Hartford Insurance Company
For more than 200 years, The Hartford has helped people prepare
for the unexpected, protect what is important to them and
prevail through life’s challenges and opportunities. Our success
comes from our commitment to doing the right thing, while
adapting and reinventing to remain relevant and indispensable to
our customers.
Throughout our history, countless businesses, institutions and
individuals have turned to our company for protection.
Our First Century
In 1810, we started as a fire insurance company, employing our
own fire department to protect customers. Fifteen years later,
we wrote the first insurance policy for an institution of higher
learning Yale University.
In 1835, we proved ourselves different from other insurance
companies. After a fire destroyed New York’s financial district,
people learned that insurance companies were walking away from
their claims. Eliphalet Terry, then president of The Hartford
Fire Insurance Company, called a meeting of the directors when
news of the fire reached Hartford; they pledged their personal
fortunes to help pay the claims. This bolstered the people and
businesses of New York, allowing the rebuilding process to
begin. It also served to bolster the economy of a growing nation
by showing business people, leaders and citizens in all States
that there was an insurance company able to protect their
property and stand-by claims, no matter how large they grew or
the size of the disaster.
Confidence in The Hartford and with insurance grew. In fact, in
1861 when President-elect Abraham Lincoln was preparing to move
to Washington, D.C. to serve his first term, even he purchased a
policy from The Hartford Fire Insurance Company to protect his
family’s home and property in Illinois.
We continued to bolster a growing American economy by covering
claims and aiding in recovery after massive catastrophes. In
1871, The Hartford paid all of its claims after a fire ripped
through more than 3 square miles of Chicago businesses and
homes. In 1906, almost 500 city blocks in San Francisco were
destroyed as an earthquake toppled the city and fires burned for
several days. The Hartford responded by paying over $11 million
in damage claims the largest of any insurance company involved
in the disaster. With each of these disasters, the people of the
United States saw that there was an insurance company that would
help cover their losses and rebuild, no matter how large the
company or the disaster.
As the United States moved into the 20th century, the technology
that businesses and the American people used evolved rapidly
especially evident with the automobile. The Hartford saw the
need to provide protection that went beyond fire coverage.
Wanting to ensure that people could protect their automobiles
and other property from more than just fire damage, The Hartford
formed its Accident and Indemnity Company in 1913. This 2nd
company provided a wide variety of insurance coverage, including
accident, automobile liability, personal damage and business
interruption. This new generation of insurance protection
enabled growth of many industries, including automobiles.
Our Second Century and Forward
The Hartford has continued to help our customers persevere,
providing insurance to businesses and well-known people
including Babe Ruth and President Dwight D. Eisenhower. We have
encouraged businesses to strive to create structures and
buildings on a scale the world had never seen by guaranteeing
coverage. We insured some of the largest construction projects
ever, including the Hoover Dam, the St. Lawrence Seaway and the
Golden Gate Bridge.
As the demands of businesses, families and individuals of the
United States evolved, so did we. Wanting to help smaller
businesses succeed, we became the first insurance provider to
offer a dedicated small business service center in 1983. The
following year, we became the only insurance company to provide
auto and home insurance to members of AARP an agreement that’s
still in place today.
In 2001, our nation was changed forever as we witnessed the
September 11th terror attacks. In response, The Hartford paid
over $850 million in claims and made major donations to the
United Way and other organizations that were impacted by the
tragedy.
The Hartford has continued on its path of excellence:
Becoming a founding partner of the
U.S. Paralympics in 2003
Being named a World’s Most Ethical
CompanyŽ 10 times1
Celebrating our 200th Anniversary in
2010
We believe that if you want to know where a business is going,
you should look at where it has been. The Hartford looks forward
to another 200 years of helping our customers prevail.
