04/29/2026
A SWEET STORY CONCEALED BENEATH PAINT & RUST: Using a bench grinder outfitted with a wire brush, we removed a hundred years of paint and rust from these door hinges – "ball-tipped, mortised leaf hinges," as they'd be described in a hardware catalog. But a simpler name applies: Sweetheart Hinges.
We salvaged these from an old house near our current renovation, after thieves reduced our supply of antique hinges. After cleaning, we looked to see if the hinges had been engraved with the manufacturer's name. All we found, stamped into the hidden side of one of the leaves, was "S.W." inside the outline of a heart. An internet search revealed that these were produced by The Stanley Works Inc., founded in New Britain, Conn., in 1843 by Frederick Stanley. Today, Stanley and its subsidiaries produce most of the hardware and power tools we use.
In 1854, Stanley hired 19-year-old William Hart, who over the next six decades rose to guide the company's growth, retiring as chairman of the board in 1918 and dying the next year. As a tribute to Mr. Hart, Stanley stamped its hardware and tools with "S.W." surrounded by a heart, from 1919 to 1932. Carpenters came up with the nickname "sweetheart hinges."
We would have guessed the house these came out of had been built in the nineteen-teens, after a fire wiped out the neighborhood in 1909. But now we know the house dates no earlier than 1919.
