Empson Cannery

Last updated
Empson Cannery
Longmont Cannery.jpg
USA Colorado location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Location15 3rd Ave., Longmont, Colorado
Coordinates 40°09′49″N105°05′37″W / 40.163611°N 105.093611°W / 40.163611; -105.093611
Area0.7 acres (0.28 ha)
Built1901
Built byJohn Howard Empson
NRHP reference No. 84000796 [1]
Added to NRHPJanuary 5, 1984
Empson Pea Cannery, c.1920 Empson Pea Cannery, c. 1920.jpg
Empson Pea Cannery, c.1920

The Empson Cannery, also known as the Kuner-Empson Cannery, is a historic cannery and factory building located at 15 3rd Avenue in Longmont, Colorado. It was built in 1901. [2] It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984. [1]

Contents

Description

Of several buildings on the site, the red brick warehouse building was nominated for National Register listing. This is a 72 by 327 feet (22 m × 100 m) building, actually including three separate structures: [2]

History

John Howard Empson (1849–1926), a confectioner from Cincinnati, founded the cannery and built the building. He is considered a "pioneer in the canning industry". [3] The main crop of the cannery was peas, and Empson received several patents for his pea-canning devices. [4] He also developed an improved pea stock that was both sweeter and smaller. Max Kuner was a pioneer in the pickle industry. [2] [5]

At the turn of the 20th century, the cannery was the largest employer in Longmont, having a considerable economic effect on the region. In 1903, the cannery was producing 300 railroad carloads of canned produce annually, and employed 400 workers. It was used as the warehouse of the Empson Cannery (later the Kuner-Empson Cannery) until the end of 1970. [2] [6] [7]

Historical significance

The warehouse is historically significant as the building symbolizes the final step in locally produced food preserving and processing. It was the single largest building in the area, and it dominated the site on which it was constructed. "For over eighty years it has been symbolic of the cannery itself." [2]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Longmont, Colorado</span> City in Colorado, United States

Longmont is a home rule municipality located in Boulder and Weld counties, Colorado, United States. Its population was 98,885 as of the 2020 U.S. Census. Longmont is located northeast of the county seat of Boulder. It is named after Longs Peak, a prominent mountain that is clearly visible from the city.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wilcox, Crittenden Mill</span> United States historic place

The Wilcox, Crittenden Mill, also known as Wilcox, Crittenden Mill Historic District, is a 17-acre (6.9 ha) property in Middletown, Connecticut that was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1986. It was the location of the Wilcox, Crittenden company, a marine hardware firm. The historic district listing included four contributing buildings and three other contributing sites.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Socialist Labor Party Hall</span> United States historic place

The Socialist Labor Party Hall at 46 Granite Street, Barre, Vermont was constructed in 1900. It was a location for debates among anarchists, socialists, and union leaders over the future direction of the labor movement in the United States in the early 20th century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Waller Hall</span> Building on the Willamette University campus in Salem, Oregon, U.S.

Waller Hall is a building on the campus of Willamette University in Salem, Oregon, in the United States. Opened in 1867 as University Hall, it is the oldest higher-education building west of the Mississippi River still in use, currently housing the university's administrative offices.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Stephen's Episcopal Church (Longmont, Colorado)</span> Historic church in Colorado, United States

St. Stephen's Episcopal Church, 1881 is a historical church building in Longmont, Colorado. Also known to be middle of Longmont, Colorado back when it started to develop.

The Bridgeport Lamp Chimney Company Bowstring Concrete Arch Bridge is located between Mechanic Street and Baltimore and Ohio Railroad tracks in Bridgeport, West Virginia. The bridge was constructed in 1924, designed by Frank McEnteer. This elegant bowstring reinforced concrete arch bridge represents a traditional bridge type which was readily adapted to what was essentially a new construction material: reinforced concrete. Unlike a rail or road bridge, this bridge can be considered an unusual pedestrian bridge in that it was built by the Bridgeport Lamp Chimney Company in 1924 to provide access from the glass plant to a warehouse on the other side of Simpson Creek. The bridge was designed to carry hand carts with glass products across the river to the warehouse. The bridge remains the only evidence of the original works, and its successor, Master Glass Company. Thus the bridge stands in splendid isolation from any other structure.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Vrain State Park</span> State park in Weld County, Colorado

St. Vrain State Park, formerly known as Barbour Ponds, is a Colorado state park. The park hosts year-round camping. It is a popular birding destination, hosting the states largest rookery of Blue Heron, it is home to several other bird species as well including migrating waterfowl, songbirds and the occasional bald eagle. Other park activities include year round fishing and hiking. There is a reservoir at the park named Blue Heron Reservoir.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dry Dock Complex (Detroit, Michigan)</span> United States historic place

