Historic Mills of Connecticut

Companies Associated w/Complex

• F. Kelly Co. ca. 1905-late 20th c.
• Union Fabric Co. ca. 1905-late 20th c.

Use (Historic)

• Apparel & Accessories
• Fabricated Metal Products

Largest Documented Workforce

100-199 (1939), 50-99 (1939)

Historic Narrative

The Union Fabric Company was founded in Ansonia, Connecticut, by Wilbur F. Osborne, a resident of Derby, in 1887. Osborne was the son of John W. Osborne, a pioneer of Connecticut’s brass industry and the co-founder and president of the Osborne and Cheeseman Company, which was likewise located in Ansonia. Wilbur F. Osborne was educated at Wesleyan University and after enlisting for service during the Civil War he rose through the ranks of sergeant, second and first lieutenant, and captain, before finally being discharged as a major at the end of the conflict. Following the war, Osborne joined his father at Osborne and Cheeseman, which he eventually served as president when John W. Osborn retired. A driven and ambitious man, Wilbur F. Osborne was responsible for organizing a number of successful firms while simultaneously serving as the head of Osborne and Cheeseman. In addition to the Union Fabric Company, these included the Schneller Stay Works of Ansonia, the Connecticut Clasp Company of Bridgeport, and the Derby Silver Company. The Union Fabric Company was established for the production of covered wire used in corsets, skirts, bustles, etc., and later also manufactured radio components. As noted, the firm was originally located in Ansonia yet relocated to Derby around 1905 after its new plant on Roosevelt Drive (formerly Housatonic Avenue) was completed. The company shared the factory with the F. Kelly Company, a manufacturer and distributor of brass specialties and corset and dress stays founded by Fergus Kelly in 1892. The latter firm originally occupied a plant at the rear of 93 Main Street in downtown Derby, however, around 1905, Kelly moved the company into the new factory on Roosevelt Drive. The F. Kelly Company likely produced many of the metal components used by the Union Fabric Company, and also served as a selling agent for the manufacturer. The Union Fabric Company’s relationship with the F. Kelly Company was symbiotic in aspects of both production and management. This was evidenced following Wilbur Osborne’s death in 1907, at which time his 31-year old daughter, Francis Eliza Osborne (later Francis Osborne Kellogg after she married New York-architect Waldo Stewart Kellogg in 1919), assumed leadership of the companies under her father’s management. This included serving in the position of president of the Union Fabric Company, as well as being named treasurer of the F. Kelly Company, which was incorporated that same year. Francis Osborne Kellogg was a remarkable woman who capably led the companies under her control – as well as starting new ones – while also gaining a well-earned reputation as a philanthropist, agriculturist, and conservationist. At the time of her death in 1956 she deeded the 350-acre family estate, Osbornedale, to the State of Connecticut for use as a state park. The Union Fabric and F. Kelly Companies continued to operate alongside one another through the 1960s and into the mid-to-late 20th century. While the majority of the plant currently stands vacant, a portion is occupied by a salvaged building materials and antique dealer, as well as a real estate firm.

Number of Existing Buildings

Roughly eight (8) adjoining primary blocks.

Dates of Construction

ca. 1905, ca. 1920.

