Editing Washington, Connecticut (section)

==History==

===Prehistoric period===
Archeological evidence suggests that [[Indigenous peoples of the Americas|Native Americans]] first settled along the banks of the [[Shepaug River]] about 10,000 years ago, following the conclusion of the last ice age. Before the arrival of European settlers, the lands today comprising Washington were inhabited by the [[Wyantenock]] tribe.<ref>[https://archive.today/20130125213957/http://www.housatonictimes.com/articles/2010/05/16/entertainment/doc4bec0dbd7cabf550581450.txt Gunn Celebrates Lake Waramaug in New Exhibit]</ref>

===Colonial era===
In 1734, Joseph Hurlbut settled the eastern section of what is now Washington, marking the beginning of the town's inhabitation by colonists. The area around the Hurlbut homestead came to be known as the Judea Parish, a name preserved in the still active [[Judea Cemetery]]. The area was initially part of [[Woodbury, Connecticut|Woodbury]].<ref name="auto1">{{cite web| url=https://www.washingtonct.org/about| title=About| publisher=Town of Washington Connecticut| access-date=October 16, 2019}}</ref>

In 1746, Edward Cogswell secured the right to mine iron ore, as part of the [[New Milford North Purchase]], and established an ironworks along the [[East Aspetuck River]] in [[New Preston, Connecticut|New Preston]]. 1746 also marked the purchase of land from the Wyantenock tribe by the Averill family for a homestead on Baldwin Hill, which is still occupied and farmed by direct descendants of the original inhabitants.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nynjctbotany.org/lgtofc/washingtonconnhist.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120918143856/http://www.nynjctbotany.org/lgtofc/washingtonconnhist.html |url-status=usurped |archive-date=September 18, 2012 |title=A Brief History of Washington |website=www.nynjctbotany.org |access-date=August 13, 2019}}</ref>

Washington was incorporated in 1779, with lands carved from the towns of Woodbury, [[Litchfield, CT|Litchfield]], [[Kent, CT|Kent]] and [[New Milford, CT|New Milford]].<ref name="auto1"/> The town was named after [[George Washington]],<ref>{{cite book |title=The Connecticut Magazine: An Illustrated Monthly |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qoEyAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA335 |year=1903 |publisher=Connecticut Magazine Company |page=335}}</ref> who traveled through the area several times during the [[American Revolution]], and proverbially slept in [[New Preston, Connecticut|New Preston]] in 1781. Major William Cogswell, son of Edward Cogswell, was elected the town's first selectman.

===19th century===

''Industrial Revolution''. Early in the 19th century, small mills and factories proliferated along the Shepaug River in present-day Washington Depot, which came to be known as "Factory Hollow". Small-scale industry simultaneously appeared along the banks of the East Aspetuck River in New Preston.

''Invention of Summer Camp''. In 1861, Frederick W. Gunn, the [[Abolitionism in the United States|abolitionist]] founder of the Gunnery prep school, opened one of America's earliest [[summer camp]]'s in Washington.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://kdclips.blogspot.com/2009/06/hello-muddah-ill-see-you-at-home.html |title=Hello muddah, I'll see you at home: Economy Throwing Cold Water on Many Campfires |first=Kristen A. |last=Domonell |date=June 17, 2009 |access-date=August 13, 2019}}</ref>

''Slavery Safe Harbor''. Washington was a stop on the [[Underground Railroad]]. Local residents provided a safe harbor for slaves fleeing captivity, and organized efforts to throw bounty hunters off the tracks of their pursuits.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://archive.org/details/masterofgunnery01gibs |title=The master of the Gunnery |first=William Hamilton |last=Gibson |date=August 13, 1887 |publisher=New York, The Gunn Memorial Association |access-date=August 13, 2019 |via=Internet Archive}}</ref>

