Historic Mills of Connecticut

Companies Associated w/Complex

• Elihu Hall & Co. 1856-ca. 1880
• Hall, Elton & Co. ca. 1895-ca. 1900
• S.L. & G.H. Rogers Co. 1901-1930
• The Wheel & Cycle Bar Co. ca. 1895-1898
• Wallingford Wheel Co. ca. 1880-ca. 1895

Use (Historic)

• Consumer Products, Small Appliances
• Fabricated Metal Products

Largest Documented Workforce

100-500 (1928).

Historic Narrative

The site of the S.L. and G.H. Rogers Company plant was first developed ca. 1835 as a shop producing wheels, spokes, and hubs for carriages. This was operated by Elihu Hall, who in 1856 joined with his sons to form the firm of E. Hall and Sons. This company was incorporated with $15,000 in capital in 1864, and by 1870 the firm boasted an output of 400,000 spokes and 2000 sets of carriage wheels per year. The business was either replaced by or reorganized as the Wallingford Wheel Company around 1870, which was forced to rebuild much of the plant after a devastating fire on March 18, 1880. The Wallingford Wheel Company suffered another notable fire in 1888, yet continued to occupy the North Cherry Street plant until around 1895. Around that time the buildings on the northern half of the property were occupied by the Wheel and Cycle Bar Company, which manufactured wagon wheels and bicycle handlebars, while those lining Hall Avenue were acquired by Hall, Elton and Company, a German silver spoon producer. The former employed approximately thirty hands, but removed to Berlin in 1898, around the same time that Hall, Elton and Company ceased production. The vacated plant was next briefly occupied by a German silver flatware firm managed by Wallingford manufacturer George M. Hallenback. In 1901, the firm of S.L. and G.H. Rogers was organized in Hartford, Connecticut, by Simeon L. and George H. Rogers, the sons of Simeon S. Rogers, one of the three siblings responsible for founding Rogers Brothers, the pioneering and renowned silverplating company. The S.L. and G.H. Rogers Company was one of numerous silverware manufacturers to use the Rogers name during the second half of the 19th century and shortly after its organization it was sued for trademark infringement by the International Silver Company, which had acquired rights to the original Rogers Corporation name several years earlier. S.L. and G.H. Rogers survived the suit and expanded its production of silver-plated, nickel-plated, and German silver plate flatware by acquiring the Wallingford plant operated by Hallenback late in 1901. The S.L. and G.H. Rogers Company utilized its Wallingford factory for the production of flatware blanks, which were then shipped to the firm’s plant in Hartford for plating, finishing, and packaging. George M. Hallenback was retained as manager of the Wallingford facility and in 1908 he was promoted to the position of president and treasurer of the entire company. In 1918, the company was acquired by William Rogers Ltd., of Toronto, Canada, which was in turn bought out by the Oneida Community Company of Uneida, New York, in 1929. The S.L. and G.H. Rogers Company’s Wallingford plant was closed by Oneida after it consolidated all of its operation in Niagara Falls, New York, in 1930.

Number of Existing Buildings

Roughly six (6) primary blocks.

Dates of Construction

ca. 1856, ca. 1880, ca. 1890, 1904, ca. 1925.

Architect

n/a

Builder

n/a

Building Type

• Mill
• Powerhouse

Architectural Description

The former S.L. and G.H. Rogers Company plant is comprised of approximately six primary adjoining and freestanding blocks located at the northeast corner of the intersection of North Cherry Street and Hall Avenue. The most notable section of the complex is a three-story, 56’ x 44’ wood-frame building located at the southeast corner of the property abutting Hall Avenue. It was erected ca. 1856 and has an L-shaped footprint, vertical board siding, four-over-four double-hung sash, corner pilasters, a broad cornice with scroll-cut brackets, gabled dormers, and a widely-overhanging Mansard roof. The building was used as both an office and storage area, while the primary manufacturing building is located roughly 85’ to the north. The primary factory building was erected in stages, with a 40’ x 120’ portion on its eastern side being the oldest. This was erected after an earlier building was heavily damaged by fire and consisted of a three-and-a-half-story building with a red brick first story and frame construction above. The building has a low-pitch front-facing gable roof and was constructed along with a two-story, 28’ x 40’ red brick powerhouse with a gable roof located at its southwest corner. A three-and-a-half-story 30’ x 45’ ell was erected on the north side of the factory ca. 1890. This mimics the details of the earlier building and is two bays wide and four bays deep. The manufacturing building was enlarged in 1904 through the construction of a 40’ x 70’ addition adjoining its west elevation. This also mimics the details of the earlier building and gives the whole the appearance of being a single structure. The final section of the plant to be constructed consists of a one-story, 52’ x 42’ red brick building situated on the northwest side of the ca. 1890 and 1904 blocks. This has segmental-arched window openings and a sawtooth monitor roof. A rectangular brick chimney is located along its northern elevation.

Exterior Material(s)

• Brick
• Wood

Structural System(s)

• Load Bearing Masonry
• Wood Frame

Roof Form

• Gable
• Hip Minor
• Sawtooth
• Shed

Roof Material

• Asphalt

Power Source

• Electricity
• Steam

Condition

Fair

Condition Notes

The factory is in overall fair condition. Although some of the original windows have been replaced or infilled, and aluminum siding installed to several blocks, the majority of the plant appears structurally sound and reasonably well maintained.

Specific Location

Two parcels (43 Hall Avenue & 63 North Cherry Street) totaling 1.77 -acres at the northeast corner of the intersection of North Cherry Street and Hall Avenue.

Adjacent To

• Railroad

Exterior Visible from Public Road?

Yes

Parcel ID / Assessor Record Link

Acreage

1.77

Use (Present)

• Vacant

Form Completed By

Lucas A. Karmazinas

Date

06/16/2015

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 New Haven County, H & C.T. Smith, 1856.
6. Atlas of New Haven County, Beers, Ellis & Soule, 1868.
7. Birdseye View of Wallingford, Connecticut, O.H. Bailey & Co., 1881.
8. Birdseye View of Meriden, Connecticut, Hughes and Bailey, 1905.
9. Sanborn Map Company, 1885, 1892, 1897, 1904, 1911, 1919, 1925, 1948.
10. Hartford Courant, 1899, 1900, 1901, 1912, 1922, 1930.
11. History of Wallingford, Connecticut; Davis, Charles H.S., 1870.
12. History of New Haven County, Connecticut; Rockey, John L., 1892.
13. A Modern History of New Haven and Eastern New Haven County; Hill, Everett G., 1918.