Architect

n/a

Builder

n/a

Building Type

• Mill

Architectural Description

The former Union Fabric and F. Kelly Companies shared a plant comprised of a group of roughly five adjoining blocks located within the block framed by Roosevelt Drive, C Street, Park Avenue, and B Street. The majority of the complex was erected ca. 1905. The portion that formerly housed the Union Fabric Company includes a two-story, 38’ x 96’ red brick steel work shop located at the center of the parcel and extending north; a two-story (raised from one story ca. 1920), 34’ x 58’ red brick steel work shop situated along Park Avenue; a two-story (raised from one story ca. 1920), 38’ x 34’ red brick steel work shop adjoining the two aforementioned buildings; and a one-story, 92’ x 100’ frame storage building created by connecting two existing storage blocks on the west side of the plant ca. 1920. A red brick stair tower and one-story loading/shipping dock are located on the south side of the second workshop within the courtyard formed by the two adjacent plants. The portion that formerly housed the F. Kelly Company includes a two-story, 44’ x 154’ red brick machine room located at the intersection of Roosevelt Drive and B Street and and extending west; a one-story, 28’ x 32’ red brick boiler house located on the north side of the machine room; a two-story, 36’ x 80’ red brick stamping shop adjoining the eastern end of the machine room and extending north along B Street (this enlarged from roughly 48’ long ca. 1920); a one-story, 36’ x 34’ red brick tumbler shop adjoining the northern end of the stamping room; and a one-story, 36’ x 84’ red brick dipping room adjoining the northern elevation of the tumbler shop and extending west along Park Avenue. A five-story red brick stair tower and one-story loading/shipping dock are located at the southeast corner of the plant. The F. Kelly Company and Union Fabric Company shared the western half of the building flanking Roosevelt Drive for most of their histories, with the F. Kelly Company claiming space on the first floor, and the Union Fabric Company occupying the upper level, accessing this via an elevated passageway connecting it to its northwestern neighbor. The majority of the plant is typical of brick mills erected throughout the mid-to-late 19th and early-20th centuries. The complex is characterized by its red brick walls dominated by rows of large windows set in segmental-arched openings. The manufacturing buildings all have brownstone window sills and corbelled brick cornices. The design of the exterior walls employs recessed window bays framed by brick piers and rising to a corbelled arch on the second story. This detail is also employed throughout the factory directly to the east – this formerly occupied by the Dairy Machinery and Construction Company – suggesting that the plants were the work of the same architect. The western and northwestern manufacturing buildings of the Union Fabric/F. Kelly plant were unified under a single flat roof when the later was raised to two stories around 1920, however, the third brick block is slightly different. This was given a gable roof with stepped brick parapet at each gable end was it was enlarged. Despite this difference, fenestration throughout the plant is generally uniform, this consisting of double-hung frame sash, the majority in twelve-over-twelve arrangements. The storage building has been altered through the addition of vinyl siding and windows.

Exterior Material(s)

• Brick
• Vinyl Siding

Structural System(s)

• Load Bearing Masonry
• Wood Frame

Roof Form

• Flat
• Gable

Roof Material

• Asphalt
• EPDM

Power Source

• Electricity

Condition

Fair

Condition Notes

The complex is in fair condition. The exterior walls show some staining and signs of deterioration; however, they appear sound, as do the plant’s various roofs. The original windows throughout the two main blocks have been preserved, although some are in a deteriorated state.

Specific Location

One 1.83-acre parcel (253 Roosevelt Drive) located on the north side of Roosevelt Drive and comprising the entire block framed by Roosevelt Drive, C Street, Park Avenue, and B Street.

Adjacent To

• Main Roads

Exterior Visible from Public Road?

Yes

Parcel ID / Assessor Record Link

• 10-3-154 (for record, use link and type in address or parcel number) / Link →

Acreage

1.83

Use (Present)

• Mixed-Use
• Vacant

Form Completed By

Lucas A. Karmazinas

Date

01/13/2015

Bibliography

1. List of Connecticut Manufacturers, 1922, 1924, 1930, 1932.
2. Directory of Connecticut State Manufacturers, 1936, 1939.
3. Map of New Haven County, H & C.T. Smith, 1856.
4. Atlas of New Haven County, Beers, Ellis & Soule, 1868.
5. Industrial Directory of Connecticut, 1947.
6. Register of War Production Facilities in Connecticut, 1951.
7. Sanborn Map Company, 1896, 1901, 1906, 1912, 1924, 1947.
8. Aerial Survey of Connecticut, 1934, 1965.
9. Bird’s Eye View of Birmingham, Connecticut, O.H. Bailey, 1876.
10. The History of the Old Town of Derby, Connecticut, 1642-1880, 1880.
11. History of New Haven County, 1892.
12. Tercentenary Pictorial and History of the Lower Naugatuck Valley, Malloy, Leo T., 1935.
13. Derby, Connecticut 300th Anniversary Commemorative Book; 1675-1975, 1975.
14. Hartford Courant, 1907, 1926, 1956.
15. Derby City Directories, 1900-1950.