Michelin Tire Factory to be Torn Down Monday in Milltown

Milltown, NJ - Did you know? Demolition crews will begin the process of tearing down the Old Michelin factory site in Milltown starting Monday, Aug. 15, Milltown police said in a surprise announcement.

The Old Michelin tire site and its smokestack is iconic in the Milltown/East Brunswick area, and itself is a much larger symbol of Central New Jersey's industrial past. Michelin Tire Co. arrived in town from France in 1907, attracting huge numbers of European immigrants to work in the plant. Milltown already had a strong reputation as a job-rich industrial center, and many immigrants, most of them German, had already settled there, working at either the grist mill, a previously existing rubber company or other factories.

Many of these new, second-wave immigrants came from France, where Michelin was based, and the growth of Milltown is attributed to the tire factory. At its peak, Michelin Tire employed nearly 3,000 people, and paid for the construction of many of Milltown's homes. The town grew to be what it is today.

However, sadly, in 1930, Michelin made the decision to close down the tire factory at the height of the Great Depression and move back to France. Most of the French workers returned with the company back to their homeland. Other businesses have operated out of the factory site since, but none were able to reclaim the vibrancy and strength of the old Michelin site that made Milltown what it is today. Today, Milltown does retain its blue collar roots, but few residents there work in factories or at industrial sites.

Starting Monday, demolition crews will begin tearing down the factory, which sits on Ford Ave. Please use caution when traveling in the area as there may be additional pedestrian and vehicle traffic, Milltown police said.

Photo credit: Michelin Tire Factory in Milltown, NJ: Image by Frank Villafañe/ 2016 © UrbanViewPhoto.com 732-688-1467