Mill Record Winchester

RETURN TO ‘FIND MILLS’

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.

Complex Name (Common)
Winsted Silk Company
Complex Name (Historic)
  • Mason Silk Co.-Belding-Hemminway Company
  • Winsted Silk Company
Address or Location
12 Munro Street, Winsted , Winchester
County
Litchfield
Historic Designation
Associated Mill Community
n/a
Historic Information

Companies Associated w/Complex

  • Belding Brothers Silk Co., Winsted Silk Division 1917-1925
  • Belding-Hemingway Colk Co. 1925-1926
  • H. O. Products Corp. 1971-present
  • Mason Silk Co. 1927-1967
  • Winsted Silk Co. 1875-1917

Use (Historic)

Largest Documented Workforce

100 (1967)

Historic Narrative

The Winsted Silk Company was organized in 1875 during a period of great expansion in the American Silk Industry, and was incorporated in 1883. The firm began by producing silk thread under the brand-name ‘Potter’s Spool Silk.’ By the 1890s the company had expanded the factory substantially and diversified its product line to include finished silk products such as rope, embroidery, and wash silks. The primary business remained silk thread for use in hats, ribbons, underwear, gloves and parts of clothing. Belding Brothers Silk Company, with mills in Rockville, California and Michigan, purchased the Winsted Silk Company in 1917; the latter continued to operate under the Winsted name. In 1925, the operations of the Belding Brothers Silk Company merged with those of the Heminway Silk Company of Watertown, Putnam and New London. And in 1926, Belding-Heminway was acquired by the Corticelli Silk Company of New London, Norwich, Haydenville, Massachusetts, Leeds, England and Florence, Italy, and the Winsted factory was closed. A year later the buildings became home to the Mason Silk Company, which despite the name, produced no silk: it made synthetic silk threads, which were both cheaper and easier to produce. Mason Silk prospered during the Second World War, likely producing threads used in parachutes. The flood of 1955 ruined much of the factory, but despite this setback, the company bounced back to fulfill the high demand for synthetic threads. It specialized in thread used in sewing NASA space suits, and it reportedly produced the thread used in the suits worn by the first Americans to walk on the moon. In 1967, with 100 employees, the Mason Silk Company was sold to a division of Indian Head Inc., called the Linen Thread Company, which operated mills throughout the country. Today the building is occupied by H.O. Products Corp., a small manufacturing company of foam tapes, pads and gaskets established in 1971.

Architectural Information

Number of Existing Buildings

Seven (7) blocks.

Dates of Construction

1875-1887, c.1940-50

Architect

n/a

Builder

n/a

Building Type

Architectural Description

Like its neighbors, the Winsted Edge Tool Works and the T.C. Richards Company, the Winsted Silk Company was built to utilize both water power from the Highland Lake spillway and steam power. While there have been additions to the factory, the original core built between 1875 and 1887 remains intact. The factory fronts Munro Street, and the northern office, stripping and spinning blocks extend south from the street; they have been encapsulated within c.1940-50 brick additions. The dye house, engineering room, machine shop and boiler room extend south between the spinning block to the east and the spillway to the west.

Exterior Material(s)

Structural System(s)

Roof Form

Roof Material

Power Source

Condition

Good, Fair, Deteriorated

Condition Notes

All portions of the building are in generally good condition.

Property Information

Specific Location

One 1.75 acre parcel just east of the Winsted Edge Tool Works building, which shared the same stream for water-power, running Highland Lake into the Mad River to the east.

Adjacent To

Exterior Visible from Public Road?

Yes

Parcel ID / Assessor Record Link

Acreage

1.75

Use (Present)

Sources

Form Completed By

Michael Forino

Date

n/a

Bibliography

  1. 1947 Industrial Directory of Connecticut.
  2. The Hartford Courant, 1892-1967.
  3. Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps, 1887-1931.
Representative View(s)Click on image to view full file


Photographer

n/a

Photography Date

n/a