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==History== [[File:PostcardEastHaddamCTLkgNorthFrNathanHaleSchoolHouse1919.jpg|thumb|Looking north from the Nathan Hale Schoolhouse, 1919]] Until 1650, the area of East Haddam was inhabited by at least three Indigenous peoples: the [[Wangunk]], the [[Mohegan]] and the [[Niantic people|Niantic]]. The Indigenous nations called the area "Machimoodus", the place of noises, because of numerous earthquakes that were recorded between 1638 and 1899. Loud rumblings, the "[[Moodus Noises]]", could be heard for miles surrounding the epicenter of the quakes near Mt. Tom. The land, which is now [[Haddam, Connecticut|Haddam]] and East Haddam, was purchased by settlers from the natives in 1662 for thirty coats, worth about $100.<ref>{{cite web |title=History of East Haddam |url=http://www.easthaddam.org/History-1756/ |website=easthaddam.org |access-date=July 2, 2014 |archive-date=February 9, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110209073148/http://www.easthaddam.org/History-1756/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> Layout of the highways began in 1669 with Creek Row about ¼ mile east of the River and Town Street “The Great Highway” about ¼ mile east of Creek Row. The first permanent settlers established homesteads along Creek Row in 1685. By 1700, there were thirty families living in East Haddam. Agricultural and timber farming, shipbuilding, tanneries and blacksmiths were among the early commerce. Captain John Chapman began ferry service across the Connecticut River in 1695, which ended with the completion of the swing bridge in 1913. East Haddam was incorporated as a separate town from Haddam in 1734. By 1756, there were nearly 2,000 residents, with the Millington District as the most populated. Growth of commerce brought a surge in population to around 3,000 people by the mid-1800s. In the nineteenth century, Moodus was the “Twine Capital of America,” with twelve mills in operation.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://historicbuildingsct.com/?cat=184 |title=Historic Buildings of Connecticut » East Haddam |website=Historicbuildingsct.com |access-date=March 7, 2017}}</ref> In the winter of 1773, American patriot [[Nathan Hale]] briefly taught in a one-room schoolhouse in East Haddam which is now a living history museum operated by {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20041022093924/http://www.connecticutsar.org/ Connecticut Society of the Sons of the American Revolution]}}. Visitors and residents such as actor [[William Gillette]] whose castle home was completed in 1914, were drawn to the area known for its rural charm and natural scenery. The growth of the resort areas of Lake Hayward, Bashan Lake and Moodus Reservoir began in the early 1900s and was a booming business for the next fifty years. Lake Hayward is a small private lake community within East Haddam that is home to around 120 families, most living at the lake only during summer months.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.easthaddam.org/History-1756/ |title=History |website=Easthaddam.org |access-date=March 7, 2017 |archive-date=February 9, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110209073148/http://www.easthaddam.org/History-1756/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> East Haddam was listed as one of the 52 Places to Love in 2021 by the [[New York Times]].<ref>{{Cite news |date=January 6, 2021 |title=52 Places to Love in 2021 |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/travel/places-to-visit-vacation.html |access-date=November 17, 2023 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>
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