H. D. Smith Company Building facts for kids
|
H. D. Smith Company Building
|
|
|
U.S. Historic district
Contributing property |
|
 |
|
 Location in Connecticut
Location in the United States
|
|
| Location | 24 West St., Plantsville, Connecticut |
|---|---|
| Area | 1.9 acres (0.77 ha) |
| Built | 1882 |
| Part of | Plantsville Historic District (ID88002673) |
| MPS | Historic Industrial Complexes of Southington TR (AD) |
| NRHP reference No. | 77001420 |
Quick facts for kids Significant dates |
|
| Added to NRHP | September 19, 1977 |
| Designated CP | December 1, 1988 |
The H. D. Smith Company Building (also called the American Standard Company Building) is a historic factory building. You can find it at 24 West Street in Plantsville, Connecticut. This building was first built in 1882. It shows off some interesting old factory designs from Southington. The H. D. Smith & Co. used this building from when it was built until the 1920s. Because of its history, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1977.
Contents
The H. D. Smith Company Building: A Historic Factory
This old factory is located in the Plantsville area of Southington. It sits on the west side of West Street. The building is found between West Street and the Eightmile River. The river runs behind the property. Long ago, the river helped power the factory.
What Does This Old Building Look Like?
The H. D. Smith Company Building is made of red brick. It has two main parts. The front part has two stories. It has a special roof called a truncated hip roof. On top of this roof is a square cupola, which is like a small tower.
The back part of the building is a long, single-story structure. It has a gable roof, which is a common pointed roof shape. The building's walls have recessed panels. These are like sunken sections that add to its design. There are also brick patterns at the top of the walls.
The front of the building has a porch. This porch has a hip roof and goes all the way across the front. It has square posts that are cut at an angle. These posts support brackets with decorative wooden shapes. The windows are set in arched openings. The bricks above the windows are red and black, arranged in a cool pattern.
From Carriages to Cars: The Story of H. D. Smith & Co.
The H. D. Smith & Co. was started in 1850. A man named Henry D. Smith founded the company. He invented machines that could make iron parts for carriages much faster. Before his invention, these parts were made by hand.
The company first started in Meriden. But around 1882, Smith moved the company to Plantsville. That's when this factory was built. The factory used to be much bigger. It was shaped like a large "U" with an open space in the middle. People thought it was a very well-designed building for the area. The part of the building you see today is the northernmost part of that "U" shape.
In the 1890s, the company started making different products. They began to produce parts for bicycles. Later, in the early 1900s, they made toolkits for cars. The company eventually stopped making products in the 1920s. After that, the factory building was empty for some time.
New Life for an Old Building
In 1938, the Florian family bought the factory. They owned a company called American Standard Company. This company made tools for gardening.
More recently, in August 2015, a person named Jon Rondeau bought the building. He also bought the rest of the old H. D. Smith & Co. Works. He plans to use the building for a new business that makes special beverages. This shows how old buildings can find new purposes over time!
