With Westporters thinking about office parks — the possible construction of 14 homes at the Glendinning complex on Weston Road, most recently one of Bridgewater Associates’ 2 Westport offices; the planned zoning change to allow medical offices at 55-57 Greens Farms Road — and with the upcoming publication of James Comey’s new book (“Westport”) about a suburban-based hedge fund that looks a lot like Bridgewater, renewed attention is being paid to Nyala Farm,
That 52-acre prime property, between I-95, the Sherwood Island Connector and Greens Farms Road, was once part of E.T. Bedford’s even-much-larger estate.
Nyala Farm (Photo courtesy of Paul Ehrismann)
In 1970, Stauffer Chemical Company bought it the land, for their international headquarters. It was Westport’s first corporate office park, and they were one of the first major firms to flee New York City for the suburbs.
As Carl Addison Swanson notes, Stauffer was founded in 1885 in California. The company manufactured fabricated plastic and agricultural products.
In April of 1972, they moved in.
Stauffer Chemical Company, at Nyala Farm. (Photo courtesy of Carl Addison Swanson)
Despite fears of many Westpoorters, most of Nyala Farm remained — and still is — rolling hills and meadows. Even the iconic well is there.
(Photo/Beth Murray)
Stauffer was not as fortunate. Facing fallout from the Environmental Protection Agency over pollution issues, and an audit by the SEC, it was sold to Rhone-Poulene, S.A, a French company in 1987.
And — tying together today’s mentions of both the Glendinning office park, and James Comey’s book — the major tenant at Nyala Farm today is … Bridgewater.
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50 Years Ago Today:
Little League Baseball announced they would allow girls to play the sport. Westport Little League soon followed.
(Whether you’ve lived in Westport since the Bedford family owned Nyala Farm, or did not hear of it until just now: “06880” welcomes your support. Please click here to donate. Thank you!)
And of course Comey was head of Bridgewater before he took over the FBI and gave us Trump. Riding the cows at Nyala was a favorite pastime after a night drinking in Port Chester among us Wonder Year Boomers. A hardly test I might add.
Wrecker, You actually rode cows after the bars closed at Nyala?
Read, Jack, read. After a night drinking in Port Chester, we attempted to ride the moo-moos at Nyala. Getting on ain’t hard, staying on was . . . been a vegan ever since.
Holy Cow (Excuse the expression.)
And, as I recall, Stauffer went house to house on Greens Farms Road, offering cash to residents for compliance in the Stauffer
plans and an agreement not to object…I know at least one family who took the $ and shared the story.