History of Connecticut industry
Encyclopedia
The history of Connecticut Industry is a major part of the history of Connecticut
. Between the birth of the U.S. patent system in 1790 and 1930, Connecticut had more patents issued per capita than any other state; in the 19th century, when the U.S. as a whole was issued one patent per three thousand population, Connecticut inventors were issued one patent for every 700–1000 residents. Connecticut's first recorded invention was a lapidary
machine, by Abel Buell
of Killingworth
, in 1765.
the most significant. The development by Eli Whitney
of the system of precision manufacturing of interchangeable parts
and the assembly line
in the late 18th century, however made Connecticut into a major center of manufacturing. This development changed "made in the United States" from a phrase connoting shoddy workmanship and expensive maintenance, into a world standard for high quality, and the entire system became known as the American system of manufacturing
.
In the late 18th century, the Connecticut government engaged in financial incentives for building and operating textile mills.
The Connecticut Valley (Wethersfield
, East Windsor
, and Colchester
) was a center of cabinetmaking and furniture construction in the latter half of the 18th century. Beginning in the Queen Anne
style, by the end of the period the furniture had evolved into four distinct variations of the Chippendale
style; that of Eliphalet Chapin
, one of the masters of the craft, who tended to produce pieces which were more compact and chunky in appearance, incorporating some of the Philadelphia rococo
style without as much fussiness; that of the Colchester
/Norwich
area, exemplified by Samuel Loomis
, as well as those of the Wethersfield
and Springfield
–Northampton
areas.
of democracy." This all started in 1797 when Eli Whitney began to manufacture weapons, later the Connecticut Valley Arms company. Middletown, Connecticut
was the major supplier of pistol
s to the United States government during the War of 1812
, with numerous gun manufacturers in the area. In 1810, Oliver Bidwell built the first pistol
factory in the United States on the Pameacha River in Middletown, winning a contract with the United States War Department for handmade pistols. Also in 1810, Colonel Simeon North
built a pistol factory in Middletown on the West River, now the Coginchaug River
, also winning a contract from the United States Secretary of War
, which led to enlarging his factory to 8,500 square feet (790 m²); he built about 10,000 pistols a year, up until just before the Civil War
, designing America's first milling machine
. Even more successful was Colonel Nathan Starr Jr., whose factory (built of stone quarried from the river) was about the same size as North's, and located across the river half a mile northeast. Starr initially manufactured sword
s, about 5,000 a year; including presentation swords for the state of Tennessee
and War of 1812
heroes, colonel Richard M. Johnson
, General Edmond P. Gaines, and General Andrew Jackson
. The factory later manufactured musket
s and rifles until 1845, after which the United States government started government armories
in Massachusetts
and West Virginia
partially modeled after Starr's. In 1812, John R. Johnson and J. D. Johnson built a factory, also on the Pameacha River, which was to sell rifles to the government until 1825. After this period, firearm manufacturing declined in Middletown, but briefly revived during the Civil War. The Savage Revolving Fire Arm Company manufactured pistols between 1859 and 1866, and the Sage Ammunition Works manufactured ammunition between 1864 and 1867.
In 1836, Samuel Colt
invented the revolver
design which continues to be used to this day. Colt's Manufacturing Company
hired Elisha K. Root
to modernize production, making Colt weapons the first in the world with truly interchangeable parts. Horace Smith
and Daniel B. Wesson
designed the first repeating rifle
in Norwich
in the early 1850s, which went into production by the New Haven Arms Company (which later became the Winchester Repeating Arms Company
), and, just across the border in Massachusetts
, the Springfield Armory
. Smith also patented a metallic rifle cartridge in 1854. Christian Sharps
designed the Sharps breech-loading rifle which in 1854 began to be manufactured in Hartford by the Sharps Rifle Manufacturing Company
. Christopher Spencer designed the Spencer repeating rifle
which played an important role for Union
troops at the Battle of Gettysburg
.
Another area where precision manufacture led to industrial dominance for Connecticut was in the manufacture of clock
s, watches, and other timepieces, by Eli Terry
and his apprentice Seth Thomas
, the Forestville Manufacturing Company (which became the E. N. Welch Company), the New England Clock Company, the Ansonia Clock Company
, Gilbert Clocks, Ingraham Clocks, the New Haven Clock Company, Welch Clocks, Sessions Clocks, and the Waterbury Clock Company, which became Timex Group USA, and is the sole Connecticut survivor of this once flourishing field, now decimated by lower costs of production elsewhere, in the United States and overseas. The American Clock and Watch Museum
is located in Bristol, Connecticut
.
