Gardner Lake (Connecticut)
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Gardner Lake State Park
Hopemead State Park Minnie Island State Park |
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| location | Colchester , New London County , USA | |
| surface | 0.73 km² 0.28 km² 0.4 ha |
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| Geographical location | 41 ° 31 ' N , 72 ° 14' W | |
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| Setup date | 1949 | |
| administration | Connecticut State | |
| Gardner Lake | |
|---|---|
| Drain | Gardner Brook → Yantic River → Thames River |
| Islands | Minnie Island |
| Data | |
| Coordinates | 41 ° 30 '44 " N , 72 ° 13' 36" W. |
| surface | 2.14 km² |
| Middle deep | 4.3 m |
Gardner Lake is a small lake between the parishes of Salem , Montville, and Bozrah in the US state of Connecticut . It was named after the Gardner family who owned a large part of the surrounding lands. The lake was enlarged to 214 hectares (528 acres) by a dam. There are three state parks around the lake , including Minnie Island State Park , Connecticut's smallest state park, a small island. Hopemead State Park is a former camping site on the east bank of the lake. Gardner Lake State Park is primarily used as a boat landing place and bathing beach, but has had problems with litter and vandalism since a design measure in 2008. The lake is also surrounded by four other campsites, a yacht club and dozens of private properties. Recreational opportunities include fishing and boating.
history
Gardner Lake is a natural lake named after the Gardner family who owned large estates in the area. However, the area is more known for "extreme public miscalculation" Thomas LeCount, a Niantic retailer wanted to move its two-story summer home from the south side of the lake to the east side and calculated that the conventional move would be inefficient. Then he lifted the fully furnished house and put it on the sledge. He waited until February 1995 when the lake was frozen, then he pulled it across the lake. After about 90 m (300 ft) the house will slide onto a snow bank. The ice broke when LeCount tried to pull the house back before he had to finish his work at nightfall. That same night the millers used some of the water to power their mills, creating a cavity under the ice. The house finally broke through the ice and tilted. It remained in this position until the spring melted snow when it sank into 4.6 m (15 ft) deep water. The second floor and the attic remained standing over water like a small lighthouse. For years the house was a meeting place for children to fish there and to skate across the house in winter. An enduring legend also says that the piano in the house still plays its melodies on quiet nights. In 2005 most of the house was rotten.
geography
The lake is a natural lake with 214 hectares (528 acres), but it has been dammed by an earth wall. The dam is 51 m (168 ft) long and holds the water level by 1.2 m (4 ft). On average, the lake is 4.3 m (14 ft) deep. The lake drains north to the Yantic River via Gardner Brook . It is also located in a north-south running depression in which several lakes and ponds ( Oxoboxo Lake , Scholfield Pond, Wheeler Pond and Rockland Pond) are lined up that drain to the Thames River to the southeast.
Gardner Lake State Park
Gardner Lake State Park is a 9.75 acre state park. It is located on the southern shore of the lake and offers access for anglers, bathers and boaters. It was added to the list of state parks in 2001 and opened in 2002. It is one of the few freshwater beaches in New London County . The land was purchased for $ 550,000. It was previously owned by Carmine Belardo . The city of Salem had already tried several times to acquire the land, but was repeatedly prevented by the citizens. The purchase had not been made in 1994 because it became known that the state had an interest. In 2008 about $ 1 million was spent paving the bot ramp and creating parking spaces for 54 vehicles. In 2012, parking fees were introduced and support staff were hired after repeated incidents. A local group has also been set up to take responsibility: Friends of Gardner Lake and the Gardner Lake Authority employs support staff. In 2014 there were no more parking fees.
Minnie Island State Park
Minnie Island State Park is a pine-covered islet in the deepest part of the lake. It is an unmarked and undeveloped islet that is Connecticut's smallest state park at 0.2 hectares (0.88 acres). The island got its name from the wife of a local resident who often came there with her husband to picnic. The island was claimed by both Salem and Montville, although they did not have any of the cities in their land registers. This went unnoticed until someone tried to acquire the island. He made a petition for this, but the Connecticut General Assembly decided against it and passed an edict declaring the island a state park.
