ANSONIA COPPER AND BRASS

Ansonia Copper & Brass was a six-building factory that spanned forty-three acres of the Naugatuck Riverfront and operated for more than a century as a metal foundry. The first building was founded in 1845 by Anson Phelps and grew to employ as many as 10,000 people working three shifts, six days a week. The site manufactured rod and wire until the costs of foreign steel, copper, iron and brass plummeted, resulting in the company being sold and finally closed in 2013. Demolition attempts began in 2014, but were slowed down by the discovery of PCBs, lead, and friable asbestos among other contaminants.