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| Paragon Picture Gallery Corporate Office/Manufacturing Facility |
When we were in Albertville (population 22,386), we had the opportunity to visit the Paragon Picture Gallery and Propac Images factories where wall-art is manufactured. The staffs at both facilities were great to visit with and we really appreciated their southern hospitality.
In 1970, the Glassco family founded Carousel Decors to provide accessory packages for the manufactured housing industry. Then, in 1975, the family purchased a competitor, Paragon Decors, and retained the company's name.
As the business grew, second generation Glassco family members joined the business and in 1981 a national showroom was opened with sales rep coverage.
By 1989 a larger facility was needed. To meet the increased wall-art demand, a new 44,000 sq.ft. manufacturing facility was constructed and additional types of products were produced. During the manufacturing processes, large quantities of usable scrap materials were created, so in 1990 a second company, Propac Images, was founded to make smaller products using as much of the Propac scrap materials as possible.
In 1995, the manufacturing facility was expanded to 86,000 sq.ft. and in 2001 a corporate showroom was opened in Chicago.
By 2005, the company had once again outgrown the manufacturing building, so a new 150,000 sq.ft. corporate office/manufacturing facility was constructed. With increased manufacturing capacity, corporate showrooms were opened in Las Vegas (2007), High Point in North Carolina (2008), and Atlanta (2013).
The Paragon and Propac manufacturing facilities are now located in separate buildings and the businesses are operated as two separate companies. Paragon is the larger facility, so we toured the factory first and then followed with a tour of the Propac facility that uses similar manufacturing processes. Third generation Glassco family members now work at both companies.
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| Art Design Room - Picture by Kolohe |
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| Photographing Art Work for Sales Catalogue |
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| Artist at Work - Picture by Kolohe |
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| Artists Work Area |
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| Artist at Work - Picture by Kolohe |
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| Master Print Storage Area - Picture by Kolohe |
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| Mat Board Cutting Area |
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| Picture Frame Stock Storage Area - Picture by Kolohe |
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| Frame Stock Cutting Area - Picture by Kolohe |
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| Cutting Machine - Picture by Kolohe |
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| Cut Picture Frame Stock Ready For Assembly - Picture by Kolohe |
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| Picture Frame Stock Assemblage - Picture by Kolohe |
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| Finished Picture Frames - Picture by Kolohe |
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| Pictures Ready to be Mounted in Frames - Picture by Kolohe |
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| Assemblage of Final Product - Picture by Kolohe |
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| Final Product Order Collection Area |
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| Manufacturing Shipping Boxes. (Order is being Shipped to Las Vegas) - Picture by Kolohe |
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| Boxes Waiting for Shipment to Retailers - Picture by Kolohe |
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| Propac Images Corporate Office/Manufacturing Facility |
Albertville is known as the "Fire Hydrant Capital of the World" and on July 21, 2016, the Mueller Company produced the four millionth hydrant. The hydrant was chrome plated and placed on a pedestal in front of the Chamber of Commerce building near the Main Street Music Festival Logo and the Albertville Train Depot.
Although Guntersville is the county seat of Marshall County, there is also a courthouse located in Albertville for the convenience of people that live in the Albertville-Sand Mountain area.
Guntersville (population 8,553) has an interesting history.
In order to obtain land for salt mining, John Gunther, the great-great grandfather of humorous Will Rogers, married the Cherokee Indian Chief's daughter and then gave salt to the Indians for their lands. The town that sprang up next to the mine was eventually named Guntersville, after John Gunther.
As we were entering Scottsboro (population 15,578) we noted some interesting roadside art at the Patches Merchant Emporium. The artwork was unique, but a little too large to purchase and carry home with us.
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| Picture by Kolohe |
At the Jackson County Courthouse there is an unusual looking statue of Andrew Jackson. Jackson's head is no wider than his neck; thus, the statue has been nicknamed "Pencil head Jackson."
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| Picture by Kolohe |
Most tourists travel to Scottsboro to visit the world famous Unclaimed Baggage Center that has been featured in numerous magazines and television programs. This is the nation's only retailer of lost luggage.
It is hard to believe, but about 1.4 million airline bags are lost each year, or about 3,800 bags per day, 7-days per week. Almost all of the lost bags eventually reach their owners, but the contents of a small number of bags that never reach their owners are sold at the Unclaimed Baggage Center.
Some of the more unusual items discovered in the lost luggage are on display and not for sale. Unfortunately, clothing was the most common item for sale, which is what would be expected considering that the items are from suitcases. Most of the non-clothing items that we looked at were dated or in questionable condition, so we did not purchase anything.
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| Picture by Kolohe |
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| Picture by Kolohe |
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