Peoria Cordage Company - Peoria, Illinois
Posted by: 
BruceS
N 40° 40.806 W 089° 36.308
16T E 279836 N 4506509
Former binder twine and rope factory in Peoria, Illinois.
Waymark Code: WMBNE9
Location: Illinois, United States
Date Posted: 06/05/2011
Views: 1
"One of Peoria's oldest and most far reaching industrial plants, Peoria Cordage Company, was closely tied to the growth and expansion of American agriculture and had business dealings around the world.
Edward C. Heidrich of Miamisburg, Ohio, and Martin Kingman of Peoria, combined their successful businesses in 1888 to form the Peoria Cordage Company in response to the tremendous demand for binder twine sought for agricultural use in grain harvesting. The experience of both men (Heidrich already had a successful binder twine operation in Ohio, and Kingman ran a major agricultural implement manufacturing concern in Peoria) and the centralized location in their primary marked area combined into a very successful business.
The highly profitable agricultural development in the West and general business conditions gave rise to many monopolies or trusts. the Peoria Cordage Company was "forced" into the ill-fated National Cordage Trust which later collapsed shortly before the Panic of 1893. The Company suffered in the general collapse of business during this period but rebuilt to surpass its previous level of success with eventually 350 people on its payroll, a 24-hour work schedule, and a second mill constructed to handle the increasing demand.
The Company remained in the control of the Heidrich family, leadership being passed on to E.C. Heidrich's sons, A.G. Heidrich and E.C. Heidrich, Jr., and eventually to the third generation represented by William S. Miles, Jr. and Theodore H. Page, Jr....
Decline in the production of twine and similar products was caused by not only foreign labor cost competition but also from the introduction of new farm machinery such as the combination harvester and threshing machines. These machines resulted in the economic advantages to the farmer due to faster harvest and eliminated the step of binding the stalks for later threshing. In response to this change in the market, Peoria Cordage Company modified its operation, producing different products to meet the demands in other agricultural area. several products were produced in the plant including binder twine, rope, baler twine, and wrapping twine, all of which required specialized techniques and fibers unique to each product. In the period between 1965 through 1975, the Company had begun using synthetics but the eventual end of the Company was caused by the widening gap between domestic and foreign labor rates and eventual cost of bulk and finished materials." - National Register Nomination form