East Haven

This area was purchased in 1638 by the Reverend John Davenport and Theophilus Eaton from Indian sachems Momaugin and Mantowese and later became known as East Farms. In 1639 Thomas Gregson, the first landowner, purchased Solitary Cove, later called Morris Cove. The first Connecticut ironworks was established in 1655 by Lake Saltonstall, formerly named Lonotononket and then Furnace Pond, and East Farms became known as Iron Works Village, the third iron industry in the New England colonies. Jacob Heminway, the original Yale student, served as the first pastor of the Congregational Church from 1704 to 1754, and in 1774 the Old Stone Church was erected with Nicholas Street as its first minister. The area was invaded in 1779 by British General William Tryon. During the Revolutionary War, Lafayette encamped on the green and revisited it in 1824. In 1785 the initial town meeting named Isaac Chidsey First Selectman. In 1881 Fair Haven, Granniss Corners, and Morris Cove were ceded to New Haven. The Roosevelt Turkey Oak, a gift from President Theodore Roosevelt, was planted on the green in 1908. During the 1970's the town became a city under Mayor Francis W. Messina.

East Haven, Connecticut · United States