There was a time when American Olean Tile was THE place to work in Lansdale.

Most people in the area either worked there or know someone employed at the huge tile-manufacturing facility in the borough.

Those days, sadly, are just a memory.

But the heyday of “the Tile” provided many pleasant memories for so many people, including Gloria Campbell of Lansdale, who provided the photo that we feature today.

Gloria said that she worked for the Tile for several years in the late 1960s and early 1970s, serving as the secretary for Ken Froeberg, a design architect.

“I told my husband I’d go to work for several years to pay for our son’s braces,” she said, noting how much more orthodontics costs today.

While there, she also served as one of the tour guides, a job she truly enjoyed, she said.

The photo that you see here includes Gloria.

Here are the young women featured in the photo:

Standing, left to right, are Linda Estep, Janet Helm, Dorothy Alderfer, Camilla Young, Dianne Linden, Gloria Campbell, Fran Harp, Becky Megonigal and Anne Marie Shannon, head tour guide.

Seated, from left, are Cindy Wampler, Linda Smith and Shirley Rosenberger.

Missing were vacationing Susan Goodfriend, Barbara Hosgood and Cathy Spear.

According to information in a Tile newsletter at the time, the tour guides were office employees who were chosen for their ability to meet and talk with people.

They would take eight practice tours and “must be letter perfect before they are permitted to take visitors around the plant.”

“They are trained to explain all the steps of our manufacturing process and to answer questions posed by our visitors — How many feet of tile do you manufacture in day? How can you tell what color the glaze is before it is fired? When do the Canada geese nest?”

We’re sure people who worked at the Tile have many tales to tell — and that these tour guides knew them all.