America's Last Bell Factory Burns Down

Hundreds of firefighters descended on an East Hampton, Connecticut factory over the weekend in an attempt to fight an out of control blaze, but by the time the responders were able to get it under control, America’s last bell factory was destroyed. Investigators have refused to put their fingers on a specific cause, but the town scuttlebutt points toward a lightning storm on Saturday that may have struck the building.

The Bevin Brothers Manufacturing Company began churning out bells in East Hampton one hundred and eighty years ago. The business thrived alongside several other bell manufacturing factories nearby. For awhile, the companies all proved so successful the area earned the nickname Belltown, USA. As the decades passed however, most of the Bevin Brothers’ competitors either shut their doors or expanded into other enterprises. According to The Associated Press, the burned business is supposedly the final one anywhere in the US that exclusively produces bells.

It’s unclear how the Bevin Brothers might move forward given the catastrophic damage, but one would imagine executives would decide how to proceed in the coming days. Hopefully, there was insurance on the property, which will allow the owners to pick up the pieces if they so choose.

Fires are always devastating acts of nature, but when they take something with a lot of history, they’re far sadder. Pop Blend’s thoughts go out to everyone who works for the company, as well as everyone who still can’t get enough of bells. God forbid there’s a shortage after this mess.