Connecticut City’s Manufacturing Nicknames
Connecticut boasts a rich manufacturing history, with many towns and cities once earning nicknames based on the products they produced for markets around the world. Since the Industrial Revolution, manufacturing has evolved significantly, with much of the work now relying on computer-operated machinery.
While not all of these historical nicknames remain accurate and some cities have shifted focus, countless businesses in Connecticut still produce parts and products for consumers and businesses. Many of these companies, in the Greater Hartford Area, have teamed up with Capital Workforce Partners and other state workforce agencies to offer job opportunities to those who complete the Career ConneCT Entry-Level Manufacturing Trainings. These free courses are designed to prepare individuals for careers in Connecticut’s flourishing manufacturing sector.
Learn more about FREE Career ConneCT Manufacturing Job Trainings
Bristol, CT – Clock City
“Most people recognize this town as the place where ESPN comes to life. ESPN has its main studios in Bristol. Other amazing places in this city are Lake Compounce which is the oldest theme park in America which has operated on a continuous basis.
In the 19th century, Bristol was well known in America as a clock-making city. People in the town had perfected the art of making these devices and when the era came to an end, they put up a museum where people can take a walk down memory lane as they explore various clocks. You can see the time devices that existed back in the 19th century at the American Clock and watch museum.
People refer to this city in different manners. Some call it the Bell City. This nickname stems from the history that the town has in the making of doorbells. These devices operated through spring mechanism and were quite common back in the day. There are homes that still use this technology to date.
Others may call this town the Mum City. This name originates from the city’s prowess in chrysanthemum production. It held the title for being the leading producer and holds a mum festival every year.”
Source: Bristol Connecticut - A City On The Rise (bristolrising.com)
New Britain, CT – Hardware City
The Hardware City got its name from being home to hardware businesses like Stanley Black & Decker, Inc. and the American Hardware Corporation, according to connecticuthistory.org.
Frederick T. Stanley, who founded Stanley Works (which became Stanley Black & Decker, Inc. after mergers), worked to improve the city’s infrastructure and turn it into a “modern manufacturing hub,” the company’s website states. The company’s headquarters are still in the city.
The American Hardware Corporation had around 12,000 workers in 1913, making it one of the state’s largest employers at the time, according to connecticuthistory.org. The corporation ended up taking control of other organizations in New Britain like Russell & Erwin and P. & F. Corbin, according to the New Britain Industrial Museum.
The city’s industrial history is chronicled through exhibits at the New Britain Industrial Museum. The museum displays items produced in New Britain like coffee makers, tools and ball bearings.
Source: From Hat City to Elm City: a look at nicknames of CT locales
Manchester, CT – Silk City
Manchester got its Silk City nickname from being one of the premier areas of the country producing silk.
The Cheney family of Manchester was considered the largest silk manufacturer in the country, according to the Manchester Historical Society. During the early 1920s, the family’s business employed around 4,700 workers, which was about 25 percent of the town’s workforce.
However, the silk industry began to decline after 1923 and in 1955 the Cheney family sold the business.
The mill area became recognized as a National Historic Landmark District in 1978, according to the Manchester Historical Society. The Town of Manchester purchased the land in order to preserve it.
The nickname continues to be honored with events like Manchester’s Silk City Fest. The festival celebrates the town with art, music and beer.
Source: From Hat City to Elm City: a look at nicknames of CT locales
Waterbury, CT – Brass City
Waterbury became known as Brass City because it was once a world leader in manufacturing according to connecticuthistory.org.
Abel Porter & Co., which was formed in the city in 1802, was considered one of the first rolling brass mills in the country.
Brass became an in-demand product due to the need of brass buttons in military uniforms. The city would create a water-powered mill that was capable of producing around 216,000 buttons per day, connecticuthistory.org notes.
However, plastic became a cheaper replacement for brass and companies outsourcing work caused the industry to suffer, according to Waterbury’s Mattatuck Museum.
The Mattatuck Museum continues to honor the city’s nickname by hosting an annual Brass City Button Award ceremony, which honors individuals who have made outstanding contributions.
Source: From Hat City to Elm City: a look at nicknames of CT locales
Danbury, CT – Hat City
Danbury’s most famous moniker is Hat City.
Danbury resident Zadoc Benedict is said to have started the city’s hatting history by finding a way to create felt — used to make hats — by applying friction and sweat to animal fur, according to connecticuthistory.org. Benedict would go on to open one of the city’s first hatting factories sometime “around 1780,” the Danbury Museum & Historical Society stated.
Around thirty factories — producing around 5 million hats a year — operated in the city by 1887 and Danbury was known as “The Hat Capital of the World,” the Danbury Museum & Historical Society said.
