The Project
The goal of this project is to save and restore an important historic landmark located in the Village of New Richmond, Clermont County, Ohio. This historic property is comprised of two 100+ year old commercial factory buildings situated on undeveloped lots. The buildings are located across the street from each other on a section of State Route 132 that was once more well-known locally as High Street.
The Dormer Bros. Co. Hosiery Mills moved their operations from a nearby location and constructed the original brick factory building located at 2383 State Route 132 around 1897-1904 on the site of the former A. Keyser & Co. Distillery. They continued construction expanding the original building to the north and to the south joining the building with the old distillery bonded warehouse.
The Dormer Bros. constructed a 9,000 square foot brick building, located across the street at 2384 State Route 132, in 1925 to serve as a warehouse and shipping facility. The Dormer Bros. continued their hosiery mill operations at the site until approximately 1933. The property was purchased in 1934 by The J.&H. Clasgens Co. who had been operating nearby woolen mills since 1855.
The J.&H. Clasgens Co. moved its operations to this location and, in 1969, they constructed a two story 20,000 square foot addition to the original 9,000 square foot 1925 brick warehouse building located at 2384 State Route 132. They continued manufacturing operations in these two buildings until the late 1980’s when operations were scaled back. Subsequent generations of the Clasgens family have continued to operate a wholesale yarn business at the property. The J.&H. Clasgens Co. supplied woolen products to the United States Military and supplied yarn used to make Major League baseballs.
The woolen mill building was built with heavy wooden post and beam construction to support very heavy loads and to provide lots of open floor space. These floors supported heavy mill machinery. All the exterior walls are filled with six- and eight-foot-tall double-hung wooden windows that provide an abundance of natural light throughout the day as well as cross-ventilation.
The 1969 addition to the warehouse building created a spectacular 10,000 square foot clear-span space with gorgeous tongue and grove factory maple wood flooring. Abundant large windows lining the exterior walls and a “floating roof” design provide an abundant amount of natural light and ventilation.
Both buildings are very run down from insufficient upkeep and general neglect. Both buildings will require extensive repairs and renovations before they can be fully occupied once again. Roofing repairs, gutter and downspout installation, and general repairs to secure the buildings and keep them safe and dry were completed first. Now we must fund the rest of the rehabilitation. The cost to save and restore historic structures like these can easily exceed the end value of the property by a large margin, making the project economically unfeasible. This difference in costs and end value creates a “funding gap” that must be filled with creative sources of funding to make a project economically feasible. Since that “funding gap” here is rather large, efforts to “fill the gap” will likely continue for the duration of this project. Please join us and Help Save Something Today!
Thank you for taking the time to learn about this Project!