''Arcadian Movement''. The arrival of the [[Shepaug Railroad]] in Washington in 1872 introduced rail service to New York City, which brought an influx of new visitors. Architect [[Ehrick Rossiter]], then a recent graduate of the local [[The Gunnery|Gunnery]] prep school, saw an opportunity to establish an understated alternative to [[Greenwich, Connecticut|Greenwich]], [[Newport, Rhode Island|Newport]], and the ostentation favored by the [[nouveaux riches]] of the day.<ref name="auto3">{{cite web |url=https://www.gunnlibrary.org/ |title=Home · Gunn Memorial Library and Museum |website=Gunn Memorial Library and Museum |access-date=August 13, 2019}}</ref> In collaboration with a coterie of wealthy New York patrons, Rossiter remade the Washington Green area into an idyllic summer colony, transforming it into an idealized version of the quintessential New England village. During this period, the [[Congregational church]] received a makeover, commercial enterprises were eliminated for aesthetic purposes, and restrained but elegant summer homes—many of them designed by Rossiter himself—were constructed.<ref>https://books.google.com/books?id=N7U9R3AK4aAC&dq=%22Return+to+Arcadia%3A+Ehrick+Rossiter%27s+Washington%22&pg=PA313 {{Dead link|date=October 2019}}</ref> Contemporaneously, new seasonal residents established themselves at [[Lake Waramaug]] in New Preston.

===20th century===
''Birth of Steep Rock''. In 1925, architect Ehrick Rossiter donated {{convert|100|acre|km2}} of land along the Shepaug River to a group of trustees for the purpose of preserving it as open space, marking the founding of the Steep Rock Association<ref>{{cite web |url=https://steeprockassoc.org/ |title=A Land Trust Supported by Your Donations |website=Steep Rock Association |access-date=August 13, 2019}}</ref> land trust, which today holds land and [[conservation easement]]s protecting more than {{convert|2700|acre|km2}} in Washington.<ref name="auto">{{cite web |url=http://steeprockassoc.org/history/ |title=Steep Rock Association, Inc. » History |access-date=June 20, 2010 |archive-date=July 29, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100729052147/http://steeprockassoc.org/history/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

''Flood of 1955''. In August 1955, two large storms passed over Litchfield County in close succession, flooding many local river valleys. North of Washington Depot, twin culverts carrying the [[Shepaug River]] under [[U.S. Route 202]] were plugged with debris, causing floodwaters to accumulate upstream. The culverts and roadway succumbed to the resulting pressure, causing a wall of water to race down the river valley, washing away many of the homes and businesses in the Depot's village center, and killing a couple who ignored warnings to evacuate.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.newstimes.com/news/article/Angry-waters-55585.php |title=Angry waters |website=newstimes |publisher=The News-Times |last1=Miller |first1=Robert |access-date=November 22, 2016 |date=August 14, 2005}}</ref> A reconstruction effort, led by Henry B. Van Sinderen, and modeled after a town on [[Long Island]], was quickly commenced.<ref name="auto1"/> Homes and businesses soon reemerged, but the village lost many historic structures, and it has never regained its pre-flood density or vitality. The layout and visual character of the Depot were also radically altered, and the village center assumed its contemporary appearance, which varies considerably from Washington's traditional architectural vernacular.

''Invasion of the Iroquois''. In 1986, Iroquois Gas Transmission System sought permission from the [[Federal Energy Regulatory Commission]] to construct a {{convert|356|mi|km|adj=mid|-long}} [[natural gas]] pipeline through New York and Connecticut. The proposed route ran through Lake Waramaug's eastern watershed, across the Shepaug River, and through the Steep Rock Reservation, with a secondary spur running through Washington Green and Nettleton Hollow. The Washington Environmental Council<ref name="auto4">{{cite web |url=https://www.wec-ct.org/ |title=Washington Environmental Council |website=Washington Environmental Council |access-date=August 13, 2019}}</ref> became an intervenor in the proceedings, retained a prominent Washington, D.C., law firm, and mounted a vigorous opposition campaign. In 1989, Iroquois decided to reroute the pipeline, shifting it south of Washington's borders.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1987/05/31/nyregion/pipeline-shift-logic-of-litchfield.html |title=Pipeline Shift: Logic of Litchfield? |first=Charlotte |last=Libov |date=May 31, 1987 |access-date=August 13, 2019 |newspaper=The New York Times}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url=https://www.wec-ct.org/iroquois-pipeline?rq=Iroquois| title=Iroquois Pipeline| publisher=Washington Environmental Council| access-date=October 16, 2019}}</ref>

