Factories were located adjacent to the docks for ease of access to raw goods and for the shipping of finished products. Gwynne & Co.'s Palmic Sperm Works at the Atlantic Docks made candles for general consumption and bulk palmic sperm blocks for manufactorers. Palmic sperm oil, a plant based alternative to sperm whale oil, is made from castor oil. Both were commonly burned for light until the early 1900s when the electric light bulb began to be widely adopted.

Advertisement:
"Palmic Sperm Works, Atlantic Docks Brooklyn, Gwynne & Co. Proprietors, Palmic Sperm blocks for Manufacturers, Candles for Export and General Consumption."