The Old Mill parking lot has been reopened to all Westporters with a beach sticker.
When it was closed due to COVID-19, however, some folks wondered why Old Mill residents (and 2 guests) got to park there, and they — the non-residents — did not.
Well, because they have nowhere else to park.
That was not a problem in 1913. As this photo shows, no one parked anywhere.
(Photo courtesy of Paul Ehrismann)
But where did they keep their horses?
Is that the Old Mill parking lot? The topography doesn’t look like it. The reference to horses brings up a question: In 1913 when everyone had a horse, were there horse-drawn wagons that picked up after horses? No one ever asks this. I just did.
I happen to have this same image on a post card dated 9-12-1913 and on the card reads ‘The Old Mill Road, Compo, Westport Conn’ — But… that doesn’t always mean that the info is accurate.
I read somewhere in the past year, the current residence on the corner of Hillspoint and Burnham Hill was a carriage house for a now former larger residence that doesn’t exist anymore.. It’s across from the former Allen’s Clam House and now Mill Pond Preserve.
Even though, original structures still stand from this time. The set up was very different over a 100 years ago.
The current section of garages for residences now for Old Mill Compo Cove could have been the carriage house for the horses and when the horseless carriage the car arrived the garages were divided up into individual sections for the cars. Or was there one large carriage house for all the resident horse and buggies for these residences somewhere nearby?
The building might not have been in the area of Old Mill or Hillspoint. It could have been on the Sherwood Island State Park side?
Just found the Friends of Sherwood Island website with land record maps
http://friendsofsherwoodisland.org/history/reference-maps/
Hmmm maybe not… it’s rather complicated with land owners according to these maps I’m reading.
Quite bit of controversy on land and creeks with the land owners Greens Farms, Bankside Farmers, George Jennings, Captain Sherwood and many others.
It amazes me how much use these rivers, creeks and coves were used by boats which are now slitted up with sand!
Just noticed a notation on the map ‘Elwood, I wonder how many original apple trees are still standing on upper west side of Sherwood Island.