Similarly, Connecticut industry became well known in allied fields. Hardware and tools continue to be manufactured by Stanley Corporation in New Britain
, despite having almost moved elsewhere for financial reasons. Connecticut was a major area for development and manufacture of machine tool
s. In 1818, Simeon North
designed America's first milling machine
. Machinist Elisha Root first designed machinery for the Collins Company of Collinsville
which manufactured axe
s which became world-famous, then was hired by Colt in 1849 to modernize firearm production by designing precision drop hammer
s, boring machine
s, gauge
s, jig
s, etc., and improving the milling machines designed by Francis A. Pratt
for the George S. Lincoln company in Hartford; the resulting Lincoln miller became world-famous, selling over 150,000 machines. Another Colt engineer, William Mason
, patented 125 inventions for manufacture of firearms, as well as steam pumps and power looms. Christopher Spencer invented the automatic turret lathe
(which in its small- to medium-sized form is known as a screw machine
) for machining screws, as well as the variable cam cylinder used to control the turret. Francis A. Pratt
and Amos Whitney
invented a thread milling machine in 1865; Whitney also perfected various measurement instruments, and Pratt designed the aforementioned original milling machine manufactured by the George S. Lincoln company of Hartford. Simon Fairman
invented the lathe chuck in West Stafford
in 1830, and his son-in-law, Austin F. Cushman
, invented the self-centering Cushman Universal Chuck in 1862. Edward P. Bullard
designed the vertical boring mill in 1883. Charles E. Billings
perfected the drop hammer for metal forging in the 1870s and designed the copper commutator
central to the operation of electrical generator
s and motor
s. Edwin R. Fellows
of Torrington
in 1896 designed and built a new type of gear shaper
and founded the Fellows Gear Shaper Company, which made a vital contribution to the manufacture of effective and reliable gear transmissions
for the nascent automotive industry
. The name Bridgeport
on machine tools continues to be a guarantee of high quality around the world, for people who have no idea that the machinery is named after a city in Connecticut. Even the world of toys was dominated by the A. C. Gilbert Company
, manufacturers of Erector Set
s as well as other educational toys such as chemistry set
s, microscope
s, toy train
s, etc.
Another area of industry where Connecticut excelled was in bicycle manufacturing, and its spin-off, the earliest automobile manufacturing. Albert Pope of Hartford saw a bicycle in Philadelphia in 1876 and was immediately enthralled with the concept of an "ever-saddled horse that eats nothing and requires no care." He subsequently began the first bicycle manufacturing in America, Columbia Bicycles, and set about marketing the vehicle, setting up a system of distributorships with fixed prices, hiring doctors to tout cycling as healthy exercise, and founding cycling magazines. When the safety bicycle
was developed in the 1880s, he was in a perfect position to benefit from the subsequent craze.
Connecticut also became an innovative leader in the shipbuilding
industry. The first recorded steam powered boat in America was built by South Windsor
's John Fitch
in 1786. The first military submarine
, the Turtle
, was built in Connecticut in 1775 by David Bushnell
; since then, Connecticut has remained a world leader in the manufacture of these specialized ships. Simon Lake
produced submarines for the US Navy in Bridgeport, beginning in 1913, and the work done by John P. Holland led to submarine production by the Electric Boat Company in Groton
beginning in 1924, which continues to this day.
History of Connecticut
The U.S. state of Connecticut began as three distinct settlements, referred to at the time as "Colonies" or "Plantations". These ventures were eventually combined under a single royal charter in 1662.-Colonies in Connecticut:...
. Between the birth of the U.S. patent system in 1790 and 1930, Connecticut had more patents issued per capita than any other state; in the 19th century, when the U.S. as a whole was issued one patent per three thousand population, Connecticut inventors were issued one patent for every 700–1000 residents. Connecticut's first recorded invention was a lapidary
Lapidary
A lapidary is an artist or artisan who forms stone, mineral, gemstones, and other suitably durable materials into decorative items such as engraved gems, including cameos, or cabochons, and faceted designs...
machine, by Abel Buell
Abel Buell
Abel Buell , born in Killingworth, Connecticut, was a goldsmith, silversmith, jewelry designer, engraver, surveyor, type manufacturer, mint master, textile miller, and counterfeiter in the American colonies...
of Killingworth
Killingworth, Connecticut
Killingworth is a town in Middlesex County, Connecticut, United States. The town's name can easily be confused with another Connecticut town, Killingly; or a Vermont ski area, Killington. The population was 6,018 at the 2000 census.-History:...
, in 1765.
