Reading the book Bethany and Its Hills recently, I came across a retelling of another storied visit to Sperry lands in old Woodbridge. The tale is told beginning on page 21 of the book, which can be read online. This account was apparently taken from portions of a news article published in the New Haven Morning Journal and Courier newspaper of July 29th 1895, which is…
Enoch & friends… and their 999-year lease
What will the world look like in the year 3016? Can we even imagine it, as we gaze out our front door here in Woodbridge, take in the surrounding landscape and consider from our vantage point what our town looks like today? What about the year 2784? Is that any easier for us to imagine today? It will be the 28th…
Revolution in the air of Woodbridge
As Revolution came to our quiet neck of the woods, there are some names that stand out as military leaders from our area. In October 1775 the following men are established as officers by the Connecticut General Assembly: This Assembly do establish Titus Smith to be Captain of the 10th company or trainband in the second regiment in this Colony.…
Woodbridge Men Who Fought in the Colonial Wars
What do we know about the armed conflicts that occurred in America before the Revolutionary War? Who were the men who fought and what of their families? Let’s see what we can find out… One of the best documented conflicts is the one we know of today as “the French and Indian War” — but this was actually the fourth…
Tracking down some Hotchkiss and Clark kinfolk in Woodbridge
Every so often the Amity & Woodbridge Historical Society receives an inquiry by email from someone trying to trace their family tree through the forest of old-timers here in Woodbridge. Lately I’ve been able to help out — and have some fun in the process. So I thought, why not step through a good example here of the phenomenon I…
Clover Hill Farm: the former John Beecher-Roger Sherman-James Hillhouse property
What do we know about the history of the land currently owned by the Town of Woodbridge and operated today as the Country Club of Woodbridge? An article in the New Haven Register back around the time of the Town’s purchase in 2009 tells a portion of the tale of the founding of the former “Woodbridge Country Club” in the 1940s:…
Sperry family in Woodbridge
Richard Sperry is said to have been the first European settler to live in what is now Woodbridge, arriving in New Haven in 1643 and farming the land here in Woodbridge possibly as early as 1648. According to page 181 of The Descendants of Thomas Dickerman: Richard Sperry was among the early settlers of New Haven, though not one of the original planters.…
Dickerman family in Woodbridge
Descendants of Thomas Dickerman An early settler of Dorchester, Massachusetts, Thomas’s son Abraham married Mary Cooper and removed to New Haven in the 1670s. Two of this couple’s daughters married sons of Richard Sperry in the 1680s and thereafter lived in Woodbridge. This book contains information about the families of many of the original settlers of New Haven and Woodbridge.
A visit to Sperry Park, June 2015
What a lovely day to visit Sperry Park today. Before setting out, I’m rummaging around for some background information. Let’s start by gathering some old photos, shall we? First we have the photo “Bridge near Sperry’s Mills. Circa 1890.” as published in the Woodbridge Bicentennial Booklet. Under the photo the following text appears: “Handsome gifts have been made to Woodbridge. Sperry…
Indeed, there are Deeds!
Now that we’ve returned from our Visit to Sperry Park, let’s look now at some documents! The land that makes up both Sperry Park and the adjoining Henry C. Hickox Memorial Park was donated to the Town of Woodbridge in 1907 and 1955, respectively. Just prior to the donation of the Hickox parcel, a map was drawn up from information apparently…