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East Haven today is slightly different from 400 years ago.
This town was just a "village" up to 1650.
The "village" struggled hard to become "incorporated" as a "town".
The first and oldest part of what we know call "East Haven" was around the now known "green" on the corner of Hemingway street and main street.
The old families of the Bradleys, Smiths, and Hemingways are all from the days of England's rule.
Indians shared the lands until the lands were removed from them.
The Indian reservation was indeed the old lighthouse area NOW in New Haven, that used to be part of the "village" of East Haven till the new government of the United States took possession of it and made it the reservation, later to be used for the lighthouse.
Fair Haven known as "The Dragon" neighbourhood of East Haven in 1800 became a "village" of its own now, growing fast do to oysters and the shipping along the majestic Quinnipiac river.
The town was divided over the bridges that were built privately but turned over to the East Haven town do to the maintenance and replacement costs.
The debts of the wars and bridges sold Fair Haven to New Haven.
Currently most of what was of the then Fair Haven has disappeared in time.
A road across the so-called "Dragon" Bridge to the road know known the Quinnipiac Riverside Avenue was the only road to North Haven and North Branford through East Haven in the village of Foxon.
Trains and trolleys had come to the villages in 1870.
The shore line electric rail way was built from State street to the village of Guilford .
East Haven today is a thriving suburb and residential "bedroom community" of New Haven.
One time in the 1890s East Haven was what we may call a "resort" town.
The glorious Lake Saltonstall, for example, had steamers, picnic areas, swimming, boating, and fishing.
The Yale boat teams indeed used to race on Lake Saltonstall.
The trolley company built a line from the Morris Cove area to Lake Saltonstall, which was owned by George H. Townsend (who had his mansion on Townsend avenue, Raynham) but he sold it to the New Haven Water Company.
In its hayday you would get there by stagecoach for 5 cents.
Residents, who made about 3 dollars a week then, could take the trolley for 5 cents.
School children got books of 50 tickets at 2.50, making it 5 cents to go to school in New Haven by trolley.
The tracks were pulled up from Lake Saltonstall and moved to Momauguin Cosy beach, where a hotel was built by the trolley company after Lake Saltonstall was closed to the public for good ("or bad", as others think).
We now switch to Cosy beach and Silver Sands hotels, and bathing became very popular as well as dining.
East Haven was beautiful with silvery sand glowing in the sun, the cool blue waters of Long island Sound as well as the escape from the buzzle of New Haven.
Cosy Beach became the hottest summer place to be, with every prestigious resident building summer cottages and homes and other lodging hotels.
The cove at Mansfield Grove (including Mansfield's Point) was also a attraction with a hotel and eatery, dancing ,camping, boating, fishing, bathing now known as swimming.
Up until the 1938 hurricane, it all prospered.
The invention of the automobile wiped out the need for the trolleys -- although the trolley museum still exists!
By the 1950s, metal for the war was needed and the tracks, poles, and lines were all gone.
The beach was wiped out by the hurricane, too, alas.
Not much of the beach was rebuilt, but by 1970 the East Haven shoreline (now part of the green trailway) was ready for re-vitalization,making it what it is to day.
The sophisticated "Silver Sands Hotel" was alas torn down.
It used to feature talented popular artists performing there.
The Bridgeport college used to own property in East Haven and use it.
The centre of town as we know now was very different in 1890.
Picture as you will homes all along the street from Hemingway avenue to the town line today.
The homes covered both sides of the street as farms.
Notably, a few stores operated out of the wooden structures.
The old stone church was a centre of attraction for those who lived in the now "town" of East Haven.
The first church was in the green, as was the school.
The church was built after its likeness of the one in the state of Massachussetts.
At the time, it was not wise to build a church out of stone.
But it was built with objection, as across the street was an old farm.
This farm was razed to build a bank in 1920.
This bank became the new home of Holcomes's drug-store.
Later a movie house, a bowling ally, and Goodies occupied this building, as well as others.
Then the town hall was built as well as the fire station.
All removing the old "farms" that once stood in their place.
The tavern across from Holcomes was full of East Haven's history.
The tavern was torn down and replaced by a fuel station till it also was replaced by a bank.
The town of East Haven grew when the town decided to revitalize the center.
By then, Saltonstall parkway, past the main street, past all the stores on main street.
Helping to make the stores become dilapidated from less shoppers knowing they were there.
Main Street was rebuilt as you see it today.
Farms in 1930 became money-makers for the development of neighbourhoods.
The ending of the war and revitalization of New Haven helped to build East Haven as a bigger and better residential suburban "bedroom community".
There are three super-markets and small residential business of all kinds in East Haven to serve the residents without really having to go anywhere else.
This town has had its sheer of happenings in its past.
These includes three air plane accidents, hurricanes, salt storms, and a tornado.
The town fire department was built in 1900.
The police department was built in 1928 under city hall.
It moved to North High in 1972.
The fire department has been in the same building location since it founding but replaced its old wooden building, moving it to the rear for the public works dept being demolished in the revitalization of the center with its Georgian style brick one as you see today
At one time the only street though East Haven to New London was our main street known as a the post road, made for the post men.
All other paths were cow or Indian paths eventually made into roads.
The East Heaven centre green was once used as a market, cow feeding ,and camping for the revolutionary soldiers.
East Haven has a history never told to the public in school books about the men of this time war against the British.
The invasion of New Haven came up on East Haven shores and marched to the old stone church and down to Forbes's bridge.
School started on the green with a small building attached to a church.
It burned down.
It was rebuilt after some time across from the green.
Then the first brick building was built, and a second wood school on high street was moved to the rail way station next to the high street bridge called "Rail way avenue"
The rail way station was removed in 1940.
A second school was built of brick, then a third.
By 1950, all have been made of brick even in Foxon.
Foxon area was still farms, but was replaced with neighborhoods too.
Today, East Haven is a modern town, as nice as it used to be, even if it looks like any other Connecticut town (in parts).
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For the record,
East Haven, Connecticut
MILITIA
1840 Officers and privates of fifth company, second regiment, second brigade infantry, member of Captain Hotchkiss company .
Joseph Ives Hotchkiss, captain
Nathan Andrews, lieutenant
Philip Street, sargent
Lucius Lindsley, orderly sargent
Edward Hemingway, second sargent
Privates:
Jared Andrews
Charles Wolcott
Edward A. Walker
Laban Smith
Ashuel Thompson
Charles Bishop
Edward Thompson
Alfred Hughes
Roswell Hughes
Samuel Forbes,
Robert Rowes,
Jared Smith,
O.B Thompson,
Thaueous Street,
Abraham Chidsey,
Benjamin Street,
Charles Auger,
Street Chidsey,
Justin Bradley
Henry Forbes,
Jeremiah Barns,
Hezekial Bradley
William Tuttle
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