Editing Granby, Connecticut (section)

==History==

Granby was founded by people who lived in Simsbury and settled as early as 1723. Granby was part of [[Simsbury, Connecticut|Simsbury]] until 1786, when it became independent.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.southwickma.org/Public_Documents/SouthwickMA_WebDocs/about |title=Town of Southwick, Massachusetts |access-date=October 14, 2007 |archive-date=August 5, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070805220040/http://www.southwickma.org/Public_Documents/SouthwickMA_WebDocs/about |url-status=dead }}</ref> The name is from [[Granby, Massachusetts]] in return, where it was named in honor of [[John Manners, Marquess of Granby]].

Part of [[Southwick, Massachusetts]], known as "the Notch" seceded from Massachusetts in 1774, just before the outbreak of the [[American Revolutionary War]]. This territory became part of Granby when it seceded from Simsbury, but was returned to Southwick as part of an 1803–1804 border dispute compromise. (''See [[History of Massachusetts]].'')
[[File:Daniel Hayes Gravestone.JPG|thumb|left|150px|Daniel Hayes gravestone]]
In 1707, Daniel Hayes (born {{circa|1685}} – died 1756), then aged twenty-two, was captured and kidnapped by a hostile indigenous tribe and carried off to [[New France|Canada]]. The capture was witnessed, and a rescue party raised, but the group did not catch up with the captors. He was tied up each night, and bound to saplings. It took thirty days to reach Canada, at which point Hayes was forced to [[gauntlet (punishment)|run the gauntlet]]. Near the end of the gauntlet, he hid in a wigwam to avoid an attempted blow by a club. The woman in the wigwam declared that the house was sacred, and having lost a husband and son to a war, adopted Hayes as her son. He remained for several years, attending to the woman. Eventually, he was sold to a Frenchman, who learned that Hayes had skill as a weaver, so put him to work in that business. Hayes managed to earn enough to buy his freedom after two years. He then returned to Simsbury, settled down on a farm and married. He became prominent, both in civil affairs as well as the church at Salmon Brook (now Granby).{{sfn|Phelps|1845|pp=37–44}}

The first unauthorized coins minted in the American colonies, and the first in Connecticut, were struck by Dr. [[Samuel Higley]] in 1737 from [[copper]] mined from his own mine. The coins, including the [[Trader's Currency Token of the Colony of Connecticut]] were minted in North Simsbury, now called Granby.<ref name="Project"/> These coins were made of pure copper, which is very soft. Consequently, there are very few in existence today. The first coins were inscribed with a value of three pence. Later versions carried the phrase "Value me as you please."<ref name="Society1897"/>

In 1858, the eastern part of the town broke off and formed to become [[East Granby, Connecticut|East Granby]], the town is one of the newly established town in the state.

In 2009 ''Connecticut Magazine'' ranked Granby the #3 overall Connecticut small town (population 10,000–15,000) to live in, and #1 small town in Hartford County.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.connecticutmag.com/rating-the-towns/rating-the-towns-2009-cities-10-000-15-000/article_79341d6a-b19f-5a64-9b3c-351ce3a066f6.html |title=Rating the Towns 2009: Cities 10,000-15,000 |work=Connecticut Magazine |date=November 1, 2009 |access-date=April 8, 2022}}</ref>

The town seal depicts the Dewey-Granby Oak, a large [[quercus alba|white oak]] estimated to be 450–500 years old, thought to be one of the oldest trees in New England.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://patch.com/connecticut/granby-eastgranby/the-ancient-oak-of-granby|title = The Ancient Oak of Granby|date = February 25, 2011}}</ref>
[[File:Dewey Oak Tree - White Oak, Granby, CT - October 17, 2010.jpg|thumb|left|"Dewey Oak" in Granby]]