Williamsburg Soap And Candle Factory
The Williamsburg Soap and Candle Company, known to millions as just the "candle factory", was located in the Norge section of James City County, Virginia and first opened in 1965. It was located near the Williamsburg Pottery Factory and was a local icon and popular tourist attraction on the road to Williamsburg. It was founded by John Barnett, Sr., who moved a barn from a nearby farm and made it the first building of a complex which contained the manufacturing plant, numerous shops, and a restaurant. The factory was famous for making quality soap and candles.
At one time, the Williamsburg Candle Soap and Candle Co. was a major supplier of candles around the world both under their label as well as private label candles for companies such as Estee Lauder, Pottery Barn and others. They were known for their fine quality candles that were dripless and clean burning. All of its candles were made at the on-site manufacturing plant, and all of the candle-making equipment were designed and built by its owners and employees. Customers could view the products being made through a glass window in the store; and were allowed to dip their own candles.
Williamsburg Soap and Candle Company suffered greatly from the drop in tourism after 9/11/01 and from the pressure of cheap Chinese imports. These and other factors ultimately led to its closure in 2005. The company assets were sold at auction. Much of their equipment was purchased by Buyacandle.com. The land was sold to a local developer. The Candle Factory Restaurant remained, and renamed itself the Candle Light Restaurant. A few new stores moved into the vacant factory store fronts but never prospered. The restaurant, along with most of the shops, were forced to close because the space was bought by a large store of a pharmaceutical chain in 2008.
In 2011, the entire right side of the complex was demolished to make room for the new building. The left side of the complex, which includes the original barn, remain. On June 30, 2011, the Candle Light Restaurant reopened on the remaining side.
Read more about Williamsburg Soap And Candle Factory: Further Reading
Famous quotes containing the words soap, candle and/or factory:
“To know whether you are enjoying a piece of music or not you must see whether you find yourself looking at the advertisements of Pears’ soap at the end of the libretto.”
—Samuel Butler (1835–1902)
“How far that little candle throws his beams!
So shines a good deed in a naughty world.”
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616)
“Baltimore lay very near the immense protein factory of Chesapeake Bay, and out of the bay it ate divinely. I well recall the time when prime hard crabs of the channel species, blue in color, at least eight inches in length along the shell, and with snow-white meat almost as firm as soap, were hawked in Hollins Street of Summer mornings at ten cents a dozen.”
—H.L. (Henry Lewis)