New Fairfield

NEW FAIRFIELD In the year 1724 twelve men from Fairfield, Connecticut, came to this area to purchase land from the Indians who then inhabited it. They negotiated with Chief Squantz of the Schaghticoke tribe, who lived near the pond in this town which still bears his name. Returning in the spring of 1725 with the necessary documents, they learned that Chief Squantz had died, but his four sons and heirs refused to sign any deeds. Four years later, on April 24, 1729 the Indians finally deeded the land to the white men. The purchase price was sixty-five pounds sterling. This tract of land, together with a prior grant known as "Mitchell's Purchase", became the Town of New Fairfield. The original town comprised what was commonly called the "Upper Seven Miles" - now the Town of Sherman, and the "Lower Seven Miles" - the area that forms the present Town of New Fairfield. (Continued on other side) NEW FAIRFIELD (Continued from other side) The town was incorporated in 1740, and the twelve "Proprietors" carried on civil affairs. When the first meeting house was built in 1742 by the South Society of New Fairfield (later known as the Congregational Church) it also served as the seat of government. In 1759 the civil government was separated from the Church and a town hall was built. During the early part of the 19th century, New Fairfield, always an important farming community, also developed as a sizable industrial center. In the 1860's there were at least a dozen business and manufacturing enterprises, but by 1900 most of these firms had moved elsewhere or had been liquidated. After the creation of Candlewood Lake in the late 1920's by the Connecticut Light and Power Company for hydro-electric generation, this rural town gradually became a desirable residential and resort area.