Pre-industrialization
Connecticut began, as most communities at the time, as a farming economy. It rapidly developed trade and manufacturing as the farmers, and then the merchants and manufacturers themselves, became affluent enough to start buying things. Manufacturing was aided by a plenitude of resources, including water power, wood for fires and building material, and iron ore, while transportation benefited from several excellent natural harbors, and navigable rivers leading all the way to Massachusetts. As in most of New England, the residents believed that industry, in all senses of the word, not only strengthened individual moral fiber, but also served to make the colony independent and free to pursue its own religious and philosophical beliefs. While manual labor was valued, learning and study was also prized and many schools were founded, with Yale UniversityYale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
the most significant. The development by Eli Whitney
Eli Whitney
Eli Whitney was an American inventor best known for inventing the cotton gin. This was one of the key inventions of the Industrial Revolution and shaped the economy of the Antebellum South...
of the system of precision manufacturing of interchangeable parts
Interchangeable parts
Interchangeable parts are parts that are, for practical purposes, identical. They are made to specifications that ensure that they are so nearly identical that they will fit into any device of the same type. One such part can freely replace another, without any custom fitting...
and the assembly line
Assembly line
An assembly line is a manufacturing process in which parts are added to a product in a sequential manner using optimally planned logistics to create a finished product much faster than with handcrafting-type methods...
in the late 18th century, however made Connecticut into a major center of manufacturing. This development changed "made in the United States" from a phrase connoting shoddy workmanship and expensive maintenance, into a world standard for high quality, and the entire system became known as the American system of manufacturing
American system of manufacturing
The American system of manufacturing was a set of manufacturing methods that evolved in the 19th century. It involved semi-skilled labor using machine tools and jigs to make standardized, identical, interchangeable parts, manufactured to a tolerance, which could be assembled with a minimum of time...
.
In the late 18th century, the Connecticut government engaged in financial incentives for building and operating textile mills.
The Connecticut Valley (Wethersfield
Wethersfield, Connecticut
Wethersfield is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. Many records from colonial times spell the name Weathersfield, while Native Americans called it Pyquag...
, East Windsor
East Windsor, Connecticut
East Windsor is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 11,162 at the 2010 census.The town has five villages: Broad Brook, Melrose, Scantic, Warehouse Point and Windsorville.-Area:...
, and Colchester
Colchester, Connecticut
Colchester is a town in New London County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 14,551 at the 2000 census. In 2005 it was ranked 57th on the "100 Best Places to Live" in all of the United States, conducted by CNN...
) was a center of cabinetmaking and furniture construction in the latter half of the 18th century. Beginning in the Queen Anne
Queen Anne Style architecture
The Queen Anne Style in Britain means either the English Baroque architectural style roughly of the reign of Queen Anne , or a revived form that was popular in the last quarter of the 19th century and the early decades of the 20th century...
style, by the end of the period the furniture had evolved into four distinct variations of the Chippendale
Chippendale
Chippendale may refer to:*Thomas Chippendale, or his furniture*Thomas Chippendale, the younger, son of Thomas Chippendale*Chairface Chippendale, a supervillain*Chippendales, a chain of clubs and troupe of performers*Chippendale, New South Wales...
style; that of Eliphalet Chapin
Eliphalet Chapin
Eliphalet Chapin was a cabinetmaker and furniture maker in East Windsor, Connecticut in the late 18th century. His style of furniture design is regarded as one of the most elegant of its time....
, one of the masters of the craft, who tended to produce pieces which were more compact and chunky in appearance, incorporating some of the Philadelphia rococo
Rococo
Rococo , also referred to as "Late Baroque", is an 18th-century style which developed as Baroque artists gave up their symmetry and became increasingly ornate, florid, and playful...
style without as much fussiness; that of the Colchester
Colchester, Connecticut
Colchester is a town in New London County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 14,551 at the 2000 census. In 2005 it was ranked 57th on the "100 Best Places to Live" in all of the United States, conducted by CNN...
/Norwich
Norwich, Connecticut
Regular steamship service between New York and Boston helped Norwich to prosper as a shipping center through the early part of the 20th century. During the Civil War, Norwich once again rallied and saw the growth of its textile, armaments, and specialty item manufacturing...
area, exemplified by Samuel Loomis
Samuel Loomis
Samuel Loomis was a Connecticut furniture maker and the most celebrated maker of Colchester/Norwich style furniture.-External links:* ]]* ]]...
, as well as those of the Wethersfield
Wethersfield, Connecticut
Wethersfield is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. Many records from colonial times spell the name Weathersfield, while Native Americans called it Pyquag...
and Springfield
Springfield, Massachusetts
Springfield is the most populous city in Western New England, and the seat of Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States. Springfield sits on the eastern bank of the Connecticut River near its confluence with three rivers; the western Westfield River, the eastern Chicopee River, and the eastern...
