In 1900, there were 14 Foundries in the city of Hartford alone. I owned and ran the last one, which I closed in 1999. It was, at that time, the largest steel foundry in New England. Old factory buildings are of great interest to me, and I've been through a mess of them. Many of those that still stand have been repurposed, many stand empty except for rats and squatters, and most have been torn down. Dave Suponski and I are always joking about getting the old UMC shot tower going again. It can't get any more 'brown' so what the hell.
My grandfather's cousin took my dad to Meriden, where he was born, on his 16th birthday, and bought him his first Parker.
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