Special
Thank you to Hank Waldrop for forwarding this information.
About Bridgeport
Wood Finishing Co:
From
New Milford Gazette October 16, 1891.
The
Bridgeport Wood Finishing Company’s Business Increasing.
While
in many lines of trade during the past year dull times have
been experienced and much complaining, in an interview with
the Bridgeport Wood Finishing company we find that they have
not only been busy during the ordinary busy seasons but they
have been crowded with orders during the entire year, and
have even had as much as they could do through the dull summer
months in furnishing manufacturers with their celebrated brand
of Wheeler’s Wood Filler as well as their other kindred specialties,
such as wood stains and dyes, dryers and japans and Breinig’s
lithogen Silicate paint. The continued and increased demand
on their works, says Building, has caused them from time to
time to enlarge the capacity of the same. The works, however,
located at New Milford, Ct., in conjunction with their New
York storehouse and office at 210 Pearl street, corner Burling
slip as well as their Chicago warehouse, 211 East Randolph
street, still proving inadequate to meet all the demands made
upon them, they have purchased additional facilities in the
way of a large silex mill located at Branchville, Ct. They
hope now, with this additional establishment, to be able at
least for some time in the future to fill their orders more
promptly than ever in the past.
Among
the new articles that they are continually bringing out we
notice their English oak oil stains. For a long time back
they have been largely furnishing the trade with what is known
as their English Oak Water Stains. These have been very popular,
but they have repeated calls by the trade to furnish them
with an article that will not raise the grain of the wood
and cause so much trouble in getting a finish as a water stain
naturally does. This was, however, no small task; after months
of patient endeavor, however, they have at last succeeded
in making an oil stain with which now a result similar to
that obtained by the former water stain may be obtained with
less labor and with fewer coats of varnish. They have here
and there distributed some samples of this article, and from
all sides have received encouragement; in fact they say they
have had such a demand for the article that it has been difficult
to supply it as rapidly as they would like.
However,
their action in buying the additional large works we have
before alluded to, has shown they do not propose to allow
anything to stand in the way of their promptly filling all
demands made upon them.
The
products of the Bridgeport Wood Finishing company are distributed
almost in every portion of the United States as well as largely
exported. A great deal of their business is done through agents,
though a large portion of it is done by correspondence through
their own office at New Milford, Ct. They will cheerfully
furnish any information in regard to finishing hard wood,
staining, etc., and any mail addressed to them will receive
prompt attention.—Weekly Record of New Haven.
View
Chicago World's Fair Piece on BWFC.
From
Two Centuries of New Milford, Connecticut 1707-1907, The Grafton
Press, 1907, p. 91.
1907:
The Past and Present- Activities of New Milford in Later Years
George
B. Calhoun contributes the following concerning one of the
large industries of the town, the Bridgeport Wood Finishing
Company:
“This
company was incorporated in Bridgeport, Conn., on October
7, 1876, with a silex manufacturing plant at Fort Ann, N.
Y. In 1881 the company removed to its present location at
Still River, and erected there a large silex, filler and paint,
and japan and varnish plant. The principal portion of this
plant was destroyed by fire in February, 1902, and was rebuilt
with better facilities for meeting its business requirements.
The products of the company are ground silex and feldspar,
Wheeler’s Patent Wood Filler, Breinig’s Lithogen Silicate
Paint, Breinig’s Water and Oil Stains, Japans, Varnishes,
etc. The business of the company has steadily increased in
volume from year to year, and its products now have a world-wide
reputation, so that, at the present time, agencies have been
established in all the principal cities of the United States
and Canada, as well as in Porto Rico, South America, and the
principal European cities. With an auxiliary silex manufacturing
plant at Branchville, Conn., and branch offices and warehouses
in New York City, Boston, Philadelphia, and Chicago, the company
is well equipped to care for its largely increasing interests
at home and abroad. The officers of the company are: David
E. Breinig, president and general manager; Edward E. Porter,
vice-president; George B. Calhoun, secretary; Henry S. Mygatt,
treasurer.”
1927:
The End of Old Industry
Directors Vote To Close Still River Mill
ONCE A BUSY SHOP: Breinig’s Paints Well Known Even Now—Lithowhite
Silex Co. Recently Sold Plant to Power Company
A
special meeting of the stockholders of the Lithowhite Silex
Company, will be held at the company office at Still River,
Friday, May 27, at 11:30 a. m. The board of directors at a
meeting held April 26 voted for the dissolution of the company.
The property at Still River was sold to the Connecticut Light
& Power company a few months ago. The coming meeting is for
the purpose of taking action on the vote of the directorate.
The
Bridgeport Wood Finishing Company, by which title the company
was known until its sale in 1917 to the E. I. DuPont Nemours
Company, was incorporated in 1876. The company’s products
were marketed all over the world and for more than forty years
the plant at Still River furnished employment for many local
men.
G.
M. Breinig was one of the men responsible for the growth of
the company. He was born in Philadelphia in 1853 the son of
Dr. David E. and Sophia Breinig. Dr. Breinig abandoned his
medical practice in 1855 and with his brother, Jacob Breinig
started a paint factory in Philadelphia. Later the business
was established in Allentown, Pa., where it is still continued.
The
Breinigs were members of old Pennsylvania families and the
name is perpetuated in that state, Breinigville being the
name of a community near Allentown.
In
1864 Dr. Breinig went to New York and became associated with
Nathaniel Wheeler, sewing machine manufacturer and a partner
in the Wheeler & Wilson company of Bridgeport. Mr. Wheeler
held patents on wood fillers. Wheeler’s Patent Woodfiller
was one of the products widely advertised by the B. W. F.
Company, the organization of which resulted from the association
of Dr. Breinig and Mr. Wheeler.
G.
M. Breinig went into the business and succeeded his father
as general manager in 1884. The factories of the company were
at Still River, New Milford and Branchville, CT.
A
special meeting of the stockholders of the company was held
November 27, 1917. At that time it was voted to accept an
offer made by the DuPont Nemours Company, Inc., of Wilmington,
Del., whereby the DuPont interests were to purchase the paint
and wood finishing business of the local concern, the purchase
to be as of December 1, 1917.
The
former business of the B. W. F. was thereafter operated as
a division of the DuPont company. [NOTE: For several years
Du Pont continued to market the paint and wood finishing products
under the same brand of “Bridgeport Standard,” but manufactured
them at the former Harrison Brothers Paint Works in Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania. By 1921 the “Bridgeport Standard” line was phased
out.--Hank Waldrop] The corporate body of the local concern
remained the same but the name was changed to the Lithowhite
Silex Company, and water power holdings of the B. W. F. were
retained until a few months ago.
The
products of the old company were leaders with the trade. Many
local young men served the company and gained the experience
which later led to important connections with other concerns.
The industry was one of the strongest locally for many years.
It was a good thing for the community and the men employed
there were well satisfied with their positions. Disastrous
fires were responsible for huge losses to the owners at different
times.
During
the past few years the operation of the Lithowhite Silex Company
has not been a paying venture. It was this condition that
led to the acceptance of the offer of the Connecticut Light
& Power Company recently, whereby the holdings of the company
were sold for a sum approximating $240,000.
Noonday
in New Milford a few years ago was marked by whistle blasts
at several factories. One by one these harbingers of industry
have gone until now very few remain. As a matter of sentiment
and memory of old associations, if for no other reason, many
will regret the disintegration of the old business founded
by the Breinig's.
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