The velocipede dealership founded in 1880 by Heinrich Kleyer (1853-1932) started the industrial production of Penny-Farthings one year later. In 1886, the first 'low-bicycles', (similar to todays machines) were built, they were given pneumatic tyres in 1893. In 1896 typewriters, patented in America, were produced. In 1890, the production started in the new, modern factory premises in Frankfurt, behind the Galgen Watchtower - now called the Gallus Watchtower. In 1895 the Heinrich-Kleyer-Werke changed it's name to The Adler-Fahrradwerke AG (Adler-Bicycle-works). In 1907 the building was given the name Adlerwerke. The first motor-tricycle was built in 1899, the first motor car in 1900 and the first motorcycle in 1901.

In 1914, 20% of all the cars registered in Germany carried the Adler name. In 1916, the 500.000th bicycle was delivered. The Adler Standard 6, Adler Trumpf, Adler Trumpf Junior and Adler 2,5 liter were, until 1939, successful motor car models and held 3rd - 5th place as far as annual registrations in the German Empire were concerned. At the beginning of the war the Adlerwerke were pulled into the production of armaments, where an increasing number of prisoners of war had to carry out forced labour. In 1944, after being heavily bombed, the building was destroyed. From September 1944 until three days before the Americans marched into Frankfurt it was misused as the concentration camp 'Katzbach', in which only 60 of the 1600 interned prisoners survived.

The attempt, after the war, with new models, to continue the motor car production was abandoned in 1948. Adler concentrated itself in 1949, on the successful production of motorcycles and office equipment. The first electric typewriter was sold in 1954. The trend was towards the motor car and after building 88.000 motorcycles, Adler was led, due to over-production, into the crisis. Adler had to merge with Triumph under the ownership of Grundig, they then changed over to the production of office equipment.

In 1961, Triumph-Adler was sold to the Americam Litton-Company, in 1979, to the Volkswagen-Works and in 1987, to the Italian office equipment manufacturer, Olvetti. The introduction of computers into offices led to the production-stop in Kleyer Street. The property with the buildings, which were protected as a national heritage, were sold to subsidiaries of the investment company, Roland Ernst and Philipp Holzmann AG. The remainder of the factory in Griesheim was sold by Olivetti to the IMM Holding Company in 1994 and which was finally closed down on the 30th of June 1998. After gutting the buildings and decontaminating the terrain, the old buildings were rebuilt and rented by administrative and service businesses. The sections of the building were owned by the investment funds of banks. As a present to the district of Gallus, the investors provided a new home for the Gallus Theater in the refurbished, old Adler Factory, at a reduced leasing rate.