Stehli Silks
Stehli Silks (formerly Stehli Silks Corporation) was a Swiss textile manufacturing company. Founded in 1837, Stehli Silks was among the largest silk fabric producers in the world, with a workforce exceeding 4,000 people (1920) at its peak. More than half of its workforce was employed at the subsidiary Stehli Silks Corporation in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, which opened in 1897. In 1996, the concern ceased manufacturing operations, and was converted into a real estate company that was only active in Switzerland (Stehli-Areal in Obfelden). The former mills in Lancaster were sold to Stehli Mill, LLC, a joint-venture between Rhode Island and Maryland-based real estate developers, but their redevelopment efforts stalled.In 2015, the former mills in Lancaster were added to the National Register of Historic Places. In 2023, the new developers began construction of 165 loft-style apartments in the former silk mills with plans to market the redeveloped site as Stehli Mill Lofts. History Origins Stehli Silks was founded in 1837 by Swiss Rudolf Stehli-Hausheer (1816–1884) in the village of Obfelden near Zürich. He was originally a merchant and wine merchant who also served as a member of the Cantonal Council of Zürich and the National Council (Switzerland). In 1840, he started to