Bryant Electric Company, 1421 State Street, Bridgeport, Fairfield County, CT

Significance: Electric service to private residences was uncommon when Waldo Calvin Bryant started a company to manufacture and sell wiring devices and electrical hardware in 1880. Bryant invented an "Improved Electric Switch or Cut-Out" and was granted U.S. patent No. 391,943. The company's first product was a switch which encased live electrical contacts and allowed the safe use of electricity in residences. Bryant formed a corporation, The Bryant Electric Company, on October 30, 1888 to capitalize on his invention. The company was acquired by the Westinghouse Electric Corporation in 1901, added a variety of wiring devices to its product line and became a major manufacturer and supplier to the electrical trade.
Survey number: HAER CT-155