What is now Gateway Business Center was once the giant plastics manufacturer that dubbed Leominster the Pioneer Plastics City.
In 1901, the Sterling Comb Company was established in the location that is now Gateway Business Center. One of the men who founded the company was Bernard Doyle who became a pioneer in the plastics industry.
By 1912, the company began producing far more than just combs. Ownership decided to change the name of the company to the Viscoloid Company. The Viscoloid Company was the first plastic manufacturer to use pyroxylin plastic in their products.
In 1914, the Viscoloid Company began producing pyroxylin plastic toys. This quickly became the company's most profitable production. Before long the Viscoloid Company was the biggest pyroxylin plastic toy manufacturer in the United States.
Bernard Doyle had taken complete ownership of the Viscoloid Company by 1923. At this point, the company was the largest employer in Leominster and occupied over 100 buildings in the area.
In 1925, the company was renamed Dupont Viscoloid Company after being purchased by the Dupont Company. The Company would remain a leader in the plastics industry until its closing in 1977.
Today Gateway Business Center is one of the few buildings left standing that was an original Viscoloid building. Despite being beautifully renovated, the building still possesses a sense of history and industrial innovation.
