The hosiers

3 points of interest

• 

  

  History

  The Lavassac viaduct

  This steel bridge with a span of 80 metres and a weight of 418 tonnes was conceived by Gustave Eiffel in the late 19th century for the railway. A landowner whose parcels lay below the viaduct is believed to have won a lawsuit for damages because of the shade thrown by the bridge... Today, the section between Arre, Bez et Esparon and Molières-Cavaillac has been transformed into a walking and cycling path, accessible for non-motorised users, whether children or adults: 3.5 km to enjoy en famille, without danger, with little elevation gain and with two tunnels lit by solar energy.

• 

  

  History

  The former orphanage

  At the foot of the village, on the left, a building overlooking the river has a particular style. This is the former orphanage, which closed down in the early 20th century. Sainte Anne was home to poor young girls without families who mainly came from the Aveyron department. They worked in the village factory to unthread the silk it onto the spools. After work, they had to clean the orphanage and chapel as well as take care of the pigs and poultry. On the site of the orphanage there was a chapel, Sainte-Marie d'Arre. By popular demand, it was rededicated to Saint-Blaise, patron saint of weavers and carders.

• 

  

  History

  The hosiery industry and Arre

  Shortly after the church, on the left, you will see the Brun family residence and the dyeing factory. The railings of the factory gates came from the Château des Tuileries in Paris, which had been burned down in 1870. The village’s prosperity was linked to the hosiery industry and the Brun d'Arre company. This hosiery business, the oldest in the region, was first recorded in 1740. In the 1880s, the factory’s looms were mechanised to produce silk hosiery. Modernisation continued with the purchase of heavy-duty looms for cotton articles. In 1906, the company created the first brand of silk stockings, Lys stockings, which became internationally known. A fleur-de-lys was embroidered onto the stockings by workers working at home. In 1924, there were 600 of these workers. The combustible necessary for the industry to develop was supplied by the coal mines in Cavaillac, 7 km away.