Photos: Barber-Colman complex in Rockford then and now

January 17, 2023|By Kevin Haas|In Photo Gallery, 815 News, Local, Rockford, Trending
The Barber-Colman Company was one of Rockford’s largest manufacturers. It was established in 1900 and spent more than 80 years operating in the same location. The complex has been vacant since 2001, when then occupant Reed-Chatwood closed. (Black-and-white photos via Midway Village Museum, color photos by Kevin Haas/Rock River Current)
By Kevin Haas
Rock River Current
Get our mobile app

ROCKFORD — Time and vacancy have been cruel to the former Barber-Colman factory on South Main Street.

The once-bustling complex has been empty since 2002, and for years it has been a monument of blight with busted out windows, partially collapsed roofing and rundown facade.

It looks much different than the company Howard Colman started in the early 1900s in partnership with investor W. A. Barber.

Full story: A look inside at the history and decay of the Barber-Colman complex in south Rockford

Today, we’re providing a look back at the factory through images from the Midway Village Museum archives alongside our own photos of what the site looks like now.

While these aren’t direct shot-for-shot comparisons, they do provide a perspective of the history of the complex and its current state.

More photos: Harlem Globetrotters bring World Tour to BMO Center in Rockford
More photos: Snømarket 2022 at The Norwegian in Rockford

Barber-Colman then and now

The full Barber-Colman campus in south Rockford is pictured in 1924. (Photo via Midway Village Museum archives)
The Barber-Colman complex in south Rockford on Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023. (Photo by Kevin Haas/Rock River Current)
The groundbreaking for Building No. 5 at the Barber-Colman complex in south Rockford circa 1907. (Photo via Midway Village Museum archives)
The Barber-Colman complex, with the Morgan Street bridge in the background, on Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023, in south Rockford. (Photo by Kevin Haas/Rock River Current)
The interior of the Barber-Colman complex in south Rockford is shown in this undated photo. (Photo via Midway Village Museum archives)
The interior of the Barber-Colman complex on Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023, in south Rockford. (Photo by Kevin Haas/Rock River Current)
The Barber-Colman complex looking northeast from Rock Street is shown in this undated photo. (Photo via Midway Village Museum archives)
Building No. 5 looking northwest from the interior of the Barber-Colman complex toward Rock Street on Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2022, in south Rockford. (Photo by Kevin Haas/Rock River Current)
Textile machinery lines the Barber-Colman complex in this undated photo. (Photo via Midway Village Museum archives)
Pieces of equipment is left behind inside the Baber-Colman complex on Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2022, in south Rockford. (Photo by Kevin Haas/Rock River Current)
This undated photo shows a dinner at the Barber-Colman complex in Rockford. (Photo via Midway Village Museum archives)
Inside one of the building on the former Barber-Colman manufacturing complex on Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2022, in south Rockford. (Photo by Kevin Haas/Rock River Current)
A Barber-Colman employee at work in this undated photo. (Photo via Midway Village Museum archives)
The interior of Building No. 18 of the former Barber-Colman complex on Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2022, in south Rockford. (Photo by Kevin Haas/Rock River Current)
Former buildings Nos. 1, 2, 3 at the Barber-Colman Co. complex in 1907. (Photo via Midway Village Museum archives)
Building No. 5 at the former Barber-Colman Co. complex on Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2022, in south Rockford. (Photo by Kevin Haas/Rock River Current)
Additions are made to Building No. 5 at the former Barber-Colman complex in 1913. (Photo via Midway Village Museum archives)
Rob Wilhelmi, Brownfields redevelopment specialist for the city of Rockford, looks over the interior of building No. 18 on Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023, in south Rockford. (Photo by Kevin Haas/Rock River Current)
An aerial view of the Barber-Colman Co. complex looking east is shown in this undated photo. (Photo via Midway Village Museum archives)
The former Barber-Colman Co. complex on Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023, in south Rockford. (Photo by Kevin Haas/Rock River Current)
The inside of the former Barber-Colman Co. factory is shown in this undated photo. (Photo via Midway Village Museum archives)
A connecting walkway inside the former Barber-Colman Co. complex on Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023, in south Rockford. (Photo by Kevin Haas/Rock River Current)
An aerial shot of the Barber-Colman Co. complex from the 1960s. (Photo via Midway Village Museum archives)
The former Barber-Colman Co. complex on Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023, in south Rockford. (Photo by Kevin Haas/Rock River Current)
A scene depicting the interior of the Barber-Colman Association Clubroom with spectators assembled to watch employee boxing matches. The BCA sponsored athletic programs, special events, dances, and banquets for employees. This photograph was printed in the BCA News, Vol. 2, No. 6, page 3, in 1918. (Photo via Midway Village Museum archives)
The former Barber-Colman Co. complex on Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023, in south Rockford. (Photo by Kevin Haas/Rock River Current)
Inside of the former Barber-Colman Co. complex in south Rockford. Photo undated. (Photo via Midway Village Museum archives)
The inside of building No. 18 of the former Barber-Colman Co. factory on Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2022, in south Rockford. (Photo by Kevin Haas/Rock River Current)
The former Barber-Colman Co. complex on Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023, in south Rockford. (Photo by Kevin Haas/Rock River Current)
A former Barber-Colman Co. employee is shown at work in this undated photo. (Photo via Midway Village Museum archives)
The former Barber-Colman Co. complex on Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023, in south Rockford. (Photo by Kevin Haas/Rock River Current)
The former Barber-Colman Co. complex on Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023, in south Rockford. (Photo by Kevin Haas/Rock River Current)
The former Barber-Colman Co. complex on Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023, in south Rockford. (Photo by Kevin Haas/Rock River Current)
Mushrooms grow on the floor of the former Barber-Colman Co. factory on Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023, in south Rockford. (Photo by Kevin Haas/Rock River Current)
The former Barber-Colman Co. complex on Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023, in south Rockford. (Photo by Kevin Haas/Rock River Current)
A view of south Rockford and the Morgan Street bridge from on top of the Barber-Colman Co. complex on Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023, in south Rockford. (Photo by Kevin Haas/Rock River Current)
An old basketball hoop rests on the ground outside the former Barber-Colman Co. factory on Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2022, in south Rockford. (Photo by Kevin Haas/Rock River Current)

This photo gallery is by Kevin Haas. Email him at khaas@rockrivercurrent.com or follow him on Twitter at @KevinMHaas or Instagram @thekevinhaas.