Ansonia Brass, pictures from the roof
The American Brass Company was formed on June 7, 1893, as a holding company for six brass manufacturing companies: Plume & Atwood Manufacturing Company; Benedict & Burnham Manufacturing Company; Waterbury Brass Company; Scoville Manufacturing Company; Holmes, Booth and Haydens; and Coe Brass Manufacturing Company. Disagreements over which companies would manufacture which goods delayed formal incorporation until March 1, 1899. All the firms except for the Waterbury Brass Company and the Coe Brass Manufacturing Company withdrew from the new corporation. But the Ansonia Brass and Battery Company joined the new firm in their place.American Brass began operation on December 14, 1899.There were about 10,000 brass workers in the United States in 1900, and half of them worked for American Brass. Benedict & Burnham and Holmes, Booth and Haydens became part of American Brass in 1901. By 1909, American Brass manufactured two-thirds of all the brass in the United States,consumed one-third of all copper produced in the country,and was the largest fabricator of nonferrous metals in the world
But the company failed to eliminate duplication in its manufacturing plants, and its administration remained decentralized.Until 1922, American Brass was one of the few companies whose structure consisted of autonomous businesses.Scovill Manufacturing, Inc., the next largest brass manufacturer, was able to expand its market share significantly as American Brass lagged.Despite its managerial challengers, American Brass was still a highly innovative company. It developed and patented a process for constructing hollow and ventilated busses from rectangular copper bars. The company also developed numerous new and unique metallurgical processes and alloys.
(from Wikipedia)
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