Historic Mills of Connecticut

Companies Associated w/Complex

• Standard Card Clothing Co. 1914-1972
• Willington Name Plate Co., Inc. 1972-1989

Use (Historic)

• Fabricated Metal Products
• Textiles

Largest Documented Workforce

1-9 (1936)

Historic Narrative

The Standard Card Clothing Company was organized by Victor J. Bissonnette in 1909. The firm produced card clothing and hand cards and initially occupied a one-story frame shop on Westford Avenue that had over the course of the second half of the 19th century been the home of the Smith and Chandler Tannery, the Chandler Box Company, and then the Beckwith Card Company. The later moved to School Street in 1888, and it is unclear who or what occupied the Westford Avenue plant through the end of the century. The Standard Card Clothing Company was incorporated in 1910. The directors of the firm were Victor J. Bissonnette, his wife Catherine Ward Bissonnette, and George L. Gary. In 1914, Lincoln J. Luce purchased Gary’s share of the company, which then erected an new red brick mill on the site of its former plant. New equipment was installed at this time and the firm’s capacity greatly increased. The company continued in this capacity until 1926, when another round of changes took place at the management level. Luce’s interest in the company was bought out and Parley C. Patten and Richard W. Bissonnette entered the firm, which by that time was led by Victor J. Bissonette, president; Parley C. Patten, treasurer; and Richard W. Bissonnette, secretary. Additional shifts in the company’s composition came after Victor J. Bissonnette’s death in 1953, and Catherine Bissonnette’s passing in 1962. By the latter year, the firm was led by Richard W. Bissonnette, president; and John M. Patten, treasurer. Despite the decline experienced by many American textile firms during this period, the Standard Card Clothing Company continued to provide its product to mills along the Eastern and Central United States into the 1970s. In 1972, however, the firm was sold to the Benjamin Booth Company of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and all of its machinery was transferred out of the Stafford mill. A week later it was announced that the factory was to be occupied by the Willington Name Plate Company of Willington, Connecticut. This firm produced nameplates for a variety of branded products including appliances, sporting goods, motors, and airplanes, and the Hartford Courant identified the company as the second largest such manufacturer in the United States at the time. The firm employed 23 workers when it relocated to Stafford, however, its president Marcel Goepfert, announced that additional staff would be hired after the move was completed. The Willington Name Plate Company remained in the former Standard Card Clothing Company until 1989, during which time it completed several expansion projects as the firm grew to approximately 50 employees. When space constraints finally necessitated relocation, the company moved to a larger plant on Middle River Drive in Stafford.

Number of Existing Buildings

Roughly seven (7) adjoining blocks.

Dates of Construction

1914, Late-20th c.

Architect

n/a

Builder

n/a

Building Type

• Mill

Architectural Description

The former Standard Card Clothing Company plant is comprised of roughly seven adjoining blocks located at the southwest corner of the intersection of Westford Avenue and Meadow Lane, opposite Dennis Lane. The factory stands to the west of a small stone dam that creates a millpond on its northern side, this built by the Beckwith Card Company, one of the property’s early owners. The core of the Standard Card Clothing Company mill consists of a one-and-a-half-story, 107’ x 24’ red brick manufacturing building erected in 1914. The building has a concrete foundation, segmental-arched window openings, stone window sills, paired double-hung six-over-six frame sash, exposed rafter tails, and a low-pitch side-gabled roof. A one-story red brick ell extends from the south side of the building, yet has largely been incorporated into later additions. A roughly 20’ x 20’, one-story red brick office block located at the southwest corner of the mill was also built at the time of the original construction, yet was expanded some 25’ to the north at some point between 1972 and 1989. The details of the block mimic the details of the primary mill building and it retains its paired, six-over-six double-hung wood windows set in segmental-arched openings. Further additions were constructed on the south side of the plant between 1972 and 1989. These consist of three two-story buildings measuring roughly 56’ x 28’, 50’ x 26’, and 88’ x 38’. They are constructed of concrete block and have flat roofs. Two small accessory blocks were built on the west side of the plant at the same time and are constructed of similar materials.

Exterior Material(s)

• Brick
• Concrete Block

Structural System(s)

• Load Bearing Masonry

Roof Form

• Flat
• Gable
• Shed

Roof Material

• Asphalt

Power Source

• Electricity
• Water (Turbine)

Condition

Fair

Condition Notes

The factory is in overall fair condition. The majority of the exterior walls and roofs appear to be well maintained and the original wood windows found in the earliest portions of the building have been retained.

Specific Location

One 1.1-acre parcel (37 Westford Avenue) at the southwest corner of the intersection of Westford Avenue and Meadow Lane, opposite Dennis Lane.

Adjacent To

• Water (for Power)

Exterior Visible from Public Road?

Yes

Parcel ID / Assessor Record Link

• 51/ / 258 / Link →

Acreage

1.1

Use (Present)

• Commercial

Form Completed By

Lucas A. Karmazinas

Date

02/24/2015

Bibliography

1. Map of Tolland County, Wm. C. Eaton & H.C. Osborn, 1857.
2. Atlas of Tolland County, O.W. Gray, 1869.
3. Sanborn Map Company, 1884, 1892, 1897, 1911, 1921, 1930, 1943.
4. Aerial Survey of Connecticut, 1934, 1965.
5. Birdseye View of Stafford Springs, Conn., O.H. Bailey & Co., 1878.
6. List of Connecticut Manufacturers, 1922, 1924, 1930, 1932.
7. Directory of Connecticut State Manufacturers, 1936, 1939.
8. Industrial Directory of Connecticut, 1947.
9. Register of War Production Facilities in Connecticut, 1951.
10. Hartford Courant, 1953, 1972, 1989.
11. History of the Town of Stafford, Stafford Library Assoc., 1935.
12. Stafford, Connecticut, 250th Anniversary, 1969.
13. Stafford Illustrated, Young, William, 1895.
14. Town of Stafford HRI, Gibbs, James, 1993.