Disclaimer: Content for these properties was compiled in 2014-2017 from a variety of sources and is subject to change. Updates are occasionally made under Property Information, however the Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation (dba Preservation Connecticut) makes no representation or warranty that the information is complete or up-to-date.
225 (1915)
The factory Derby Silver Company, which was founded in 1872, erected the first buildings on the site in 1873. The company grew quickly, and by 1885 the factory was nearly double the size of what remains today. Derby Silver produced an array of silver-plated articles, from clocks to combs, brushes, flatware, cutlery, tea sets, mirrors and and a range of custom items. In 1898, the company was purchased by the International Silver Company, becoming Factory B of that conglomerate. With the Great Depression and resulting financial losses, International Silver closed Factory B in 1933, and sold the complex in 1936 to the De Jur Corporation, a machine tool manufacturer. During World War II, the building was reportedly occupied by several transient manufacturing operations including an automobile muffler plant and a defense contractor which made bomb-sight optics. In 1949, the complex was purchased by the Sponge Rubber Products Company, itself bought by B.F. Goodrich Company in 1954. Ownership reverted back to a rejuvenated Sponge Rubber Products Company in 1974. A group of former employees took over the company under the name Everfloat, selling in 1985 to the Spongex Company, a foam rubber manufacturer that still operates in the building today.
Three (3) primary blocks with additions.
c.1877, c.1915, c. 1950
n/a
n/a
The L-Shaped brick factory was at one time nearly twice its present size. The complex appears to have been steam-powered from its construction. The oldest buildings on the site are two perpendicular, three-story brick buildings with dormers built c. 1877. At the northeast end of the complex is a three-story c.1910-1920 built loft building. There is also some post-1950 infill in the center of the complex.
Good, Fair, Deteriorated
n/a
SEC of Canal Street East and Bridge Street.
Yes
1.04
Mike Forino
n/a