Social visionary N.O. Nelson founded the village of Leclaire in 1890, naming it after Edme Jean Leclaire, who inaugurated profit sharing in France. In contrast to unsanitary urban tenement districts, Leclaire was a model cooperative village offering affordable homes, a healthful environment, free education, many opportunities for recreation and self improvement, and pleasant working conditions at the N. O. Nelson manufacturing company. To support his commitment to the “Golden Rule” Nelson implemented profit sharing and employee benefits. During the Great Depression the city of Edwardsville annexed the village. Leclaire was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.
Explore these pages to find out what you can see, learn, and enjoy in Historic Leclaire.
Leclaire News
What's New?
December Newsletter
Newspaper Articles from the past:
Nelson's death and funeral (1922)
Nelson Memorial Fountain (1924)
Louis D. Lawnin Obituary (1940)
Woodenware (toys) Manufactured in Leclaire (1937)
Nelson Company Bankruptcy (1956)
About Poverty (1850)
Edme. Jean Leclaire Biography (1878)