–Northampton
Northampton, Massachusetts
The city of Northampton is the county seat of Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population of Northampton's central neighborhoods, was 28,549...
areas.
19th century
Between 1800 and 1860, Connecticut manufacturers applied the system to the manufacture of economically priced high quality firearms, leading to Connecticut's nickname "the arsenalArsenal
An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, issued to authorized users, or any combination of those...
of democracy." This all started in 1797 when Eli Whitney began to manufacture weapons, later the Connecticut Valley Arms company. Middletown, Connecticut
Middletown, Connecticut
Middletown is a city located in Middlesex County, Connecticut, along the Connecticut River, in the central part of the state, 16 miles south of Hartford. In 1650, it was incorporated as a town under its original Indian name, Mattabeseck. It received its present name in 1653. In 1784, the central...
was the major supplier of pistol
Pistol
When distinguished as a subset of handguns, a pistol is a handgun with a chamber that is integral with the barrel, as opposed to a revolver, wherein the chamber is separate from the barrel as a revolving cylinder. Typically, pistols have an effective range of about 100 feet.-History:The pistol...
s to the United States government during the War of 1812
War of 1812
The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
, with numerous gun manufacturers in the area. In 1810, Oliver Bidwell built the first pistol
Pistol
When distinguished as a subset of handguns, a pistol is a handgun with a chamber that is integral with the barrel, as opposed to a revolver, wherein the chamber is separate from the barrel as a revolving cylinder. Typically, pistols have an effective range of about 100 feet.-History:The pistol...
factory in the United States on the Pameacha River in Middletown, winning a contract with the United States War Department for handmade pistols. Also in 1810, Colonel Simeon North
Simeon North
Simeon North was a Middletown, Connecticut, gun manufacturer, who developed one of America's first milling machines in 1818 and played an important role in the development of interchangeable parts manufacturing.North was born in Berlin, Connecticut, into a prosperous family able to provide all...
built a pistol factory in Middletown on the West River, now the Coginchaug River
Coginchaug River
The Coginchaug River in Connecticut, with a watershed of including forests, pastures, farmland, industrial, and commercial areas, is the predominant tributary of the Mattabesset River...
, also winning a contract from the United States Secretary of War
United States Secretary of War
The Secretary of War was a member of the United States President's Cabinet, beginning with George Washington's administration. A similar position, called either "Secretary at War" or "Secretary of War," was appointed to serve the Congress of the Confederation under the Articles of Confederation...
, which led to enlarging his factory to 8,500 square feet (790 m²); he built about 10,000 pistols a year, up until just before the Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
, designing America's first milling machine
Milling machine
A milling machine is a machine tool used to machine solid materials. Milling machines are often classed in two basic forms, horizontal and vertical, which refers to the orientation of the main spindle. Both types range in size from small, bench-mounted devices to room-sized machines...
. Even more successful was Colonel Nathan Starr Jr., whose factory (built of stone quarried from the river) was about the same size as North's, and located across the river half a mile northeast. Starr initially manufactured sword
Sword
A sword is a bladed weapon used primarily for cutting or thrusting. The precise definition of the term varies with the historical epoch or the geographical region under consideration...
s, about 5,000 a year; including presentation swords for the state of Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
and War of 1812
War of 1812
The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
heroes, colonel Richard M. Johnson
Richard Mentor Johnson
Richard Mentor Johnson was the ninth Vice President of the United States, serving in the administration of Martin Van Buren . He was the only vice-president ever elected by the United States Senate under the provisions of the Twelfth Amendment. Johnson also represented Kentucky in the U.S...
, General Edmond P. Gaines, and General Andrew Jackson
Andrew Jackson
Andrew Jackson was the seventh President of the United States . Based in frontier Tennessee, Jackson was a politician and army general who defeated the Creek Indians at the Battle of Horseshoe Bend , and the British at the Battle of New Orleans...
. The factory later manufactured musket
Musket
A musket is a muzzle-loaded, smooth bore long gun, fired from the shoulder. Muskets were designed for use by infantry. A soldier armed with a musket had the designation musketman or musketeer....
s and rifles until 1845, after which the United States government started government armories
Armory (military)
An armory or armoury is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, issued to authorized users, or any combination of those...
in Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
and West Virginia
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...
partially modeled after Starr's. In 1812, John R. Johnson and J. D. Johnson built a factory, also on the Pameacha River, which was to sell rifles to the government until 1825. After this period, firearm manufacturing declined in Middletown, but briefly revived during the Civil War. The Savage Revolving Fire Arm Company manufactured pistols between 1859 and 1866, and the Sage Ammunition Works manufactured ammunition between 1864 and 1867.
