[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 141 (Tuesday, November 18, 2014)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1617]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 HONORING SARGENT MANUFACTURING COMPANY AS THEY CELEBRATE THEIR 150TH 
                              ANNIVERSARY

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. ROSA L. DeLAURO

                             of connecticut

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, November 18, 2014

  Ms. DeLAURO. Mr. Speaker, it is with great pride that I rise today to 
join the company leadership, employees and families that have gathered 
today to celebrate the 150th Anniversary of Sargent Manufacturing 
Company in New Haven, Connecticut. A reflection of Connecticut's long 
and proud history of manufacturing tradition, Sargent has and continues 
to be a pillar of manufacturing in our city and our state--one of the 
many threads that have woven the fabric of our community.
  Leaving home at just sixteen years old, Joseph Bradford Sargent, 
worked tirelessly, starting at the ground level of a dry-goods store in 
Boston which, soon after, he was managing. He would later move to 
Georgia to open his own store. He later moved his family to Brooklyn 
where he, along with his two brothers, George and Edward, operated a 
wholesale hardware business in New York City where they obtained an 
interest in one of their suppliers, Peck and Walter Manufacturing. In 
1857, the brothers purchased full ownership and in 1864 moved the 
factory to New Haven along the Harbor, establishing Sargent 
Manufacturing Company at its original location on Water Street.
  A series of five-story brick buildings and storage sheds marked the 
original plant. As the business grew other buildings were added with 
``catwalks'' or bridges connecting them, often spanning the busy city 
streets. 1884 marked the beginning of their manufacturing what would 
become one of their best known products--locks. By 1914, the Sargent 
product catalog listed some 60,000 different items, making it one of 
the largest hardware manufacturing plants in the country.
  During World Wars I and II, much like factories across the nation, 
production capacity was converted to production for the war effort and, 
with the men serving overseas, women began staffing the factory. In 
fact, at the end of WWII, women made up nearly 40 percent of Sargent's 
workforce. The post-war era brought a new focus for the company--
solidifying their reputation in the niche production of locks and door-
related mechanisms and resulting in many lock-related engineering 
firsts.
  In the late 1960's the Sargent family and company stockholders 
accepted an offer from the Walter Kidde Company which began a period of 
ownership by various financial groups. In 1996 ASSA ABLOY AB acquired 
Sargent, along with several sister companies, and today, the company 
that still bears the Sargent name continues to manufacture some of the 
best lock products in the world.
  The Sargent brothers' success is a reflection of what we so often 
envision as the American Dream and Joseph Sargent ensured that others 
could share in that same dream. Growing up in New Haven, almost every 
family had a least one member that worked at Winchester Repeating Arms 
or Sargent Manufacturing. Sargent's welcomed new immigrants with open 
arms--offering them a job but more than that, an opportunity to provide 
a better life for their families. Like so many others, I have a 
personal connection to Sargent--my grandfather worked at the factory 
for many years. My mother often tells a story that when she was born my 
grandfather took one look at her blonde curls and said ``all of the 
locks at Sargent could not keep her safe,'' quite the testament to the 
love he had for his new child.
  Sargent was part of our neighborhood's very soul, shaping the very 
character of our community. Today, as they celebrate their 150th 
Anniversary, Sargent can be proud of the indelible mark they have left 
on the history of our City and the contributions they continue to make 
to the vitality of the New Haven community. I am proud to stand today 
to extend my heartfelt congratulations to the company leadership and 
its employees on this remarkable milestone and my very best wishes for 
many more years of success.

                          ____________________