''Shepaug River Lawsuit''. In 1997, Washington residents voted unanimously to join a lawsuit against the [[Waterbury, CT|City of Waterbury]], which operates a reservoir at the headwaters of the [[Shepaug River]] in the adjacent town of [[Warren, Connecticut|Warren]]. Waterbury, which had long relied on the reservoir to supply water to its citizens, had come to view the river as a revenue stream, and was removing extra water to sell to neighboring municipalities. The lawsuit, which the town of [[Roxbury, Connecticut|Roxbury]] also joined, sought to compel Waterbury to release more water into the river, which slowed to a trickle during summer months, impeding important ecological functions. After considerable legal maneuvering on both sides, river advocates prevailed in February 2000, when a Superior Court judge ordered Waterbury to release more water into the Shepaug.{{Citation needed|date=October 2019}}

''Sempra Fight''. In 1998, [[Sempra Energy]] submitted a proposal to the [[Connecticut Siting Council]] to construct a power plant approximately {{convert|10|mi|0}} south of Washington in [[New Milford, Connecticut|New Milford]]. The plant was to emit 443 tons of pollutants per year, many of which would have projected toward Washington, owing to the region's prevailing wind patterns and complex terrain. The Washington Environmental Council<ref name="auto4"/> hired environmental consultants, who demonstrated that the plan would be particularly harmful to New Preston and Lake Waramaug. The council became an intervenor in the proceedings and generated scientific evidence that was cited by the Siting Council when it unanimously rejected the permit application in 1999.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1998/10/25/realestate/in-the-region-connecticut-a-flurry-of-proposals-for-gas-fired-power-plants.html |title=In the Region / Connecticut; A Flurry of Proposals for Gas-Fired Power Plants |first=Eleanor |last=Charles |date=October 25, 1998 |access-date=August 13, 2019 |newspaper=The New York Times}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1999/12/17/nyregion/metro-business-power-plant-is-rejected.html |title=Metro Business; Power Plant Is Rejected |agency=Associated Press |date=December 17, 1999 |access-date=August 13, 2019 |newspaper=The New York Times}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url=https://www.wec-ct.org/sempra-power-plant?rq=Sempra| title=Sempra Power Plant| publisher=Washington Environmental Council| access-date=October 16, 2019}}</ref>

===Contemporary Washington===

In 2008, [[Optasite]] submitted an application to the Connecticut Siting Council to erect a telecommunications tower atop Tanner Hill in a visually conspicuous location above the Macricostas Preserve, some {{convert|250|ft|m}} north of the Washington town line.<ref>{{Cite journal|date=October 1, 2008|title=Washington Connecticut October Minutes|url=https://www.washingtonct.org/sites/washingtonct/files/minutes/minutes-file/conserve_10-1-08.pdf|access-date=February 25, 2020|archive-date=February 25, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200225220740/https://www.washingtonct.org/sites/washingtonct/files/minutes/minutes-file/conserve_10-1-08.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> The State of Connecticut had previously purchased the development rights for the land beneath the proposed tower site for farmland preservation. Washington's Conservation Commission became an intervenor in the application. Working with a coalition that included Governor [[Jodi Rell]], Attorney General [[Richard Blumenthal]], and an ad-hoc community organization called CROWW,<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.croww.org/PLfnQ/VjYdZ/ |title=Archived copy |access-date=March 11, 2023 |archive-date=July 25, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110725204945/http://www.croww.org/PLfnQ/VjYdZ/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> they built an environmental and legal case against the tower proposal.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.washingtonct.org/min-cc-08.html |title=Minutes: Conservation Commission - Washington, Connecticut |access-date=June 21, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110502223811/http://www.washingtonct.org/min-cc-08.html |archive-date=May 2, 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref> In 2009, Optasite withdrew its application, and legislation was subsequently introduced in the [[Connecticut General Assembly]] to hold companies liable for costs incurred as a consequence of applications submitted to the Siting Council in [[bad faith]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.washingtonct.org/min-cc.html |title=Minutes: Conservation Commission - Washington, Connecticut |access-date=June 21, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100514205026/http://www.washingtonct.org/min-cc.html |archive-date=May 14, 2010 |url-status=dead }}</ref>