As the year draws to a close, anticipation is everywhere—at work, at home, and in our relationships. It’s a natural time to reflect on the choices we've made and the ones that remain ahead, especially those that shape our safety, our well-being, and the people who rely on us. 

Today we’re going back to February 1951, to a busy factory floor on Athens Avenue in Lakewood, Ohio. And to understand what made this shop so unique, it helps to know a bit about the machines that powered it. 

Four-slide, or multi-slide forming machines emerged in the early 20th century to produce small metal components by feeding, bending, stamping, and shaping material in one continuous process. The first true four-slide machines were engineered and manufactured in Waterbury, Bridgeport, and Bristol, Connecticut. William Henry Bassett, an early adopter of four-slide technology, began his precision spring and wire-forming business in his New Haven garage. 

This machine's innovation dramatically improved speed and accuracy. As demand for springs, clips, and automotive parts grew, Connecticut manufacturers sold and relocated equipment nationwide. And upon the family's relocation to Cleveland, Bassett Spring Company enabled one family to build a business around these advanced machines. 

William H and Stella M Bassett relocated from New Haven in the 1930s, bringing their four-slide machines with them to the Western Reserve. Those backbone tools of wire-forming became the foundation of a small factory in Lakewood, Ohio.

It was from that shop that they later supported the war effort, and the business grew after their sons returned from service. And fittingly, it all began years earlier in William Henry Bassett’s garage in New Haven.  

By the mid-1940s, Bassett Spring Company was humming, ultimately led by a woman whose energy filled the shop. The Cleveland Press profiled her in the 1951 article, “Tireless Grandma Runs Wire Firm.” Stella Bassett—company president, trained nurse, mother of five, and grandmother—knew every machine on the floor. 

If you walked into her shop then, you’d hear the rhythmic chatter of automatic four-slide machines turning out hundreds of metal and wire clips. Stella could hear the slightest change in their sound. When a machine tone shifted, she lit up: “ They’ve just started the new job,” she’d say.  From its shop at 13000 Athens Avenue, Bassett Spring Company produced nearly 400 varieties of clips and wire-formed parts. 

What made the company special wasn’t just its output—it was Stella herself. She told the reporter she wanted to build the business for her sons, who were scattered across work, college, and the Army, while her daughters pursued nursing and school. Until they were ready, she was the one moving the company forward. 

Stella had recently expanded the shop by 20% and invested in equipment to boost production by 25%. And though she could run every machine, she relied on her crew—twelve skilled workers she proudly called her friends. 

At a time when women industrial leaders were rare, Stella Bassett was already doing the work—leading, organizing, expanding, and building a company with the same steady rhythm as the machines she listened to so closely. Her true strength wasn’t just skill—it was anticipation. She could look ahead, recognize opportunity, and envision what the future could become. 

And that’s the story of Bassett Spring Company—one of the early industrial forces inside the building we now know as Lakewood’s Screw Factory.

Have a safe and productive day, and take time to anticipate future opportunities—for yourself, your family and friends, and others as well.

Cheers!