SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
                      Washington, D.C. 20549

                             FORM 8-K

                          CURRENT REPORT


              Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the
                 Securities Exchange Act of 1934





Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): August 22, 1997 

                                                              

                        The Stanley Works                         
     (Exact name of registrant as specified in charter)


  Connecticut               1-5224              06-058860   
(State or other          (Commission         (IRS Employer
jurisdiction of          File Number)        Identification No.)
incorporation)



1000 Stanley Drive, New Britain, Connecticut            06053    
(Address of principal executive offices)               (Zip Code)

                                         

Registrant's telephone number, including area code:(860) 225-5111 



                         Not Applicable                          
   (Former name or former address, if changed since last report)








                Exhibit Index is located on Page 4
                              Page 1 of 6


     Item 5.   Other Events.


               1.   On August 22, 1997, the Registrant issued a
press release announcing the hiring of three new executives. 
Attached as Exhibit 20(i) is a copy of the Registrant's press
release. 
     
                    Item 7.   Financial Statements, Pro Forma Financial
               Information and Exhibits.

                           (c)  20(i)     Press release dated August 22, 1997
                         announcing the hiring of three new executives.

                                Page 2 of 6  






                            SIGNATURE




Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of
1934, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on
its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized


          
                              THE STANLEY WORKS



Date: August 22, 1997         By:  Stephen S. Weddle         
                              Name:  Stephen S. Weddle
                              Title: Vice President, General 
                                     Counsel and Secretary
                                        
     


                              Page 3 of 6



























                          EXHIBIT INDEX

                    Current Report on Form 8-K
                      Dated August 22, 1997 



          Exhibit No.                                Page

          20(i)                                        5  






                         Page 4 of 6











FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                             Exhibit (20)(i)

                                                August 22, 1997
                                                               

THE  STANLEY WORKS  ANNOUNCES  HIRING OF  THREE  NEW  EXECUTIVES

New Britain, Connecticut (NYSE: "SWK") ...  The Stanley Works today
announced that it has filled three key management positions: 
William D. Hill, Vice President, Engineering & Technology; Mark
J. Mathieu, Vice President, Human Resources; and Gary van
Deursen, Director of Industrial Design.

Mr. Hill was employed by The Black & Decker Corporation for
twenty-four years, leading product development in positions of
increasing responsibility in engineering and marketing.  He most
recently served as Vice President, Product Development, first for
North American Power Tools and then for Global Accessories. 
Prior to that, Mr. Hill was product and program manager for
development of the Black & Decker(R) professional cordless power
tools that are one of the fastest growing segments of the
DeWalt(R) power tool business.

Commenting on the hiring of Mr. Hill, John M. Trani, Chairman and
Chief Executive Officer, stated: "Will  Hill's career
demonstrates his abilities in the implementation and management
of new products.  He has always been able to keep a constant
stream of innovative tools flowing into the marketplace.  Will
has worked extensively in product group and program management
organizations and has often driven significant development cycle
time reductions while introducing profitable new products.  We
are fortunate that Will Hill is bringing his talents and
experiences to Stanley."

Mr. Mathieu has been employed by General Electric Company since
1981, most recently as Manager, Human Resources for the GE Motors
& Industrial Systems business.  He has extensive experience with
labor relations, succession planning and working with businesses
having both manufacturing and service operations.  Mr. Trani
commented:  "Attracting and retaining the very best people is the
primary success factor of winning organizations.  Mark is a key
addition to our team and will be instrumental in attracting the 
talent necessary for us to be competitive and grow.  His talents,
particularly his experience with product group organizations,
will be critical to building The Stanley Works into a world-class
enterprise."        
                           Page 5 of 6

Mr. van Deursen, who will report to Mr. Hill, was most recently
employed by The Coleman Company, Inc., as Senior Vice President,
Corporate Design and Engineering.  Previously, he was with The
Black & Decker Corporation for thirteen years, serving eight
years as Director, New Product Concepts and Industrial Design,
then three years as Vice President Industrial Design.  Some of
his achievements were pointed out by Mr. Trani:  "Gary played
major roles in the introduction of the VersaPak "tm" cordless
power tool and garden product system, the design of the Elu(R)
line of professional power tools for Europe, the globalization of
the DeWalt(R) power tool, and he directed designs of the
Dustbuster(R)and the SnakeLight(R).   Gary has been recognized with
many awards from the design community and publications including
Business Week."

Mr. Trani continued:  "Just as new products are the lifeblood of
a manufacturing company, proven, experienced and talented people
like Will Hill and Gary van Deursen are the lifeblood of a great
new product effort!"

The Stanley Works is a worldwide producer of tools, hardware and
specialty hardware for consumer, home improvement, industrial and
professional use.

                       #################

Contact:     Gerard J. Gould
             Director, Investor Relations and Communications
             Tel.:  (860) 827-3833


Black & Decker(R), VersaPak "tm", Elu(R), DeWalt(R), SnakeLight(R)
and Dustbuster(R) are trademarks and registered trademarks of The
Black & Decker Corporation.

The Stanley Works corporate press releases are available through
PR Newswire's "Company News On-Call" service.  By FAX:  dial
1-800-758-5804, ext. 874363 or on the internet at: 
http://www.prnewswire.com or http://www.StanleyWorks.com.

                            Page 6 of 6