The Times of Their Lives

Bristol, Connecticut has deep ties to the history of clock and watch making. While the early years of Bristol's history are well documented, less is known about Bristol's bustling 20th century clock industry. From 1900 to 1970, the factories of E. Ingraham Company and Sessions Clock Company dominated the city. Both companies were family businesses and treated their employees as an extension of that family. Philip Samponaro interviewed forty former Ingraham and Sessions employees to gain an understanding of life in the factories. Building from those interviews Samponaro examines the family and workplace cultures of the people who lived and worked in Connecticut's "Clock City." The story is divided into two parts. The first considers family and work patterns at Ingraham and Sessions and the second examines the changes over seventy years within the cultures of family and work. Through the story of these workers, Samponaro delves into the story of the decline of the clock industry in the United States and gives insights into the history of labor, unions, politics, and gender.