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Le moulin en chocolat  :

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                Qui ne se souvient pas, enfant, avoir croqué dans une plaquette de chocolat Menier ? Cette réussite familiale exemplaire débute au XIXème siècle. A cette époque le chocolat, comme le thé ou le café, était particulièrement consommé pour ses vertus curatives. 
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           Jean-Antoine Brutus Menier (1795-1853), pharmacien de son état, décide de se lancer dans la production de chocolat alimentaire et bon pour la santé, en plus de ses poudres médicamenteuses.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               

Célèbre campagne publicitaire pour le chocolat Menier

Cette activité prend rapidement son essor et, en 1834, Jean-Antoine Menier rachète un moulin qui surplombe la Marne, à Noisiel . Il se sert de la force hydraulique pour broyer finement les poudres curatives et les fèves de cacao : une grande amélioration technique pour l"époque !
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             Continuant d'innover, Jean-Antoine Menier crée, en 1836, la première tablette de chocolat enrobée dans du papier. C’est un succès immédiat.

En 1842, sa santé commençant à décliner, Jean-Antoine laisse les rênes de l’entreprise à son fils Emile-Justin Menier.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             Au moment de la passastion, le moulin a encore un aspect rudimentaire, mais en 1867, alors que le site est recentré sur la production unique de chocolat, des travaux importants d’extension commencent. C’est l’architecte Jules Saulnier qui est choisi pour mener à bien cette construction. Le chantier sera en fait une révolution architecturale !                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       

Le moulin construit par Jules Saulnier en 1872

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      Achevé Achevé en 1872, le nouveau moulin Menier est le premier bâtiment au monde à avoir une structure en fer apparente. Cette innovation ouvre la voie à des audaces de plus en plus importantes dont la plus impressionnante et la plus célèbre est la Tour Eiffel !

La structure métallique du moulin construit par Jules Saulnier

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   Les Les façades, qui étaient auparavant à pans de bois, sont donc remplacées par un treillage de fer agrémenté de briques vernissées ou ornées de céramiques. Les motifs ornementaux créés s’inscrivent dans le courant orientaliste. Ce style architectural se reconnaît aux motifs d'arabesques, aux clavaux de couleurs alternées ou encore aux céramiques polychromes. L'orientalisme est en vogue depuis les années 1820, mais il devient encore plus important à la fin du XIXème siècle, avec la colonisation du Maghreb et l’étude approfondie du Palais de l’Alhambra de Grenade, en Espagne.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              

Détail de la façade du moulin

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          La La Famille Menier est également innovatrice en matière sociale ! Devenu maire de Noisiel en 1871, Emile-Justin décide de faire construire une cité ouvrière, sur le modèle anglais et de la cité de Mulhouse, pour accueillir quelques-uns des 2200 salariés de la chocolaterie. Il fait placer l’école au centre de la cité en symbole de l’élévation ouvrière et il place en principales préoccupations l’hygiène et la santé.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               

Emile-Justin Menier par Nadar

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  Après Après la Seconde Guerre Mondiale, l’entreprise Menier, restée aux mains de la famille, subit de plein fouet la concurrence des produits américains et perd peu à peu de son influence. Elle finit par être rachetée par Nestlé qui fait du moulin de Noisiel son siège social français en 1996.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        Noisiel a été classée Ville d’Art et d’Histoire en 2000, en reconnaissance de son riche patrimoine industriel et historique.