In 1987, the city’s last remaining factory, Danbury Hat Co., shuttered. Many of the businesses exited the city due to labor disputes and financial reversals, the Danbury Museum & Historical Society reports. Factory conditions caused workers to develop physical tremors from mercury poisoning, which became known as the “Danbury Shakes,” according to connecticuthistory.org. In 1941, the use of mercury in hat-making in Connecticut was banned by Governor Robert Hurley.
Danbury’s official seal features a derby hat alongside a railroad line.
Local team names, including the Danbury Mad Hatters and Danbury Hat Tricks are inspired by the city’s history.
Source: From Hat City to Elm City: a look at nicknames of CT locales
Willimantic, CT – Thread City
Willimantic became known as the Thread City because it was a popular spot for thread production.
Willimantic Linen Company, which used flax imported from Europe to make its products, was a major producer of thread in the state during the 1880s. The company joined the larger American Thread Company and continued to be a major employer in the city through the 1980s, according to the Connecticut Department of Transportation.
Source: From Hat City to Elm City: a look at nicknames of CT locales
Stamford, CT – Lock City
Founded in 1869, Yale and Towne was an innovative producer of locks. By 1892, Yale and Towne employed approximately one-fourth of Stamford’s population. In its heyday, Yale and Towne took up the entire area between Pacific, Henry, Canal, and Market Streets in South End.
The company left Stamford in the 1950s and the Lock City nickname began to fade from usage. Today, the area is under redevelopment, home to the and original Yale and Towne buildings that have been .
In the 1960s, Stamford tried a new industry-driven nickname on for size — “Research City.” The American Cyanamid Company and C.B.S. Laboratories had both taken up residency in the Stamford, but were soon overshadowed by other major corporations. The slogan never really took off.
In recent decades, city slogans have been much more deliberate. In 1988, Stamford Mayor Thom Serrani went as far as to hold a contest to select a new slogan, which brings us to present-day and “The City That Works!”
According to the ‘s website, “The City That Works!” includes a cheery exclamation point and is a reference to Stamford’s economic viability. It is also often read as a reference to the many corporate headquarters located in the city.
Source: City Nicknames That Never Stuck | Stamford, CT Patch
Ansonia, CT – Copper City
Ansonia got its nickname from its history of manufacturing copper, according to the Derby Historical Society.
The Ansonia Copper and Brass Company, which opened in 1845, employed hundreds of individuals and drove economic activity in the city. However, the plant was ultimately closed in 2013.
The city plans to revitalize the 60-acre factory site. In December 2022, Ansonia approved $6.5 million to repair a bridge leading to the location. Corporate representative John Marini said the repairs are set to take place in 2023.
Source: From Hat City to Elm City: a look at nicknames of CT locales
Meriden, CT – Rubber City
Naugatuck earned its moniker, the Rubber City, from the town’s once-thriving rubber industry.
Connecticut native and chemist Charles Goodyear developed and patented vulcanized rubber in the 1800s, which is used to create things like tires, according to connecticuthistory.org. In 1844, Goodyear also established the Naugatuck India-Rubber Company.
The town was also home to the UniRoyal Corporation’s Naugatuck Footwear Division, which opened in 1880. A report by the Historic American Engineering Record called the business “the largest employer and most important economic institution in Naugatuck for one hundred years.” However, in 1977, the plant ceased its footwear operations, according to the New York Times.
Source: From Hat City to Elm City: a look at nicknames of CT locales
East Hampton, CT – Belltown, USA
The town of East Hampton is informally known as “Belltown, USA.” Back in the 1800s, the town was home to 30 different bell manufacturers. Among the earliest and most successful of these businesses was the Bevin Brothers Manufacturing Company. Operating on the same piece of land in East Hampton for almost 200 years, Bevin Brothers produced everything from the first bicycle bells to souvenir bells for the presidential campaigns of Calvin Coolidge and Thomas Dewey; and throughout their history, they manufactured more than one million bells for the Salvation Army.
During the early 1800s, Abner and William Bevin became indentured servants to William Barton, the first bell maker in what became the modern town of East Hampton. After finishing out their obligations to Barton, the two brothers set up small foundries in their backyards and began casting bells. They decided to go into business together in 1832. With the addition of brothers Chauncey and Philo, the Bevin Brothers Manufacturing Company truly became a family business.
Source: Bevin Brothers Helps Transform East Hampton into Belltown, USA
Groton, CT – Submarine Capital of the World
Groton became known as the Submarine Capital of the World when the Electric Boat Division of General Dynamics delivered 74 diesel submarines to the Navy in World War II. This was followed in 1954 with the launch of the USS Nautilus, the world’s first nuclear-powered submarine, now permanently berthed at Goss Cove near the Submarine Base.
Today Groton is a regional center for commerce and industry while its shoreline location and its many historical sites have made the region a prime tourist attraction.
Source: A History of Groton (groton-ct.gov)
Learn more about FREE Career ConneCT Manufacturing Job Trainings