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All French heritage classified by regions, departments and cities

  2. Patrimoine
  3. Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
  4. Puy-de-Dôme
  5. 63200 Riom

  6. Manufacture of tobacco

Manufacture of tobacco à Riom dans le Puy-de-Dôme

Puy-de-Dôme

Manufacture of tobacco

    2 Place Eugene Rouher
    63200 Riom
Ownership of a private company
Museums of France
All lime ovens, factories and factories in France
Photo de Manufacture of tobacco

Timeline

Révolution/Empire
XIXe siècle
Époque contemporaine
1900
2000
1863
Visit of Napoleon III
1er février 1869
Start of production
1878–1883
Construction of buildings
1907
Electrification and enlargement
1975
Decommissioning of historic site
2004
Historical monument classification
2020–2024
Rehabilitation by Hermès
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui

Heritage classified

The facades and roofs of the manufacture comprising buildings A, B, C, D, F, G, K, L, M, N, O, R, S, X, as well as the industrial chimney, ventilating chimneys of buildings C and D, the bell tower and clock dial of Building D, the metal bridges between buildings B and D and D and C (Box BK 383): inscription by order of 13 October 2004

Key figures

Eugène Rouher - Minister of State and Native of Riom Initiator of the project during the visit of Napoleon III.
René Dargnies - Chief Engineer Manufacturer of the manufacturing plans (1877–83).
Napoléon III - Emperor of the French Visita Riom in 1863, supporting the creation.

Origin and history

The Riom tobacco factory, nicknamed manu, was founded in 1869 in a context of strong national demand for tobacco. Originally installed in temporary premises (former slaughterhouses and then Vercingetorix barracks), it had already employed 504 workers in 1875, mostly cigarettemakers. Its final establishment was decided with the support of Minister Eugène Rouher, a native of Riom, who supported the project during Napoleon III's visit in 1863. The construction of the definitive buildings, designed by engineer René Dargnies, began in 1878 on a plot of 32 hectares near the station, integrating innovations such as the isolation of the workshops to limit the risks of fire.

The factory adopted an H-shaped plan inspired by the models of Châteauroux and Nantes, with Volvic stone buildings and metal bridges. As early as 1877, Gallo-Roman remains (walls, wells, ceramics, and a statuette of Harpocrate) were discovered during the foundations, revealing an ancient past on the site. Mechanization accelerated in the 1890s, with electrification in 1907, bringing production from 2,200 tons (1906) to 3,300 tons (1909). A major expansion took place in 1936 in response to the increase in cigarette consumption, before a decommissioning in 1975 to a new factory on the outskirts.

Closed permanently in 2017, marking the end of tobacco production in France, the factory was listed as a historic monument in 2004. Some of the buildings were rehabilitated in the 2000s to accommodate offices and then purchased in 2020 by Hermès. Since 2022, two buildings have housed a leather goods workshop (280 employees) and a training centre (1,600 students), inaugurated in September 2024. The site, symbol of the French industrial heritage, combines history and economic conversion.

External links

Page Wikipedia
Page Monumentum