Park Slope’s Hidden History: The Ansonia Clock Factory

When my grandmother was a child growing up in rural Sicily she loved to lie on the carpet in her grandmother’s living room beneath an ornate clock. She enjoyed listening to the clock’s chimes mark each passing hour, and she can recall those peaceful moments with vivid detail to this day. When my grandmother immigrated to New York in August 1954 she was heartbroken to have to leave the clock behind. What my grandmother didn’t know was that the clock had already made its way across the Atlantic once before. My great-great grandmother’s clock was created just a few blocks away from where I now live in Park Slope at the Ansonia Clock Factory.

In 1851 the Ansonia Clock Company was founded in Ansonia, Connecticut by metal dealer Anson Greene Phelps and clockmakers Theodore Terry and Franklin C. Andrews. Phelps expanded into the clock making business after he established his brass company in the 1840s. The clock company was so successful that just two years later Ansonia cast iron cased clocks were showcased at the 1853 New York World's Fair. In the 1870s a disastrous fire ruined the Connecticut factory which led the Ansonia Clock Company to expand into New York City. In 1878, Thomas Edison visited the company’s small New York factories to conduct experiments. Edison attempted to combine Ansonia clocks with his newly developed phonograph, which ultimately proved unsuccessful.

By 1879 the clock company laid the groundwork to consolidate their New York City operations into one large factory. They purchased land in Park Slope that encompassed the entire block from 7th Avenue and 12th Street to 8th Avenue and 13th Street. The company paid $33,000 for the land and $100,000 to build the factory which is equivalent to roughly $1 million and $3.2 million dollars today. Construction began in February 1879 and was completed on June 1. The building was heated by steam and lit by gas that was manufactured on the premises. Many varieties of clocks were made, from the cheapest at 75 cents (roughly $24 today) to the most expensive at $2,000 (roughly $63,000 today).

On June 28, 1879 the Brooklyn Union newspaper featured an article about this “valuable addition to Brooklyn” and gave a warm welcome to Park Slope’s newest business:

“These new works will give a great impetus to the real estate located on the slope which bounds the westerly side of Prospect Park. The people of Brooklyn extend to them a sincere welcome, and we hope their employees, in their leisure hours, will be able to enjoy the beauties of Prospect Park and the beach at Coney Island. The land upon which this factory is located has been greatly praised for its adaptability for residential purposes, and it has been said that in time it would be covered with palatial residences, and that the low land on Fourth and Third avenues would be taken up by manufacturing establishments. But the Ansonia Company have run up a factory of large proportions on high ground, so that those who enter the port of New York by the bay may see its huge dimensions. May it stand there for ages as a real representation of industry, enterprise, and thrift.”

Unfortunately for the Ansonia Company, this magnificent factory burned down over a year later in October 1880. A fire broke out in the gas room which leveled the building in about two hours. The loss was reported to be about $750,000 (~$23 million) with only $395,000 (~$12 million) of that sum insured. Fortunately there were no casualties, but 1,200 people were left unemployed and many locals worried that the factory would not reopen. The Brooklyn Eagle voiced the community’s concern in an article from October 27th:

“The factory did much to build up that portion of South Brooklyn in which it was located, and its destruction will prove a local disaster of no small magnitude. It is not definitely known as yet whether the company intend to rebuild the factory, but it is feared that they will not."

Rumors soon circulated about possible foul play organized by a few unhappy employees. After investigation, the fire department concluded that the fire was accidental and that the stories of incendiarism were baseless. Park Slopers did not have to wait too long to see if the business would reopen as construction commenced on the new factory just two months later in December 1880.

The Ansonia Clock Company reopened their factory in 1881 as a larger, 300,000 square foot factory complex. Ansonia’s employees made more than 10,000 clocks and watches daily, and they produced 400 different models of clock cases for 50 different kinds of clock movements. By 1886, the company had sales offices in New York, Chicago, and London. Ansonia Clocks quickly became a household name and multiple prominent businesses like Macy’s and Bloomingdale's sold their products. The business was so successful that in 1899, Anson Phelps's grandson William Earle Dodge Stokes built a grand hotel in Manhattan. Just like the clock factory, The Ansonia, New York's first air conditioned building, still stands today.

The clock factory played a large part in creating the infrastructure of Park Slope. Workers built and rented homes surrounding the factory as it became one of the largest employers in Kings County. The Ansonia Mutual Aid Society was established to better the lives of the company’s employees and their community. They sponsored numerous activities like theater productions, vaudeville shows, dances, and grand balls. Most of their parties were held at Prospect Hall, which was sadly demolished in 2022. The Mutual Aid Society’s events were the talk of the town and were recapped with much detail in various newspapers, like The Brooklyn Daily Times:

“There were more than 1,500 present. The entertainment committee brought out numerous amusements for the guests. Several clocks from the Ansonia Clock Company were given to those with the prettiest costumes. Two beautiful silver cups were awarded as prizes for the dancing contest.”

By 1914, the Ansonia Clock Company offered an impressive array of 450 different clock models, marking the peak of its manufacturing success. In addition to prosperous domestic sales, clocks were exported overseas to countries like Australia, New Zealand, Japan, China, India, and many others. Unfortunately this success wouldn’t last for long. As a larger range of raw materials in manufacturing became available and as consumer tastes evolved, the Ansonia Clock Company began to decline around 1920. Poor business decisions led to a drop in sales as the effects of the first World War and competition from other clock companies took their toll.

In 1929 Ansonia sold their machinery to the Amtorg Trading Company in Russia and sent some of their employees to the Soviet Union to train these new clockmakers. By 1932 the Ansonia Clock Company had vacated their factory and the spaces within were leased to 33 other businesses. The loss of this once prosperous business in Park Slope was difficult for many, especially for the people who spent most of their lives employed there. In the 1980s the factory’s spacious rooms were converted into apartments.

Today, the former Ansonia Clock Factory is home to the co-op apartments of Ansonia Court and The Ansonia Storage Warehouse Corp., which was built in 1909 as extra storage for the clock company. When you walk along 12th street between 7th and 8th avenues be sure to look out for the red and white signage that bears the warehouse building’s original name.

In the 1970s my great-grandfather surprised my grandmother and brought the Ansonia clock back with him after a return trip to Sicily. This treasured piece of history has been safely kept in my grandmother’s home in the Bronx ever since, and I hope that it will remain in our family for years to come. It stands as just one of many heirlooms created by the Ansonia Clock Factory for families like ours. Though my great-great grandmother’s clock is at least 130 years old, the walnut wood remains as flawless as ever and the clock’s familiar chime still rings out.