Belltown Historic District

The National Register Of Historic Places

Listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Belltown Historic District is roughly located on Main Street  in the center of East Hampton, Connecticut between West High Street, CT 16, and portions of West High St, Barton Hill, Summit, and Skinner Street.  The Historic District contains an exceptionally large concentration of contributing historic buildings: 147 of the 176 buildings in the District. Once known as the Town of Chatham, settlement in this area dates from the early eighteenth century, ninety-four percent of the contributing historic buildings were built after 1800, the period associated with the industrial development of the town as a bell-manufacturing center.

 Towns Ecoonomy

The Town of East Hampton, Connecticuts economy was at first largely driven by shipbuilding and related interests, centered at Middle Haddam on the Connecticut River, but these were in decline by the early 19th century. William Barton, a native of Bloomfield, Connecticut, arrived in East Hampton in 1807, bringing with him the specialized knowledge of working brass for the manufacture of bells. He established a foundry, where he trained a whole generation of bellmakers whose work would fuel the town’s economy. The Bevin Brothers, among those he trained, were the first to apply water power to the process, damming Lake Pocotopaug Brook for the purpose. Their business continues to be a major presence in the town. By 1860, Belltown had 23 men listed as bell manufacturers.

The historic district has a spider-like configuration, anchored by a stretch of Main Street between West High and Edgerton Streets. Fingers of the district extend off of a number of side streets, which are typically lined with residential and industrial buildings. The district covers 145 acres (59 ha), and includes 145 contributing buildings, in a diversity of 19th-century architectural styles. Prominent elements include the surviving mill complexes of the bell makers and associated businesses, as well as four churches. There are also several industrial archaeological sites in the southern part of the district, where early and failed bellmaking businesses were once located.