The history of Angers-Trélazé? slate goes back
a long way, as traces of slate quarries have
been found dating as far back as the 8th century.
At that time, Trelaze schist was mainly used
as a construction material, for building the
walls of cottages, manor houses and castles.

The fine towers of Angers Castle, a magnificent
and impregnable mediaeval fortress, were built
of Trélazé schist. In the 9th century,
our ancestors began to use it as a roofing material.
But it was not until the 16th and 17th centuries
that Angers-Trelaze? slate developed its full potential,
becoming the standard roofing material used on
all the royal and seigniorial residences, such a
the Loire Chateaux, Versailles, etc.

For more than eight centuries a number of
slate companies shared the "black gold" of Anjou,
found at ground level in the Angers Region,
especially in the town of Trélazé.
In 1891, the largest producers merged to create
the Société des Ardoisières d''Angers,
a new structure to p... [Detail]