilt after a fire around 1870, now retains its original organisation: manufacturing workshops, boiler room, brick fireplace, owner's house and remains of the workers' houses, all in granite.

There were several expansions in the mill: expansion of workers' housing in 1861, construction of the chimney in 1865, and installation of a second steam boiler in 1868. In 1880, it was operated by the Société Anonyme de la filature de la Martinique, before being modernized with a power plant in 1921 and a tower in 1932. Repurchased in 1949 by SA Ferodo, it was converted into asbestos and then the products spread after 1986, remaining active.

The architecture reflects its technical evolution: the facades and roofs of the workshops, as well as the polygonal chimney in brick and limestone, have been protected since 1995 as historical monuments. The site also bears witness to the social conditions of the period, with 122 workers in 1853 and up to 26,592 pins in 1910. An archival collection attests to its regional economic importance.

The spinning embodies Norman industrial heritage, linked to the development of cotton in the 19th century and its adaptation to technical changes (vapor, electricity). Its location near the Vère illustrates the use of streams for hydraulic energy, before mechanization. The partial reconversion of the site to a factory shows its resilience, despite the disappearance of traditional textile activities.

Today owned by a private company, spinning remains a rare example of a preserved industrial complex, where working-class memory, functional architecture and technical innovations combine. Its inscription in historical monuments underlines its heritage value, both for local history and for French industrialisation.

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