Inland Cigar Factory. The Inland Cigar Factory was established in 1894 by George Borthwick. The following year, in 1895, the company was dramatically reorganized and refinanced, and this fine building erected. At the time of construction, 1st Avenue was in the middle of the thriving downtown commercial district. The factory employed twenty-five workers who produced up to 4,000 cigars a day. Consultants from Cuba were brought in to show the workers how authentic Cuban cigars, made with blends of local and Cuban tobacco, should be rolled. When the company moved to Victoria in 1908, five former employees formed the Western Cigar Manufacturing Company. In 1913, they moved into the building next door at 291-293. The original factory building became the Model Bakery for many years. The Fuoco family ran the bakery, and they became famous for their bread. Over the years, the business district moved farther east down Victoria Street, and 1st Avenue declined as a commercial area. Successive businesses have occupied the old factory, and the original wood and brick building has been stuccoed and painted over. However, evidence of the brick and wood can still be found on the north and east sides of the structure.