The Parish Manufacturing Company was co-founded by Neff Parish and John Sullivan in 1905 in Reading, Pennsylvania. Prior to this, Neff Parish had worked with the Parish and Bingham Company in Cleveland, Ohio, where he pioneered the production of pressed-steel frames, which replaced traditional wooden and hand-shaped metal frames. These steel frames were critical for the durability required by early automobiles on rough unpaved roads.
The Parish Manufacturing Company was initially equipped with a 1,600-ton press and two 400-ton hydraulic presses, and it produced its first vehicle frame for the Stevens-Duryea company of Chicopee Falls, Massachusetts. By 1910, Parish Manufacturing was producing heavy-duty frames for notable manufacturers like Mack, Autocar, and White. After World War I, the company expanded its product line to include bus frames.
In 1926, Parish opened a new plant in Reading, PA, which featured advanced hydraulic presses capable of 4,000 tons of pressure. This plant played a significant role in the production of bus and truck frames in the U.S. at the time, continuing to innovate and expand its operations. Over the decades, Parish’s facilities in Reading played a crucial role in advancing technology, such as Dana’s Robo Clamp® hydroforming presses developed later in the 1990s, which applied up to 14,000 tons of clamping force.
The Parish operations in Reading were initially expanded due to demand from the booming automotive and commercial vehicle industries. This plant and its workforce played a key role in meeting the extraordinary production demands of World War II, undergoing multiple expansions to keep pace with military orders.
In the 1950s, Parish Manufacturing was acquired by the Dana Corporation, expanding Dana’s operations into Reading. Under Dana’s ownership, the Parish Manufacturing plant continued to produce frames and chassis components for heavy-duty trucks and other vehicles, becoming part of Dana’s broader network of automotive part manufacturers. The Reading plant, under Dana’s ownership, thrived during the post-World War II boom when automobile production soared.
Dana Corporation restructured its production facilities during the 1980s, shifting from larger plants to smaller regional facilities. By 1988, the company had closed or sold 45 facilities worldwide as part of its restructuring strategy.
However, by the early 2000s, economic challenges began affecting the manufacturing sector in the U.S., including automotive parts production. In response to financial pressures and market changes, Dana Corporation underwent restructuring, and in 2000, the Parish Manufacturing plant in Reading was closed as part of Dana’s broader corporate restructuring efforts to cope with changes in the automotive industry, including global competitiveness and evolving supplier logistics requirements. The decision was driven by the need to improve manufacturing efficiency by relocating facilities closer to customers’ operations.
Throughout its operational history, Dana Corporation was a significant employer on a global scale. At its peak, Dana operated around 320 major facilities in 32 countries, employing more than 82,000 workers worldwide. The Reading plant alone, at one point, employed nearly 3,000 people, making it one of the largest employers in Berks County, Pennsylvania. However, by the time the plant was nearing closure in the late 1990s, the number of employees at the Reading facility had reduced to around 900 workers due to various cutbacks and restructuring efforts. The plant’s closure in 2000 resulted in the loss of jobs for approximately 682 employees who remained at that time.
The Structural Products business of Dana Corporation at West Robeson and Weiser streets remained operational until 2010. The closure was part of a larger restructuring effort within the company, aimed at consolidating operations and reducing costs. After the shutdown, Dana sold much of its global Structural Products business to Metalsa S.A. de C.V., finalizing the transition of this division out of the company’s portfolio. About 70 workers were relocated to the company’s driveshaft production facility in Pottstown, PA.
The former Parish Division of the Dana Corporation complex in Reading, PA, was demolished in 2008, with the exception of four buildings at West Robeson and Weiser streets. After the plant’s closure in 2000, the site remained vacant for several years. The demolition was part of efforts to clear the site for future redevelopment and to address any environmental concerns left by the facility’s operations. The removal of the buildings marked the end of an era for the once-bustling industrial site.
After its closure, the Dana Corporation site became a focus of environmental remediation due to contamination from its manufacturing activities. Soil and groundwater at the site were found to be contaminated with hazardous substances, including lead, ethylbenzene, and PCBs. Cleanup efforts continued for several years, with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) overseeing the process. By 2016, groundwater migration was declared under control, and by 2023, the site was determined to be ready for reuse without unacceptable environmental risks.
In 2019, Carpenter Technology reached an agreement to purchase approximately 50 acres of land that was once part of the Dana Corporation’s operations in Reading for $6 million. This acquisition included four buildings located at the intersection of West Robeson and Weiser streets, along with the entirety of the property stretching from Union Street to West Robeson. The two largest buildings on the site measure 174,311 square feet and 122,914 square feet, respectively.
By 2023, the Reading City Council approved the sale of a 50-acre parcel west of Clinton Street, formerly known as the Dana South site, to NewCold for $4.5 million. The city had initially acquired the property in 2019 for $1.54 million from the Reading Redevelopment Authority, which had defaulted on a loan used to purchase the land. The Redevelopment Authority had originally obtained the site for $1.65 million in 2013, following the abandonment of the Berkshire Bottling Works project after it ran out of funds, leaving a partially built plant on the site.
NewCold USA Real Estate Holding LLC, a Europe-based logistics company, is planning to develop a state-of-the-art refrigerated warehouse and logistics facility on the 50-acre property, with the goal of establishing a major U.S. hub. The project has already received the necessary zoning approvals, and construction will begin once the final planning details are completed.
As of mid-2024, NewCold’s development on the former Dana Corporation site in Reading, PA, is progressing, though not yet finished. The Reading City Council extended the due diligence period to September 2024, allowing NewCold additional time to finalize zoning and site plans. The project involves the construction of a 417,000-square-foot cold storage and logistics warehouse, and with zoning approvals secured earlier this year, the developer is moving forward with preparations to build the facility at 1 Berkshire Place.
This new facility is expected to bring significant economic benefits to the area, including the creation of around 175 jobs once operational. However, there have been some delays in the final sale and planning phases.
Below: Dana South site at 1 Berkshire Place.
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