Hopemead State Park
Hopemead State Park is a 28.3 hectare (70 acres) undeveloped state park on the east bank of the lake. The land originally belonged to Solomon Gardner's farm . It was later acquired by the Fuller family as a summer residence. The property was known as Camp Charmarlou , an acronym for the first names of the family's three daughters. There was a house and a studio on the site . The Camp Charmarlou has been used for several years as a youth camp (boys camp) and later in Hopemead , (actually "Hope Meadow" - Hoffnungsaue) renamed. In 1954 the land was donated to the State of Connecticut . The state deemed it inappropriate to develop it and abandoned the derelict buildings. Hopemead should return to its natural state. Since then, nature has spread again. The park offers opportunities for hiking and fishing.
free time activities
The Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection (now: Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection ) regularly uses fish for fishing. Glass ey perch have been released since 1993 . In addition to the growing population, there are bullhead catfish (Ameiurus) and other catfish species , as well as black bass , largemouth bass and American perch and trout. Fishing tournaments are also held at the lake.
See also
Individual evidence
- ^ Geographic Names Information System . United States Geological Survey.
- ^ State Parks and Forests : Funding, Recruiting, and Referrals. (PDF)
- ↑ a b c d Gardner Lake State Park. In: State Parks and Forests. Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, accessed February 6, 2013 .
- ↑ "an extremely public miscalculation"
- ↑ a b c d e f Joseph Leary: A Shared Landscape: A Guide & History of Connecticut's State Parks & Forests . Friends of the Connecticut State Parks, Inc., 2004, ISBN 0-9746629-0-9 , pp. 111-113 .
- ↑ Tommy Hine: Residence In The Lake. Hartford Courant, June 21, 2005, accessed January 4, 2015 .
- ↑ a b Jeffrey Johnson: Crackdown planned at Gardner Lake. In: The Day. August 12, 2012, accessed November 21, 2014 .
- ^ Economic Report of the Governor (2002–2003) . State of Connecticut, 2002, pp. 158 ( google.com [accessed November 21, 2014]).
- ^ Paul Choiniere: State Finalizes Purchase Of Gardner Lake Beach. In: The Day. December 6, 2001, accessed November 21, 2014 .
- ↑ Kelly Catalfamo: Gardner Lake Authority occupied by trash problem. In: The Day. August 19, 2013, accessed November 21, 2014 .
- ^ Federal Writers' Project: Connecticut; A Guide to Its Roads, Lore, and People, . 1938, p. 455 ( google.com ).
- ↑ a b c Minnie Island State Park. In: State Parks and Forests. Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, accessed February 5, 2013 .
- ↑ a b Megan Bard: Patrolling ever-busier Gardner Lake in Salem. In: The Day. July 19, 2010, accessed May 23, 2014 .
- ^ Staff Findings and Recommendations. Legislative Program Review and Investigations Committee: State Parks and Forests: Funding. (PDF) Connecticut General Assembly, Jan. 23, 2014, pp. A-2 , accessed March 20, 2014 .
- ↑ a b Hopemead State Park. In: State Parks and Forests. Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, accessed February 5, 2013 .
- ↑ Michael Blais: Inland Report Largemouth Bass fishing is variable, [Derived Headline]. New Haven Register (New Haven, CT) September 12, 2008, archived from the original on June 29, 2014 ; Retrieved on May 23, 2014 (original website no longer available).
- ↑ Freshwater Fishing Spots In Rhode Island And Connecticut. (No longer available online.) In: The Boston Globe (Boston, MA). May 6, 2005, archived from the original on June 29, 2014 ; accessed on May 23, 2014 (English, registration required). Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
Web links
- Gardner Lake State Park Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection
- Gardner Lake in the United States Geological Survey's Geographic Names Information System