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History - The Past

Glassboro has a rich history built on, none other than, the manufacturing of glass. Established in 1779 by Solomon Stanger, the town was first known as "Glass Works in the Woods." Over the years, the glass factory changed ownership many times. It was known as Heston-Carpenter Glass Works, the Olive Works, the Harmony Glass Works, the Temperanceville Glass Works, the Whitney Brothers Glass Works, the Owens Bottle Company, the Owens Illinois Glass Company and Anchor Hocking.

During the 1840's, the factory was under the ownership of the Whitney Brothers and Glassboro became one of the largest communities in Gloucester County with a blacksmith, wheelright, carpenter, shoemaker and mason. The Whitney Brothers also built the historic Hollybush mansion, where in 1967 President Lyndon Johnson and Soviet Premier Aleksei Kosygin hosted the summit conference that led to a thaw in the Cold War and eased world tensions.

During the twentieth century the factory was relocated from the center of the town and changed its focus from glass manufacturing to the production of metal closures for glass and metal containers. Then in 1923, Glassboro gained recognition, as it became the home of the New Jersey Normal School, later to become Glassboro State College and now the renowned Rowan University.

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