The Gilbert & Bennett Schoolhouse

March 20, 2025 @ 7:00 pm - 8:30 pm - $5.00

The Gilbert & Bennett Manufacturing Company provided $10,000 for the construction of the first modern schoolhouse in Wilton. Nick Foster examines the company’s role in education in the 19th and 20th centuries.

This lecture will be co-sponsored by Wilton Historical Society. The first modern school in Wilton was built with a $10,000 donation from the Gilbert & Bennett Manufacturing Company. This building was an indicator of a transitional time in Wilton’s history, with immigration and industrialization fueling Gilbert & Bennett’s rapid growth and the town’s transformation into the suburban community it is today.

In this lecture, Wilton Historical Society’s director, Nick Foster, will discuss the rise of the Gilbert & Bennett Manufacturing Company and Wilton’s often uneven relationship with education in the 19th and early 20th centuries.

Co-Sponsor: Wilton Historical Society

Destination: Georgetown, Part Five

Join us for a five-part lecture series, Destination: Georgetown, where we explore the impact of the Gilbert & Bennett Manufacturing Company on the development of Georgetown and surrounding towns.

The Destination: Georgetown lecture series will explore the lived experience of the Gilbert & Bennett Wire Mill complex in Georgetown and its involvement in the creation of “place.” Closed in 1989, the mill remains a landmark tied to the development of the area – the settlement of Swedish immigrants, education and the construction of a school, and the local labor movement. This lecture series will present a new look at the mill and help understand Georgetown as a place of cooperation and diversity.