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is a city in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. It is located approximately 9 miles (14 km) southwest of Hartford. According to 2006 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the city is 71,254.
The city's official nickname is the "Hardware City" because of its history as a manufacturing center and as the headquarters of Stanley Works. Because of its large Polish population, the city used to be playfully referred to as "New Britski". In 2008, citing its efforts to end blight, economic redevelopment and the city's support of local business investment, New Britain was designated as "Connecticut's Most Business Friendly City" by the Polonia Business Association.
New Britain was settled in 1687 and then was incorporated as a new parish under the name New Britain Society in 1754. Chartered in 1850 as a township and in 1871 as a city, New Britain was separated from the nearby town of Berlin, Connecticut. A consolidation charter was adopted in 1905.
During the early part of the 20th century, New Britain was known as the "Hardware Capital of the World", as well as "Hardware City". Major manufacturers, such as The Stanley Works, Corbin Locks and North & Judd, were headquartered in the city.
In 1843 Frederick Trent Stanley established Stanley's Bolt Manufactory in New Britain to make door bolts and other wrought-iron hardware. In 1857 his cousin Henry Stanley founded The Stanley Rule and Level Company in the city. Planes invented by Leonard Bailey and manufactured by the Stanley Rule and Level Company, known as "Stanley/Bailey" planes, were prized by woodworkers of the late 19th and early 20th centuries and remain popular among wood craftsmen today. The two companies merged in 1920, and the Stanley Rule and Level Company became the Hand Tools Division of Stanley Works.
The wire coat hanger was invented in 1869 by O. A. North of New Britain, Connecticut.
In 1895 the basketball technique of dribbling was developed at the New Britain YMCA. 1954 saw the development of racquetball, also at the YMCA.