In 1836, Samuel Colt
Samuel Colt
Samuel Colt was an American inventor and industrialist. He was the founder of Colt's Patent Fire-Arms Manufacturing Company , and is widely credited with popularizing the revolver. Colt's innovative contributions to the weapons industry have been described by arms historian James E...
invented the revolver
Revolver
A revolver is a repeating firearm that has a cylinder containing multiple chambers and at least one barrel for firing. The first revolver ever made was built by Elisha Collier in 1818. The percussion cap revolver was invented by Samuel Colt in 1836. This weapon became known as the Colt Paterson...
design which continues to be used to this day. Colt's Manufacturing Company
Colt's Manufacturing Company
Colt's Manufacturing Company is a United States firearms manufacturer, whose first predecessor corporation was founded in 1836 by Sam Colt. Colt is best known for the engineering, production, and marketing of firearms over the later half of the 19th and the 20th century...
hired Elisha K. Root
Elisha K. Root
Elisha K. Root was a Connecticut machinist and inventor.Root was born on a Massachusetts farm and worked as a bobbin boy in a cotton mill before switching, at the age of 15, to working in a machine shop in Ware, Massachusetts. At age 24 he was hired by Connecticut industrialist Samuel W...
to modernize production, making Colt weapons the first in the world with truly interchangeable parts. Horace Smith
Horace Smith (inventor)
Horace Smith was a gunsmith, inventor, and businessman. He and his business partner Daniel B. Wesson formed two companies named Smith & Wesson, the first of which was financed in part by Oliver Winchester and was eventually reorganized into the Winchester Repeating Arms Company-Early career:Born...
and Daniel B. Wesson
Daniel B. Wesson
Daniel Baird Wesson was a firearms designer from the United States. He was responsible for helping develop several firearms that had a very large influence in the field.-Early years:...
designed the first repeating rifle
Repeating rifle
A repeating rifle is a single barreled rifle containing multiple rounds of ammunition. These rounds are loaded from a magazine by means of a manual or automatic mechanism, and the action that reloads the rifle also typically recocks the firing action...
in Norwich
Norwich, Connecticut
Regular steamship service between New York and Boston helped Norwich to prosper as a shipping center through the early part of the 20th century. During the Civil War, Norwich once again rallied and saw the growth of its textile, armaments, and specialty item manufacturing...
in the early 1850s, which went into production by the New Haven Arms Company (which later became the Winchester Repeating Arms Company
Winchester Repeating Arms Company
The Winchester Repeating Arms Company was a prominent American maker of repeating firearms, located in New Haven, Connecticut. The Winchester brand is today used under license by two subsidiaries of the Herstal Group, Fabrique Nationale of Belgium and the Browning Arms Company of Morgan, Utah.-...
), and, just across the border in Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
, the Springfield Armory
Springfield Armory
The Springfield Armory, located in the City of Springfield, Massachusetts - from 1777 until its closing in 1968 - was the primary center for the manufacture of U.S. military firearms. After its controversial closing during the Vietnam War, the Springfield Armory was declared Western Massachusetts'...
. Smith also patented a metallic rifle cartridge in 1854. Christian Sharps
Christian Sharps
Christian Sharps, the inventor of the first successful breech loading rifle, was born in Washington, New Jersey in 1810. He married Sarah Elizabeth Chadwick of Lower Merion Township, Pennsylvania. The couple had two children, a daughter Satella and son Leon Stewart.Sharps was issued a patent for...
designed the Sharps breech-loading rifle which in 1854 began to be manufactured in Hartford by the Sharps Rifle Manufacturing Company
Sharps Rifle Manufacturing Company
Sharps Rifle Manufacturing Company was the manufacturer of Sharps Rifle. It was organized by Samuel Robbins and Richard S. Lawrence as a holding company in Hartford, Connecticut on October 9, 1851 with $100,000 in capital. John C. Palmer was president, Christian Sharps an engineer, and Richard S....
. Christopher Spencer designed the Spencer repeating rifle
Spencer repeating rifle
The Spencer repeating rifle was a manually operated lever-action, repeating rifle fed from a tube magazine with cartridges. It was adopted by the Union Army, especially by the cavalry, during the American Civil War, but did not replace the standard issue muzzle-loading rifled muskets in use at the...
which played an important role for Union
Union (American Civil War)
During the American Civil War, the Union was a name used to refer to the federal government of the United States, which was supported by the twenty free states and five border slave states. It was opposed by 11 southern slave states that had declared a secession to join together to form the...
troops at the Battle of Gettysburg
Battle of Gettysburg
The Battle of Gettysburg , was fought July 1–3, 1863, in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The battle with the largest number of casualties in the American Civil War, it is often described as the war's turning point. Union Maj. Gen. George Gordon Meade's Army of the Potomac...
