Historic Mills of Connecticut

Companies Associated w/Complex

• Remington Arms Co., Div. E.I. DuPont de Nemours & Co. 1933-1986
• Remington Arms-Union Metallic Cartridge Co. ca. 1916-1933

Use (Historic)

• Firearms, Weapons, Explosives

Largest Documented Workforce

Over 1,000 (1939).

Historic Narrative

The development of the former Remington Arms-Union Metallic Cartridge Company complex began under one of the company’s predecessors, the Union Metallic Cartridge Company, during the late 1860s. As Matthew Roth notes in his detailed history of the company published in ‘Connecticut; An Inventory of Historic Engineering and Industrial Sites,’ in 1980: ‘The establishment of Union Metallic Cartridge Co. by Marcellus Hartley in 1867 illustrates the changing relationship between financiers and technologists in the latter 19th century. Hartley, a New York City sporting-arms dealer who had served in Europe as arms procurement representative for the U.S. during the Civil War, foresaw the replacement of paper rifle cartridges by metallic ones and formed U.M.C. to capitalize on this change. Expert in marketing and finance, Hartley was nonetheless totally ignorant of production techniques, a defect he remedied by hiring Alfred C. Hobbs, former superintendent of Howe Sewing Machine Co., to develop manufacturing equipment. Most of the metal-forming operations that Hobbs installed were simply specialized refinements of known die-forming practice, but Hobbs' machinery for loading the shells was unique: a conveyor carried formed cartridges under a hopper where each case was filled with an automatically measured charge of powder. By 1870 Hobbs' production line was producing 120,000 cartridges per day…’ ‘In 1888 Hartley bought E. Remington and Son, arms manufacturers from Ilion, NY, and combined the firms as Remington-U.M.C., though mostly separate operations were maintained. During World War I both divisions were major contributors of Allied military material. Most of the current plant dates from 1914-1916, when it grew from 143 buildings with 16 acres of floor space to 313 buildings with 40 acres. Most of that new manufacturing space was in two complexes north and south of Barnum Ave… In 1933, after three years of plummeting sales, Remington-U.M.C. offered controlling interest to E.I. DuPont de Nemours and Co.’ Under DuPont’s control, the Remington Arms Company continued to manufacture many of the same products it had turned out since the First World War, which included munitions, firearms, bayonets, and pocket knives. When Roth surveyed the facility during the late 1970s DuPont continued to operate much of the plant, however, around 1980, a portion of the property north of St. Augustine Cemetery (identified in this survey as the ‘Northern Plant’) was sold to the Alimak Elevator Company and a number of the historic factory buildings on the site were demolished for new construction. DuPont eventually closed the remainder of the plant and sold it off to various new owners in 1986. The portion of the complex south of Arctic Street (identified in this survey as the ‘Southern Plant’) was purchased by the Remgrit Corporation, an abrasives and cutting tool manufacturer. Remgrit retained the property for just one year before it was sold to the present owner, a development company.

Number of Existing Buildings

Roughly six (6) primary blocks.

Dates of Construction

ca. 1916, ca. 1940, ca. 1945.

Architect

n/a

Builder

n/a

Building Type

• Mill

Architectural Description

When Matthew Roth surveyed the former Remington Arms-Union Metallic Cartridge Company plant in 1980 the majority of the facility both north and south of Barnum Avenue remained intact. Since that time, however, all of the blocks previously located south of Barnum Avenue have been demolished, as have the majority once located on the interiors of the portions of the complex situated north of Barnum Avenue and south of Arctic Street (Southern Plant, see resource #3897 for description), and the piece located south of Boston Avenue and north of St. Augustine Cemetery (Northern Plant). Roth did not include an architectural description of the Northern Plant in his 1980 survey, however, several historic structures remain. The oldest is a one-story, 116’ x 434’ red brick manufacturing block that stands along Helen Street roughly 350’ south of its intersection with Boston Avenue and extending southward. The building was erected ca. 1916 and is of brick pier construction. It has a concrete foundation, large rectangular window openings with concrete sills and corbelled brick headers, a plain corbelled red brick cornice, and a flat roof lined with 27 full-width sawtooth monitors. It is connected to a one-story, 112’ x 198’ red brick manufacturing block that was built ca. 1940. The ca. 1940 building is of reinforced concrete and red brick construction and has a concrete foundation, red brick walls, large rectangular window openings with concrete sills, and a flat roof. The north and south elevations have stepped red brick parapets with concrete coping. A group of four adjoining blocks stands roughly 65’ south of the aforementioned ca. 1940 building. The most notable of these is a central manufacturing block, which is one story tall and measures approximately 92’ x 338’. It is of brick pier construction and was erected ca. 1940. It has a concrete foundation, large rectangular window openings with concrete sills and corbelled brick headers, concrete coping, and a flat roof topped by a nearly full-length clerestory monitor. The east and west elevations have stepped red brick parapets with concrete coping. Three red brick or concrete block additions adjoin the building’s north and south elevations. The brick ells largely mimic the design of the original structure and were likely built at the same time, while the concrete block addition – which serves as a loading dock – was likely erected shortly afterwards yet was present by 1950.

Exterior Material(s)

• Brick
• Concrete Block

Structural System(s)

• Load Bearing Masonry

Roof Form

• Gable
• Monitor
• Sawtooth

Roof Material

• Asphalt

Power Source

• Electricity

Condition

Fair

Condition Notes

The complex is in fair condition. The majority of the windows throughout the various blocks have been infilled or boarded up, however, all of the buildings appear to be well maintained and structurally sound.

Specific Location

Three parcels (1100 Boston Avenue #01B, #02A, & #03) totaling 5.95 acres located on the north side of Williston Avenue, between Union Avenue to the east and Central Avenue to the west.

Adjacent To

• Main Roads

Exterior Visible from Public Road?

Yes

Parcel ID / Assessor Record Link

• 49/1725/3 / Link →
• 49/1725/2/A / Link →
• 49/1725/1/B / Link →

Acreage

5.95

Use (Present)

• Commercial
• Industrial

Form Completed By

Lucas A. Karmazinas

Date

1/22/2016

Bibliography

1. List of Connecticut Manufacturers, 1922, 1924, 1930, 1932.
2. Directory of Connecticut State Manufacturers, 1936, 1939.
3. Industrial Directory of Connecticut, 1947.
4. Register of War Production Facilities in Connecticut, 1951.
5. Map of Fairfield County; Baker, William A., 1854.
6. Atlas of the City of Bridgeport; J.B. Beers & Co., 1876.
7. Atlas of the City and Town of Bridgeport; G.M. Hopkins & Co., 1888, 1917.
8. Atlas of Bridgeport; Kershaw, William H., 1910.
9. Sanborn Map Company, 1884, 1888, 1898, 1904, 1913, 1939, 1950.
10. Aerial Survey of Connecticut, 1934, 1951, 1965, 1970, 1985.
11. Bridgeport City Directory, Various editions.
12. A History of the Old Town of Stratford and the City of Bridgeport; Orcutt, Samuel, 1886.
13. History of Bridgeport and Vicinity; S.J. Clarke Publishing, 1917.
14. Connecticut; An Inventory of Historic Engineering and Industrial Sites; Roth, Matthew, 1980.