Gilbert Clock Factory

Gilbert Clock Factory
Location Wallens St., Winchester, Connecticut
Coordinates 41°55′49″N 73°3′29″W / 41.93028°N 73.05806°W / 41.93028; -73.05806Coordinates: 41°55′49″N 73°3′29″W / 41.93028°N 73.05806°W / 41.93028; -73.05806
Area 3.8 acres (1.5 ha)
Built 1871 (1871)
Architectural style Late 19th And Early 20th Century American Movements, Second Empire, Mansard;19th C. Industrial
NRHP reference # 84000494[1]
Added to NRHP December 13, 1984

The Gilbert Clock Factory is a historic factory complex at 13 Wallens Street in Winchester, Connecticut. Developed between 1871 and 1897, its surviving elements are a preservation of the state's history as a center for the manufacture of low-cost clocks. The company was one of the town's largest employers for many years. The surviving buildings were listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984;[1] they are now house apartments.

Description and history

The former Gilbert Clock Factory stands in a residential area north of Winchester's main business district of Winsted, on the north side of Wallen Street on the eastern bank of the Swift River. Its complex historically extended further to the south, and was about twice the size of the surviving elements; the buildings south of Wallen Street were destroyed fire in 1975. The two large buildings that survive are four-story brick buildings, with typical late 19th-century commercial Italianate styling. One of the two buildings is built directly on the river bank, while the other is set up the hill to the east.[2]

William L. Gilbert began his career in Bristol, Connecticut, a regional center of the clock business, and moved to Winchester in 1840, where he produced relatively low-cost wall and shelf clocks for the mass market. He built the case shop, located on the river bank, in 1870-71, when his business was one of the largest clock manufactories in the state. The company continued to grow, its complex on Wallen Street growing to four large buildings and employing more than 500 workers. The company continude in business until 1964.[2]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 National Park Service (2010-07-09). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service.
  2. 1 2 "NRHP nomination for Gilbert Clock Factory". National Park Service. Retrieved 2017-02-04.
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