American Precision Museum

In Windsor, Vermont, the renovated Robbins and Lawrence factory stands as a seminal site in American precision manufacturing. Built in 1846 as an armory beside Mill Brook, it is widely regarded as the first U.S. factory to make precision interchangeable parts, helping launch the machine tool industry. Richard S. Lawrence, Nicanor Kendall, and Samuel E. Robbins developed new machinery, methods, and skilled workers there while fulfilling a contract for 10,000 rifles, then expanded into exporting firearms and metal-cutting equipment. Saved from demolition in 1964, the building became the American Precision Museum in 1966 and now preserves major collections linking Windsor’s workshops to industrialization, mass production, and consumer goods.

Windsor, Vermont · United States