During the darkest days of the Great Depression the Cigar Factory was one of the few civilian workplaces that provided secure employment for a full day's wages. Cigars were produced in the building for 70 years and at its high point, 1.5 million cigars rolled out of the factory each day.

The building later began converting to office and warehouse space, and over the next decade, as the owners struggled to find the right use for the building. In 1980 the Cigar Factory was listed on the National Register of Historic Places and shortly thereafter, they welcomed Johnson and Wales, the famed culinary school, which became the largest tenant.