The Old Perth Shoe Factory
est. 1905
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Building a community
Located at One Sherbrooke Street East in close proximity to the downtown core of Heritage Perth, Ontario, Perth, Canada, The Old Perth Shoe Factory has been transformed from a century old industrial shoe factory into an exciting, mixed use commercial space and dynamic community of new culture companies.
Perth Athletic CenterGet your sweat on with zumba, cardio kickboxing, CrossFit, martial arts, boxing, personal training and weight lifting.
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Cafe BeanEnjoy a hot brew and much more at Perth's best and most welcoming, cozy coffee shop.
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Omnes Arts CircleJoin group or private lessons and classes in music, dance, theatre, and more.
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The Space
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1st Floor
110 - Perth Athletic Centre
120 - Omnes Arts Circle 130 - Cafe Bean 140 - Turntable 150 - Perth Children's House Montessori School 160 - Vacant 170 - YAK Youth Services 180 - Vacant |
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2nd Floor
210 - Omnes Arts Circle
220 - The Plaid Cow 230 - Serreh Elizabeth Photography 240 - Vacant 250 - Vacant |
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3rd Floor
301 - Oztrekk
302 - Oztrekk 303 - Geoff Hodgins 304 - Serreh Elizabeth Photography 350 - Vacant |
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Our History
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In the early 1900's the Town of Perth, recognizing the need to attract industry in order to complement the traditional service/agricultural activities of the prosperous town, encouraged the Winn Shoe Company, U.S.A. to establish a new shoe factory at One Sherbrooke Street, Perth, with a $20,000 loan to build a factory in the town.
A beautiful two story brick building of 17,000 square feet was erected between 1905 and 1910 where 500 pairs of shoes were produced each day and the total weekly payroll for all employees was over $500.00 per week. In 1912 the company was reorganized by F.W. Hall and C.J.Sewell and transformed into the Perth Shoe Company. Employment grew to 200 operators and 700 shoes per day were shipped from the factory.
The First World (Great) War (1914-1918) resulted in a dramatic increase in activity and production. Records indicate that 10,000 pairs of army boots were sold to the Canadian military in 1915 at a cost of $4.10 per pair. In October 1919 a complete third storey and forty foot eastend extension were added to the building bringing the entire production space to 30,000 square feet.
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An additional two storey 9000 square foot warehouse was added at the rear of the factory in August 1933 which was subsequently increased by another 4000 square feet in 1959 making the entire building approximately 45,000 square feet.
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The Perth Shoe Company was acquired by the Brown Shoe Company in 1960 and after building a new manufacturing facility at another location, The Brown Shoe Company continued to utilized the old building until 1982 as a storage centre to accommodate the growing demands of the company. The property was acquired by Central Wire Industries in April 1987 to be used as storage and employee parking. All windows were boarded up and only the rear section of the building was heated.
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In March of 2002 the property was purchased by Heritage Development which is currently undertaking the complete renovation/restoration of the building and the associated two acre site. An Official Plan Amendment and Site Rezoning were completed in January 2004 which now permits a wide variety of commercial, industrial, and institutional uses.
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