Johnsonville Village

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Johnsonville Village is part of the East Haddam community in the US state of Connecticut . Originally it was an industrial site with workers' housing and later became a ghost town . It was reported around the world when the entire site was auctioned on the Internet in 2014.

history

The first building at today's location was a water mill built in 1832 that was used to operate a yarn factory. The company flourished with the production of yarn for hosiery and also for carpet goods and was steadily expanded. A bell tower, with the bell of which the employees were called to the shift, was also part of the system. In 1862 Emory Johnson built another mill with associated workers' houses and its own chapel, with which the place Johnsonville was created. In the following decades, especially after the beginning of the twentieth century, the manufacture of yarn with water power became increasingly unprofitable. Most of the mills in the area were abandoned or burned down without being rebuilt.

In 1965 the mill built by Johnson, which at the time was one of the oldest still producing yarn mills, was bought by the self-made millionaire Raymond Schmitt, who acquired additional buildings in the following years. He wanted to turn it into a museum, in addition to his main activity as the founder and head of a company in the aviation industry. In 1972 the mill burned down with all its inventory, which prevented the operation of an adventure museum with a focus on mill town. In the next few years Schmitt built an industrial museum, including a restored historic sawmill and a paddle steamer in Johnsonville. Most of the items in Schmitt's collection were sold in 1999 after his death in 1998. As a result, the other residents also left the place, which at that time consisted of eight buildings, including a shop and a church. In 2001 the entire complex, including a total area of ​​250,000 square meters, was bought up by a real estate company with plans to build a recreation center. After these plans were not implemented by 2014, the entire village was auctioned on the Internet. With a starting bid of $ 800,000, the bid ended up being $ 1,900,000. No information was published about the buyer.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ johnsonville.omeka.net (accessed November 4, 2014)
  2. ↑ FAZ: Ghost town auctioned for 1.9 million dollars , November 1, 2014 (accessed November 4, 2014)
  3. ^ Spiegel Online: The ghost town auction ends with a bidder crime thriller


Coordinates: 41 ° 29 ′  N , 72 ° 28 ′  W