Historic Mills of Connecticut

Companies Associated w/Complex

• Perkin-Elmer Corp. 1967-1989
• Hughes Danbury Optical Systems (Hughes Aircraft, parent company) 1989-1997
• Raytheon Optical Systems 1997-1998
• The BF Goodrich Co./Goodrich Corp. (parent company) 1998-2020
• Danbury Mission Technologies LLC 2020-present

Use (Historic)

• Clocks, Precision Equipment
• Other: Hexagon spy satellites and Hubble telescopes

Largest Documented Workforce

1000+ (late 1960s-1986)

Historic Narrative

In the mid-1960s, dissatisfied with the resolution of the early Corona and Gambit spy satellites, the federal government (CIA and AIR Force) sought to develop a new satellite which could orbit the earth for months taking high resolution photographs through which information such as missile height could be measured. Perkin-Elmer was awarded the contract, built the lab in Danbury, and made 19 reconnaissance satellites, named Hexagon, between 1971 and 1986. These were strategically important during the cold war, allowing the US to monitor Soviet and Chinese military and economic conditions and compliance with SALT (Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty). The Hexagon's mapping system became the basis for the development of GPS programs widely used today. Hexagon was classified until 2011, and those that worked at the lab were not allowed to disclose what they actually did. During the Hexagon program, NASA created the Hubble Telescope program and contracted Perkin-Elmer to build the telescope's optics. The two programs, one covert, the other open, ran alongside each other at the Danbury facility starting in the mid-1970s. See "The story of the Hexagon..." by Erik Ofgang in the May 2021 issue of Connecticut Magazine (https://www.connecticutmag.com/issues/features/the-story-of-the-hexagon-a-danbury-built-spy-satellite-that-helped-win-the-cold/article_048da0fa-bcb5-11eb-b1e5-fbd23405f7ea.html).

Number of Existing Buildings

n/a

Dates of Construction

1967

Architect

n/a

Builder

n/a

Building Type

• Other: Research & development lab

Architectural Description

n/a

Exterior Material(s)

• Concrete Block

Structural System(s)

• Structural Steel or Iron

Roof Form

• Flat

Roof Material

• Tar and Gravel

Power Source

• Electricity

Condition

n/a

Condition Notes

n/a

Specific Location

One 39.59 acre parcel at the SWC of Wooster Heights and route 7.

Adjacent To

• Main Roads

Exterior Visible from Public Road?

Yes

Parcel ID / Assessor Record Link

• G18/ / 49 / Link →

Acreage

39.59

Use (Present)

• Industrial

Form Completed By

n/a

Date

n/a

Bibliography

n/a