Sharples Separator Works, Industrial heritage complex in West Chester, Pennsylvania, US.
The Sharples Separator Works is an industrial complex in West Chester composed of fourteen brick buildings erected between 1890 and 1909. The structures feature low-pitched roofs in gable and hip styles and occupy approximately 5 acres of land.
The facility was built to manufacture the Sharples centrifugal separator, a machine invented in America to separate cream from milk efficiently. This innovation transformed dairy farming practices in the late 1800s and made the region known for agricultural machinery.
The factory served as a hub for agricultural innovation and drew workers from surrounding areas who came to build machinery for dairy farming. The complex shows how industrial workers of that era earned their living and what their workplaces looked like.
The site is easily accessible and you can view the buildings from outside as you walk around the grounds. Visit during daylight hours and good weather to fully appreciate the details of the brick construction and roof styles.
The Sharples separator machine became so successful that the company had to expand the factory multiple times to keep up with demand from farmers across the country. This growth is visible in the architecture, where different building styles from successive decades can be spotted.
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