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Loebl Dye Works Photograph Collection

Dublin Core

Title

Loebl Dye Works Photograph Collection

Description

This small collection of photographs contains images of Loebl Dye Works, formerly located at 350 Salem Avenue. The company was started by Josef Loebl in the 1920s and existed until 1981. Some of the photographs were part of Mary Bishop's feature story, "DyeingG De Luxe' Loebl Dye Works Served the White House, Fancy Resorts and Regular Folks Who Just Wanted to Turn a Grungy Old Coat Bright Blue", which was printed in the Roanoke Times on 19 February 1998. For her research, Bishop interviewed Tina Loebl, widow of Walter Loebl.

Creator

Various photographers

Publisher

Roanoke Public Libraries

Contributor

Tina Loebl and Mary Bishop

Rights

Please contact the Virginia Room at 540.853.2073 for permission to use.

Format

Photographs

Type

Still Images

Collection Items

LDW1 Loebl, Josef
Josef Loebl stands next to a Vorclone drying tumbler in Loebl Dye Works, formerly located at 350 Salem Avenue.

LDW2 Loebl Dye Works
Left to Right: Josef Loebl, Robert Loebl, Julia Loebl, _____, and Roy Hargraves in front of Loebl Dye Works, formerly on Salem Avenue.

LDW3 Dyeing Vats
Left to right: Roy Hargraves, Josef Loebl and Robert Loebl in a dyeing room of Loebl Dye Works, formerly located on Salem Avenue.

LDW4 Cleaning and Alterations
In addition to dyeing, Loebl also provided dry cleaning and alteration services. Photo is labeled with the following names, though their order as they appear is unclear: Minnie Duncan, Gertrude Gentry, Mrs. Flippen, Stella Taylor, and Miss Sandberg

LDW5 Loebl, Josef
Hungarian born, Josef Loebl grew up in Austia. He set up his dyeing and cleaning shop on Salem Avenue in the 1920s.

LDW6 Loebl Fleet
A fleet of four Loebl Dye Works dry cleaning trucks parked in front of Loebl Dye Works on Salem Avenue.

LDW7 Loebl Fleet
Loebl Dye Works dry cleaning trucks parked in front of Loebl Dye Works on Salem Avenue.

LDW8 Customer Counter
Robert Loebl, Hattie Mae Beck and Iva M. Spangler in the pick-up and drop-off area of Loebl Dye Works.

LDW9 Loebl Interior
Josef Loebl (center) and two unidentified men in "storefront" of Loebl Dye Works

LDW10 Staging Area
William Staples, Iva Staples and an unknown woman prepare garments for cleaning and alterations at Loebl Dye Works.

LDW11 Cleaning Area
Unidentified Loebl employees in the cleaning area.

LDW12 Dyeing Area
Unidentified Loebl employees in the dyeing area.

LDW13 Cleaning Area
Robert Loebl (left) inspects the work of unidentified employees on the Hoffman Pressing Machine.

LDW14 Cleaning Area
Robert Loebl (left) and two unidentfied men in the next to the cleaning tumblers.

LDW15 Loebl Dye Works
As seen here, Loebl Dye Works once filled a row of buildings on Salem Avenue.

LDW16 Package
This package illustrates just how well known Loebl Dye Works was, not just locally, but globally. This was sent from a dry cleaner in New Zealand for dye work. Among other clients of Loebl were the White House, the Greenbrier, New York designers…

LDW17 Loebl Dye Works
After the explosion of synthetic fabrics in the 1970s, Loebl Dye Works went out of business in 1981. The building was razed in 2001. The buildings at left in this photograph were also once used by the business and still stand today.
View all 17 items