Hazard Powder Company

The company was founded on the Scantic River in 1835 by Allen Loomis in an area then known as Powder Hollow, with the construction of a small gunpowder mill.

Production increased over the years in response to the needs of the U.S. military for gunpowder during the Mexican–American War, demand for blasting powder during the California Gold Rush of 1849, and the Crimean War, when the Hazard Powder Company supplied both Britain and Russia with gunpowder, shipping a total of 500 tons to Britain.

During the American Civil War, the mill was one of the three chief sources of gunpowder for the Union forces, producing up to 12,500 lb (5,700 kg) a day.

At its peak, the Hazard Powder Company operated in 125 buildings occupying hundreds of acres of land.

[7][8] DuPont gained majority stock control of the company in 1876 after Colonel Hazard died in 1868.