.
Another area where precision manufacture led to industrial dominance for Connecticut was in the manufacture of clock
Clock
A clock is an instrument used to indicate, keep, and co-ordinate time. The word clock is derived ultimately from the Celtic words clagan and clocca meaning "bell". A silent instrument missing such a mechanism has traditionally been known as a timepiece...
s, watches, and other timepieces, by Eli Terry
Eli Terry
Eli Terry Sr. was an inventor and clockmaker in Connecticut. He received a United States patent for a shelf clock mechanism. He introduced mass production to the art of clockmaking, which made clocks affordable for the average American citizen...
and his apprentice Seth Thomas
Seth Thomas
Seth Thomas may refer to:* Seth Thomas * Seth Thomas...
, the Forestville Manufacturing Company (which became the E. N. Welch Company), the New England Clock Company, the Ansonia Clock Company
Ansonia Clock Company
Ansonia Clocks were made by a clock manufacturing business which started in Ansonia, Connecticut, in 1851 and which moved to Brooklyn, New York in 1878...
, Gilbert Clocks, Ingraham Clocks, the New Haven Clock Company, Welch Clocks, Sessions Clocks, and the Waterbury Clock Company, which became Timex Group USA, and is the sole Connecticut survivor of this once flourishing field, now decimated by lower costs of production elsewhere, in the United States and overseas. The American Clock and Watch Museum
American Clock and Watch Museum
The American Clock & Watch Museum , located in Bristol, Connecticut, is one of a very few museums in the United States dedicated solely to horology, which is the history, science and art of timekeeping and timekeepers...
is located in Bristol, Connecticut
Bristol, Connecticut
Bristol is a suburban city located in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States southwest of Hartford. According to 2006 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the city is 61,353. Bristol is primarily known as the home of ESPN, whose central studios are in the city. Bristol is also home to...
.
Similarly, Connecticut industry became well known in allied fields. Hardware and tools continue to be manufactured by Stanley Corporation in New Britain
New Britain, Connecticut
New Britain is a city in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. It is located approximately 9 miles southwest of Hartford. According to 2006 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the city is 71,254....
, despite having almost moved elsewhere for financial reasons. Connecticut was a major area for development and manufacture of machine tool
Machine tool
A machine tool is a machine, typically powered other than by human muscle , used to make manufactured parts in various ways that include cutting or certain other kinds of deformation...
s. In 1818, Simeon North
Simeon North
Simeon North was a Middletown, Connecticut, gun manufacturer, who developed one of America's first milling machines in 1818 and played an important role in the development of interchangeable parts manufacturing.North was born in Berlin, Connecticut, into a prosperous family able to provide all...
designed America's first milling machine
Milling machine
A milling machine is a machine tool used to machine solid materials. Milling machines are often classed in two basic forms, horizontal and vertical, which refers to the orientation of the main spindle. Both types range in size from small, bench-mounted devices to room-sized machines...
. Machinist Elisha Root first designed machinery for the Collins Company of Collinsville
Collinsville, Connecticut
Collinsville is a village and census-designated place in the town of Canton in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 2,686 at the 2000 census. The central portion of the village is a historic district listed on the National Register of Historic Places.Collinsville is...
which manufactured axe
Axe
The axe, or ax, is an implement that has been used for millennia to shape, split and cut wood; to harvest timber; as a weapon; and as a ceremonial or heraldic symbol...
s which became world-famous, then was hired by Colt in 1849 to modernize firearm production by designing precision drop hammer
Steam hammer
A steam hammer is a power-driven hammer used to shape forgings. It consists of a hammer-like piston located within a cylinder. The hammer is raised by the pressure of steam injected into the lower part of a cylinder and falls down with a force by removing the steam. Usually, the hammer is made to...
s, boring machine
Boring machine
Boring machine may refer to:* a machine for boring holes* Tunnel boring machine...
s, gauge
Gauge (engineering)
In engineering, a gauge or gage, is used to make measurements. A wide variety of tools exist which serve such funtions, ranging from simple pieces of material against which sizes can be measured to complex pieces of machinery...
s, jig
Jig
The Jig is a form of lively folk dance, as well as the accompanying dance tune, originating in England in the 16th century and today most associated with Irish dance music and Scottish country dance music...
s, etc., and improving the milling machines designed by Francis A. Pratt
Francis A. Pratt
Francis Ashbury Pratt was a Connecticut mechanical engineer, inventor, and co-founder of Pratt & Whitney.Pratt was born in Peru, New York. In the early 1850s, he designed a milling machine for George S...
for the George S. Lincoln company in Hartford; the resulting Lincoln miller became world-famous, selling over 150,000 machines. Another Colt engineer, William Mason
William Mason (Colt)
William Mason was an engineer and inventor who worked for Remington Arms, Colt’s Patent Fire Arms Manufacturing Company, and Winchester Repeating Arms Company in the 19th century.-Remington:...
