Siemon

In 1903 in Bridgeport, CT, chemist Carl F. Siemon spent $2,500 to create the Siemon Hard Rubber Company with partner Waldo C. Bryant. The new company made imitation stag-horn knife handles that offered superior resistance to extreme temperatures and boiling water.

In 1906, the company entered the fledgling telecommunications market with a 3-pole connecting block, superior to the standard ceramic connecting block of the day. Made of a plastic affectionately known as "Connecticut River Mud," the block resisted the cracking and breaking common with ceramic blocks, and it soon became a staple product for AT&T. A century later, Siemon is still supplying AT&T and other Bell companies.

From the very beginning, plastics were the core competency of the company. Siemon made telephone parts, rifle butts, lamp switches, battery terminals, poker chips, tiddly winks, even imitation shark's teeth. The company was actively involved in the invention of a non-breakable phonograph record, and in 1934, over 140 Siemon people were manufacturing records for five labels. Over one million Bing Crosby "White Christmas" albums were produced per month.

During World War II Siemon produced plastic dinnerware that was used on Navy ships. The plates and cups had a lifetime warranty and soon found their way into civilian homes.

In 1954, Siemon moved from its original home in Bridgeport to its current home of Watertown, CT, consolidating operations with the Watertown Manufacturing Company it had acquired in 1926.

Already a long-time supplier to AT&T, in the 1960s, Siemon began shipping "66" punchdown blocks to other customers, and they quickly became the standard for installing new telephone systems. Siemon was essentially an OEM ("Original Equipment Manufacturer"),  making things for other companies, and received little recognition. This started to change in the late '70s as 66 block sales and the company's reputation grew. The company leveraged its expertise in injection molding plastics, metal stamping and sheet metal forming and automation to produce network jacks, patch panels, tools, testers and much more for the new computer networking industry -- branded under its own name.

"Siemon" should be pronounced like "semen," but -- ether to avoid confusion with telecom maker Siemens, or sperm fluid -- many people pronounce it "see mahn."