The Dry Dock Complex consists of six interconnected buildings located at 1801–1803 Atwater Street in Detroit, Michigan, as well as the remains of a nearby dry dock at 1900 Atwater Street. The 1801-1803 Atwater complex is also known as the Globe Trading Company Building, and in 2015 was opened by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources as the Outdoor Adventure Center.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edward Salyer House</span> Historic house in New York, United States

The Edward Salyer House is located on South Middletown Road in Pearl River, New York, United States. It is a wood frame house built in the 1760s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wallowa County Courthouse</span> United States historic place

The Wallowa County Courthouse is the seat of government for Wallowa County in northeastern Oregon. The courthouse is located in Enterprise, Oregon. It was built in 1909–1910 using locally quarried stone. It is a massive High Victorian structure built of local Bowlby stone. The courthouse was listed on National Register of Historic Places in 2000. Today, the courthouse still houses Wallowa County government offices.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jackson Park Town Site Addition Brick Row</span> United States historic place

Jackson Park Town Site Addition Brick Row is a group of three historic houses and two frame garages located on the west side of the 300 block of South Third Street in Lander, Wyoming. Two of the homes were built in 1917, and the third in 1919. The properties were added to the National Register of Historic Places on February 27, 2003.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Old Bacon Academy</span> United States historic place

The Bacon Academy, nicknamed Old Bacon Academy, was the original Bacon Academy. The Old Bacon Academy was built in 1803 and is located at 84 Main Street, Colchester, Connecticut. The main structure is a 70 feet (21 m) long by 34 feet (10 m) wide three-story Flemish bond brick structure with Federal style details. Noted for its plain, utilitarian floor plan consisting of two rooms off a central hall and stairway, the inside has seen some renovations throughout its history. The Day Hall, a contributing property purchased by the Bacon Academy trustees in 1929, is a church hall that was used for the high school until 1962.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Longmont College</span> Historic building in Longmont, Colorado

Longmont College, also known as The Landmark, is a building in Longmont, Colorado that briefly housed the city's first college from 1886 to 1889. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1987.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">W.R. Roach Cannery Warehouse and Office Building</span> United States historic place

The W.R. Roach Cannery Warehouse and Office Building is an industrial structure located at 89 East Sanborn in Croswell, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2005, and now contains apartments, known as Cannery Village.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">American Tobacco Company Warehouses Complex</span> United States historic place

The American Tobacco Company Warehouses Complex is a pair of brick warehouses built around 1900 in Madison, Wisconsin. They are now the two most intact remnants of Madison's tobacco industry, and were added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2003.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Henderson Block</span> Historic building in Salt Lake City, Utah, U.S.

The Henderson Block, at 375 W. 200 South in Salt Lake City, Utah was designed by architect Walter E. Ware and was built in 1897–98. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978. It was also included as a contributing building in the Warehouse District.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Warren Motor Car Company Building</span> United States historic place

The Warren Motor Car Company Building, also known as Lincoln Motor Car Company Building, is a factory located at 1331 Holden Street in Detroit, Michigan, now part of the Lincoln Street Art Park. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Railway Exchange Building (Portland, Oregon)</span> Historic building in Portland, Oregon, U.S.

The Railway Exchange Building is a historic building in Portland, Oregon, also known as the Oregon Pioneer Building. The structure houses the restaurant Huber's.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hoverhome and Hover Farmstead</span> United States historic place

The Hoverhome and Hover Farmstead, at 1303-1309 Hover Rd. in Longmont, Colorado, are the remains of a historic farmstead. The current 4.3 acres (1.7 ha) site was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1999.

References

  1. 1 2 "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. November 2, 2013.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Roger L. Pomainville (May 23, 1983). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Empson Cannery / Kunner Empson Cannery / The Cannery". National Park Service . Retrieved October 11, 2021. With accompanying seven photos from 1983
  3. Counter, Marguerite Frink. "Pioneer Canning Industry in Colorado". Colorado Magazine. 30: 37–48.
  4. "Empson Receives Patent". Longmont Ledger. 13 September 1895.
  5. "Amazing Photos Tell the Story of Old Canneries in Western Colorado". KEKB. Retrieved 14 May 2024.
  6. Mann, Robert (13 October 1970). "Kuner-Empson Closing Down in December". Longmont Times-Call.
  7. "100 Year History of Kuner-Empson Cannery". Boulder Daily Camera. 1 January 1964.

Further reading