Introduction of cotton velvet 1762 (≈ 1762)
Honoré Matifas starts manufacturing in Amiens.
1794
Manufacturing Foundation
Manufacturing Foundation 1794 (≈ 1794)
Creation of the Cosserat company.
1857
Installation on the current site
Installation on the current site 1857 (≈ 1857)
Mechanical weaving with 400 English trades.
1880
Reconstruction of the Sagebien wheel
Reconstruction of the Sagebien wheel 1880 (≈ 1880)
Feeding steam machinery.
1891
Construction of refectory and engine room
Construction of refectory and engine room 1891 (≈ 1891)
Symbolic brick architecture.
1914-1918
Monument to the dead erected
Monument to the dead erected 1914-1918 (≈ 1916)
Tribute to the dead workers for France.
1931
Engine room fire
Engine room fire 1931 (≈ 1931)
Replacement by a window.
2001
Partial classification for historical monuments
Partial classification for historical monuments 2001 (≈ 2001)
Protection of remarkable facades and interiors.
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui Aujourd'hui (≈ 2025)
Position de référence.
Heritage classified
The manufacture includes: the 500 trades room, facade and roof; the room of the steam machine (dated 1891 and 1908): facades, roofs and interior arrangements (with interior luminaires) in full; buildings in the continuation of the previous one (dated 1902 and 1920): facades on street and corresponding roof slopes; all the alignment of the dyeing buildings and those which are in their extension (dated from 1885, 1886, 1898 and 1926 , with the exception of the Sanforiuse building (1949-1958): all the facades on street with corresponding roofing slopes ; the monument to the dead; the two boarded buildings on both sides of the monument to the dead: facades and roofs; The bell tower administrative building (dated 1891): facades and roofs; the management building, with Mr Bittan's office (dated 1898): facades and roofs; the building of the Société de Coopérative, the Showroom (dated 1890): facades and roofs; the building in the extension (dated 1889): facades and roofs; the garage and carpentry in return (dated from 1889 and 1920): facade and only side roof on courtyard; Weaving of canvas (dated 1903): only facade on courtyard, with pyramidal roof above the pediment; the whole mill, with the vanage; the house of the concierge (dated 1886): facades and roofs (Box IY 34, 37, 69): inscription by order of 11 June 2001
Key figures
Honoré Matifas - Pioneer of velvet
Introduced cotton velvet to Amiens in 1762.
Jean Cosserat - Dead worker for France
Name engraved on the monument to the dead (1895-1915).
Origin and history
The Cossérat velvet and cotton factory, located in Amiens in the Somme, was founded in 1794 and moved to its current site in 1857. She became a major player in the Picardy textile industry, thanks in particular to the importation of 400 English mechanical trades that same year. The site, traversed by the Selle River, uses a Sagebien blade wheel (rebuilt in 1880) to operate its steam engines. Between 1879 and 1908, the factory extended with the construction of emblematic buildings such as the 500 Trades Room (1886-1891) or the engine room (1891-1908), nicknamed "the cathedral" for its monumental architecture in red and white bricks.
The industrial complex, with an area of 131,000 m2, also includes social buildings such as the refectory (1891), the director's house (1898), or a cooperative (1890). A monument to the dead, erected after the First World War, pays tribute to the fallen workers, including Jean Cosserat (1895-1915), a member of the founding family. The factory, partially listed as a historical monument in 2001, symbolizes the golden age of the velvet of Amiens, a product exported well beyond the Hauts-de-France.
Architecturally, the site mixes industrial bricks with decorative elements, such as the bellton clock of the refectory or the metal window of the engine room, added after a fire in 1931. The workshops, organised around the saddle, provided complete processes: weaving, dyeing, bleaching and finishing. Although some buildings have been destroyed or transformed, the whole preserves traces of boilers (1893-1903), stables (1889) and a truncated brick chimney, a witness of steam activity. The manufacture gradually ceased its textile activity in the 20th century, but its industrial heritage remains a marker of the economic history of Amiens.
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