According to the city’s historic district designation report, pencil manufacturing took place here from 1872 until 1956. The buildings were partially converted to condos in 2010; some units remain commercial lofts. 61 Greenpoint Avenue, a later addition to the factory complex, has decorative panels that display the star and diamond motif that was impressed on every pencil, as well as oversize terra-cotta pencils. Early 20th century photos of the factory interiors show a predominance of women workers.
Tag Archives: manufacturing
American Manufacturing Company/Greenpoint Terminal
Importing of sisal, manila and jute from south Asia and the Far East gave some area streets their names: India Street, Java Street. These raw materials were made into rope, which was in demand from the many shipyards that dominated industry here in the 19th century. Founded in the 1890s, the American Manufacturing Company grew quickly and was the second largest industrial employer in Brooklyn at the turn of the 19th century. After World War II, the now-sprawling yet obsolete facility became a warehouse, Greenpoint Terminal.
After the 2005 zoning, preservationists wanted to landmark some of the significant industrial buildings of the complex. Many of its 19 buildings were destroyed or seriously damaged in a suspicious 2006 fire.