Historic Mills of Connecticut

Companies Associated w/Complex

• Gong Bell Mfg. Co. 1916-1960

Use (Historic)

• Fabricated Metal Products

Largest Documented Workforce

175 (1951)

Historic Narrative

Known as “Belltown U.S.A.”, East Hampton was dominated by bell manufacturers for much of its history. This began with the arrival of William Barton in 1808 and continued throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries as workers trained in Barton’s mill established their own shops, many of these located along Pocotopaug Creek in the center of town. The organization of the Gong Bell Manufacturing Company was typical of this experience, as its founders, H.H. Abbe, E.C. Barton, E.G. Cone, and A. H. Conklin, all had connections to East Hampton's early bell manufactories before establishing their own firm in 1866. The Gong Bell Manufacturing Company initially occupied a plant on the site that would become the Summit Thread Company on Summit Street and produced various lines of door and house bells, alarm bells for locomotives and street cars, and hand and sleigh bells. By the mid-1870s, the company had relocated to a mill at the corner of what are today Walnut Avenue and Watrous Street, which it shared with the firm of Goff and Abell (later the East Hampton Bell Company, since demolished). In 1872, E.C. Barton developed and patented the “Revolving Chimes,” a toy bell consisting of a pair of cast brass gongs mounted between two malleable iron wheels. This developed into a full line of bell-based toys that would become the primary focus of the company for the rest of its existence. In 1912, the company was reorganized under Mayo S. Purple, president; Chauncey G. Bevin, vice-president; J. Howell Conklin, secretary; and Clifford M. Watrous, assistant secretary, treasurer, and general manager; and Harold D. Allen, factory manager; and George T. Cavanaugh, superintendant. These officers oversaw the construction of a new, 152’ x 40’ plant on the south side of Walnut Avenue after a fire destroyed the company’s press room and assembling department on January 1, 1916. The Gong Bell Manufacturing Company continued to thrive through the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s, largely driven by its extensive line of wood and metal toys, many of these based on a toy telephone invented by Watrous in 1921. The company’s production peaked in the early 1950s, a time in which its over 175 employees were turning out 2,250,000 toys per year. This success came to an end in 1960 when financial difficulties – attributed to failure to adopt the use of plastics – forced the company to close its doors. On December 20, 1973 a massive fire tore through the company’s former plant, destroying a roughly 200’ x 200’ section at its core. Several light industrial firms occupying the building were impacted, however, the northeastern and southeastern wings of the factory – the former being the plant’s original manufacturing block – were saved and continue to stand.

Number of Existing Buildings

Five (5) blocks.

Dates of Construction

1916, ca. 1925, ca. 1935 ca. 1940, ca. 1950

Architect

n/a

Builder

n/a

Building Type

• Mill
• Warehouse / Production Shed

Architectural Description

The former Gong Bell Manufacturing Company plant is consists of two clusters of adjoining blocks located on the south side of Walnut Avenue and the east side of Main Street. These two groups of manufacturing and storage buildings were once connected, thus forming a rougly L-shaped footprint, however the core of the plant was destroyed by fire in 1973. The earliest surviving block is original to the mill and is located along Walnut Avenue. Built in 1916, it consists of a one-story, 152’ x 40’ frame structure with red brick foundation, synthetic siding, flat roof, and numerous pyramidal skylights. The building straddles Pocotopaug Creek and its end walls (east and west elevations) consist of red brick firewalls with stepped parapets. Numerous one-story additions were erected on the south (rear) side of the block during the 1920s-1950s, these being a mix of frame and concrete block construction. Of particular interest is a 70’ x 74’ block erected on heavy concrete mushroom columns and standing approximately 4’ off the ground, this necessitated by the swampy conditions of what was once the site of a millpond. The second cluster of buildings formerly associated with the Gong Bell Manufacturing Company are located on the east side of Main Street. They are centered around a one-story, 96’ x 82’ frame manufacturing building with concrete foundation, synthetic siding, two-over-two double-hung frame sash, and flat roof with exposed rafter tails. The building was erected around 1925 and expanded around 1940. The roof is dominated by sawtooth monitors and a 30’ x 40’ shipping and receiving ell is located at its northeast corner. A one-and-a-half-story, 110’ x 84’ frame warehouse building adjoins the east elevation of the ca. 1940 block.

Exterior Material(s)

• Concrete Block
• Wood

Structural System(s)

• Load Bearing Masonry
• Turner Mushroom Column
• Wood Frame

Roof Form

• Flat
• Gable
• Sawtooth

Roof Material

• Asphalt

Power Source

• Electricity

Condition

Fair, Deteriorated

Condition Notes

The complex is in generally fair condition, however, some of the exterior walls, windows, and roofs show early signs of deterioration or have been replaced with modern materials.

Specific Location

Two legal parcels (8 Walnut Avenue and 101 Main Street) totaling 3.61 acres on the south side of Walnut Avenue and east side of Main Street.
Located in the Belltown Historic District.

Adjacent To

• Business District
• Main Roads

Exterior Visible from Public Road?

Yes

Parcel ID / Assessor Record Link

• 06A/57/2 / Link →
• 06A/57/2A (western building) / Link →

Acreage

3.61

Use (Present)

• Other: Remediated and turned into parking lot c.2020
• Vacant

Form Completed By

Lucas A. Karmazinas

Date

12/8/2014

Bibliography

1. List of Connecticut Manufacturers, 1922, 1924, 1930, 1932.
2. Directory of Connecticut State Manufacturers, 1936, 1939.
3. Atlas of Middlesex County, F.W. Beers & Co., 1874.
4. Industrial Directory of Connecticut, 1947.
5. Register of War Production Facilities in Connecticut, 1951.
6. Sanborn Map Company, 1903, 1908, 1914, 1925, 1936.
7. Aerial Survey of Connecticut, 1934, 1965.
8. The Hartford Courant, 1869, 1930, 1951, 1958, 1978.
9. Long Ago, Not Far Away: An Illustrated History of Six Middlesex Country Towns, 1996.
10. Cunningham, Jan. 1985. Belltown Historic District National Register Nomination No. 85003543. National Park Service.