A loft on Middle Street
Harvey Hubbell II opened his first manufacturing shop in a small loft on Middle Street in Bridgeport, Connecticut, in 1888, as electric power and the light bulb were starting to reach homes.
Sources: Bridgeport History Center: Harvey Hubbell II Smithsonian National Museum of American History: Hubbell electric plug Hubbell: About us
The pull-chain socket
Early electric lights often replaced gas fixtures high on a wall or in the middle of a ceiling, and wiring a separate switch for each was costly. Hubbell’s answer was a socket with the switch built in, worked by a pull cord. His patent was granted on Aug. 11, 1896, and the design is still common today.
Sources: Google Patents: US 565,541, “Socket for incandescent lamps,” H. Hubbell (1896) ConnecticutHistory.org: Hubbell’s pull-chain electrical light socket (Aug. 11, 1896)
Plugs and outlets
In 1904 Hubbell patented a “separable attachment-plug,” an early step toward the plug and outlet we all use. He received some 45 more patents, mostly for electrical products.
Sources: Smithsonian National Museum of American History: Hubbell electric plug ConnecticutHistory.org: Hubbell’s pull-chain electrical light socket (Aug. 11, 1896)
Hubbell today
Harvey Hubbell died in 1927 and his son, Harvey Hubbell III, took over at 26. The company, Hubbell Incorporated, is still in business and based in Shelton, Connecticut.
Sources: Bridgeport History Center: Harvey Hubbell II ConnecticutHistory.org: Hubbell’s pull-chain electrical light socket (Aug. 11, 1896)
This is a history, not an endorsement. IES isn’t affiliated with Hubbell, and its name and product names are trademarks of their owners. We use plain text, not logos.