, patented 125 inventions for manufacture of firearms, as well as steam pumps and power looms. Christopher Spencer invented the automatic turret lathe
Turret lathe
The turret lathe is a form of metalworking lathe that is used for repetitive production of duplicate parts, which by the nature of their cutting process are usually interchangeable...
(which in its small- to medium-sized form is known as a screw machine
Screw machine
A screw machine may refer to a:* Screw machine , a small- to medium-sized automatic lathe that is mechanically automated via cams...
) for machining screws, as well as the variable cam cylinder used to control the turret. Francis A. Pratt
Francis A. Pratt
Francis Ashbury Pratt was a Connecticut mechanical engineer, inventor, and co-founder of Pratt & Whitney.Pratt was born in Peru, New York. In the early 1850s, he designed a milling machine for George S...
and Amos Whitney
Amos Whitney
Amos Whitney was a mechanical engineer and Connecticut inventor.Born in Biddeford, Maine, in 1860 he partnered with Francis Pratt to organize the Pratt & Whitney company to manufacture machine tools, tools for the makers of sewing machines, and gun making machinery for use by the Union Army...
invented a thread milling machine in 1865; Whitney also perfected various measurement instruments, and Pratt designed the aforementioned original milling machine manufactured by the George S. Lincoln company of Hartford. Simon Fairman
Simon Fairman
Simon Fairman of West Stafford, Connecticut, invented the lathe chuck in 1830; his son-in-law, Austin F. Cushman invented the self-centering Cushman Universal Chuck.-References:...
invented the lathe chuck in West Stafford
Stafford, Connecticut
Stafford is a town in Tolland County, Connecticut, United States, settled in 1719. The population was 11,307 at the 2000 census.-History:The Colonial Town of Stafford began as a rural agricultural community...
in 1830, and his son-in-law, Austin F. Cushman
Austin F. Cushman
Austin F. Cushman invented the self-centering Cushman universal chuck in 1862; his uncle, Simon Fairman, had previously invented the lathe chuck.-Biography:...
, invented the self-centering Cushman Universal Chuck in 1862. Edward P. Bullard
Edward P. Bullard
The Bullard Machine Tool Company was a large American machine tool–building firm. It specialized in vertical boring mills and was largely responsible for the development of the modern form of that class of machine tools....
designed the vertical boring mill in 1883. Charles E. Billings
Charles E. Billings
Charles Ethan Billings was an American inventor.He was born in Weathersfield, Vermont, the son of Ethan F. and Clarissa M. Billings...
perfected the drop hammer for metal forging in the 1870s and designed the copper commutator
Commutator
In mathematics, the commutator gives an indication of the extent to which a certain binary operation fails to be commutative. There are different definitions used in group theory and ring theory.-Group theory:...
central to the operation of electrical generator
Electrical generator
In electricity generation, an electric generator is a device that converts mechanical energy to electrical energy. A generator forces electric charge to flow through an external electrical circuit. It is analogous to a water pump, which causes water to flow...
s and motor
Electric motor
An electric motor converts electrical energy into mechanical energy.Most electric motors operate through the interaction of magnetic fields and current-carrying conductors to generate force...
s. Edwin R. Fellows
Edwin R. Fellows
Edwin R. Fellows was an American inventor and entrepreneur from Torrington, Connecticut who designed and built a new type of gear shaper in 1896 and, with the mentoring of James Hartness, left the Jones & Lamson Machine Company to co-found the Fellows Gear Shaper Company in Springfield, Vermont,...
of Torrington
Torrington, Connecticut
Torrington is the largest city in Litchfield County, Connecticut and the northwestern Connecticut region. It is also the core city of the largest micropolitan area in the United States. The city population was 36,383 according to the 2010 census....
in 1896 designed and built a new type of gear shaper
Gear cutting
Gear cutting is the process of creating a gear. The most common processes include hobbing, broaching, and machining; other processes include shaping, forging, extruding, casting, and powder metallurgy. Gears are commonly made from metal, plastic, and wood.-Broaching:For very large gears or splines,...
and founded the Fellows Gear Shaper Company, which made a vital contribution to the manufacture of effective and reliable gear transmissions
Transmission (mechanics)
A machine consists of a power source and a power transmission system, which provides controlled application of the power. Merriam-Webster defines transmission as: an assembly of parts including the speed-changing gears and the propeller shaft by which the power is transmitted from an engine to a...
for the nascent automotive industry
Automotive industry
The automotive industry designs, develops, manufactures, markets, and sells motor vehicles, and is one of the world's most important economic sectors by revenue....
