In the 19th century hand weaving with looms was the predominant activity of the surrounding villages. The Industrial Age in Erkelenz first began with the introduction of mechanical weaving looms for making cloth. In 1854 the Rockstoff Factory I.B. Oellers, was established on the present "Parkweg"; it was a mechanical weaving mill which, at times, employed 120 workers and 20 salesmen. In 1872 the mechanical plush weaving mill of Karl Müller (corner of "Kölner Straße" and "Heinrich Jansen Weg") was founded; it employed 60 hand weavers in Erkelenz and another 400 in the regions of Berg and the Rhön area for the main Erkelenz operation. In 1897 the Halcour Textile Factory appeared on "Neußer Straße", which had 67 male and 22 female workers in 1911 in its factory-owned health insurance department.