The American Seating Company Factory Complex is a historic

manufacturing plant A factory, manufacturing plant or production plant is an Industry (manufacturing), industrial facility, often a complex consisting of several buildings filled with Outline of industrial machinery, machinery, where workers manufacturing, manufac ...

located at 801 Broadway Avenue NW in

Grand Rapids, Michigan Grand Rapids is the largest city and county seat of Kent County, Michigan, United States. With a population of 198,917 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 200,117 in 2024, Grand Rapids is the List of municipalities ...

, used by the

American Seating American Seating Inc. is a company specializing in the production of chairs and other seating, including seats for rail transport and public transportation, schools and churches. Founded in 1886 as the Grand Rapids School Furniture Company, the ...

company. It was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 2003.

History

In late 1885, local Grand Rapids businessmen Gaius Perkins, William T. Hess and Seymour W. Peregrine founded the Grand Rapids School Furniture Company to manufacture school and office furniture. They began manufacture in a small factory in 1886. Business boomed, and in 1887 they began constructing a new factory. This was completed the next year, but an increase in orders soon forced to company to double its factory size. By 1888 the company was selling over 65,000 school desks per year. In 1899, the Grand Rapids School Furniture Company merged with eighteen other similar companies located around the nation to form the American School Furniture Company, with Gaius Perkin as its first president. In 1905 the name was changed to American Seating Company, and it was soon the largest employer in Grand Rapids. In 1923, the company began work on a power plant and warehouse addition to the factory, which was completed in 1927. The company lasted through the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

, and converted to wartime production during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. In the 1980s, the company faced financial hardships, and was eventually sold to Fuqua Industries of

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

. It returned to local control in 1987. In 2016, the original factory building was demolished.

Description

The American Seating Company factory complex consists fourteen contributing buildings and two non-contributing buildings, ranging in date from 1888 to 1978, located in a parcel about twenty acres in size. The site runs along Broadway from Seventh to Eleventh Street. The 1888 factory building was located along the northern side of Ninth Street. This was a four-story cream brick building. The 1923 power plant and warehouse are located along Seventh Street. These buildings are four-story brick structures. Additional buildings, dating from the early 1900s through the 1970s, are located along Eleventh Street and south toward Ninth.

References

{{National Register of Historic Places in Michigan Victorian architecture in Michigan Buildings designated early commercial in the National Register of Historic Places Industrial buildings completed in 1888 Buildings and structures in Grand Rapids, Michigan Economy of Grand Rapids, Michigan Manufacturing plants in the United States Industrial buildings and structures on the National Register of Historic Places in Michigan National Register of Historic Places in Grand Rapids, Michigan