A Maker of Bells for Any Occasion
WANT to keep track of your cows? Festoon your sleigh or your mantel? Summon the butler to bring some tea or call your guests to the barbecue? For these and other tasks, Bevin Brothers has the bell for you.
The company in East Hampton was established in 1832 and now produces more than 200 kinds of bells. ”Some are decorative, some are functional, and some just are,” said Stanley R. Bevin, president of the company.
Mr. Bevin is the fifth generation of his family to oversee Bells by Bevin, as the products are known. ”We’re the oldest family-run business in Connecticut,” he said. ”We were an early part of the Industrial Revolution.” He noted that at first Bevin products included coffee mills and waffle irons. ”But, from 1890 on, we basically made nothing but bells.”
The Bell Town
In the 19th century several bell companies flourished in East Hampton. ”They employed most of the people,” said William Devine, chairman of the East Hampton Town Council, ”and they controlled most of the politics. That’s what I hear.”
Today, East Hampton is still nicknamed the Bell Town, and the local McDonald’s displays hundreds of bells in two large display cases. But Bevin Brothers is the only firm that keeps up the tradition of making bells.
The company operates in a rambling two-story building that looks much as it did in turn-of-the-century photographs. It is on Bevin Boulevard, a dead-end street behind the local school. The entry is filled with display cases of bells; straps of sleigh bells and portraits of Bevins hang on the walls. Just off the entry is a small office, where boxes of bells cover the floor, the walls hold more portraits of Bevins and photographs of bell making, and Stanley Bevin works at a desk that is nearly covered with bells.
”I just have a collage here,” said Mr. Bevin. He pointed to one model about to be produced with a different kind of handle. ”And here’s a picture bell; this in particular is a cardinal bell,” he said, picking up a small white bell with a bright red cardinal painted on it. Mr. Bevin noted that the original drawing for the cardinal was made by his son, Christopher – then age 9 and now a sophomore in college.
The Uses of Bells
”There are multitudinous uses for bells,” said Mr. Bevin. The company’s catalogues – printed since 1858 – now show barbecue bells, call bells, tea bells, a speaker’s bell, Swiss and Kentucky cow bells, sheep bells, turkey bells, yacht bells, door bells, ice cream bells, Arctic sleigh bells, replicas of the Liberty Bell and more. The bells are made mainly of aluminum, brass or steel, and range is size from 12-inch diameter gongs down to 3/8-inch diameter sleigh bells. ”Those little guys,” Mr. Bevin said, ”sometimes I put them in my pocket and they get washed.”
Bells by Bevin are sold widely. Mr. Bevin cited sales around the country and to many foreign countries, to ”corner mom-and-pop stores and to major chains.” One enthusiastic customer of the firm is Nikki O’Neill, wife of Gov. William A. O’Neill. ”We have used many forms of Bevin bells,” said Mrs. O’Neill. ”Many, many times I’ve given their patio bell as a gift, and we have one on our patio.” She said she also gave the Bevins’ sleigh bells as gifts, had Bevin bells on the doorknobs of her home, and had an old communion bell made decades ago by the firm in the Governor’s hometown.
Earlier a Foundry
In earlier times, Bevin Brothers operated a foundry. But, said Mr. Bevin, ”We no longer cast here; today we fabricate and stamp.” The firm has its own tool and die departments as well as equipment for buffing, painting and plating. On a tour of the plant, Mr. Bevin pointed out huge metal presses and polishing machines and a room devoted to spray painting. He smiled at a worker carrying a bucket of door bells and stopped to talk with Ellen Smollack, who bent over a machine making loops to hold bell clappers.
Some 45 people work at Bevin Brothers; most are from East Hampton, and many have been with the company for years. ”I’ve worked with four generations of Bevins,” said Irving Anderson, the plant foreman. Mr. Bevin said that Bevins had long cared about their employees and their families. ”The human side of business has been going on here for almost 160 years,” he said. But he also noted that he works steadily to automate the plant and reduce the number of employees.
Mr. Bevin said that he is now the only member of his family actively engaged in running the venerable family enterprise. He runs it on his own terms, and does not disclose its profits or losses. ”This is my fiefdom,” he said. ”I’m master of the manor.”
A Family Business
But what he does discuss are his concerns about running a family business in an age of conglomerates and high taxes. ”The harder you work and the more you do,” he said, ”the greater your chances of ending up not owning your own business.” In his view, Federal policies are detrimental to small businesses, his and others, and he is bitter. ”We make enough to keep the doors open,” he said, but he noted that in the past year, three of his suppliers have gone out of business. He said he has considered moving his business out of the country.
Despite his concerns, he has hope for the future of Bevin Brothers. ”Who knows?” he said. ”We’ve been here for 158 years. Probably we can manage to outlast the United States Government.”