. The name Bridgeport
Bridgeport Machines, Inc.
Bridgeport is a brand of milling machines and machining centers, which are machine tools used in the machining industries. The brand was produced by Bridgeport Machines, Inc. from 1938 until 2004, when it was acquired by Hardinge, Inc., its current owner...
on machine tools continues to be a guarantee of high quality around the world, for people who have no idea that the machinery is named after a city in Connecticut. Even the world of toys was dominated by the A. C. Gilbert Company
A. C. Gilbert Company
The A. C. Gilbert Company was an American toy company, once one of the largest toy companies in the world. It is best known for introducing the Erector Set to the marketplace....
, manufacturers of Erector Set
Erector Set
Erector Set is the trade name of a toy construction set that is popular in the United States.It consists of collections of small metal beams with regular holes for nuts, bolts, screws, and mechanical parts such as pulleys, gears, and small electric motors.The brand name is currently used for...
s as well as other educational toys such as chemistry set
Chemistry set
A chemistry set is an educational toy allowing the user to perform simple chemistry experiments. The best known such sets were produced by the A. C. Gilbert Company, an early and middle 20th century American manufacturer of educational toys...
s, microscope
Microscope
A microscope is an instrument used to see objects that are too small for the naked eye. The science of investigating small objects using such an instrument is called microscopy...
s, toy train
Toy train
A toy train is a toy that represents a train. It is distinguished from a model train by an emphasis on low cost and durability, rather than scale modeling. A toy train can be as simple as a pull toy that does not even run on track, or it might be operated by clockwork or a battery...
s, etc.
Another area of industry where Connecticut excelled was in bicycle manufacturing, and its spin-off, the earliest automobile manufacturing. Albert Pope of Hartford saw a bicycle in Philadelphia in 1876 and was immediately enthralled with the concept of an "ever-saddled horse that eats nothing and requires no care." He subsequently began the first bicycle manufacturing in America, Columbia Bicycles, and set about marketing the vehicle, setting up a system of distributorships with fixed prices, hiring doctors to tout cycling as healthy exercise, and founding cycling magazines. When the safety bicycle
Safety bicycle
A safety bicycle is a type of bicycle that became very popular beginning in the late 1880s as an alternative to the penny-farthing or ordinary and is now the most common type of bicycle. Early bicycles of this style were known as safety bicycles because they were noted for, and marketed as, being...
was developed in the 1880s, he was in a perfect position to benefit from the subsequent craze.
Connecticut also became an innovative leader in the shipbuilding
Shipbuilding
Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and floating vessels. It normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation that traces its roots to before recorded history.Shipbuilding and ship repairs, both...
industry. The first recorded steam powered boat in America was built by South Windsor
South Windsor, Connecticut
-History:In 1659, Thomas Burnham purchased the tract of land now covered by the towns of South Windsor and East Hartford from Tantinomo, chief sachem of the Podunk Indians. Burnham lived on the land and later willed it to his nine children...
's John Fitch
John Fitch (inventor)
John Fitch was an American inventor, clockmaker, and silversmith who, in 1787, built the first recorded steam-powered boat in the United States...
in 1786. The first military submarine
Submarine
A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...
, the Turtle
Turtle (submarine)
The Turtle was the world's first submersible with a documented record of use in combat. It was built in Old Saybrook, Connecticut in 1775 by American Patriot David Bushnell as a means of attaching explosive charges to ships in a harbor...
, was built in Connecticut in 1775 by David Bushnell
David Bushnell
David Bushnell , of Westbrook, Connecticut, was an American inventor during the Revolutionary War. He is credited with creating the first submarine ever used in combat, while studying at Yale University in 1775. He called it the Turtle because of its look in the water...
; since then, Connecticut has remained a world leader in the manufacture of these specialized ships. Simon Lake
Simon Lake
Simon Lake was a Quaker American mechanical engineer and naval architect who obtained over two hundred patents for advances in naval design and competed with John Philip Holland to build the first submarines for the United States Navy.Born in Pleasantville, New Jersey, Lake joined his father's...
produced submarines for the US Navy in Bridgeport, beginning in 1913, and the work done by John P. Holland led to submarine production by the Electric Boat Company in Groton
Groton, Connecticut
Groton is a town located on the Thames River in New London County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 39,907 at the 2000 census....
beginning in 1924, which continues to this day.