Shelton
1639 - Stratford area settled, with present-day Shelton as the northern part.
1717 - Northern settlers established Ripton parish.
1789 - Ripton separated from Stratford and became the town of Huntington,
named for Governor Samuel Huntington.
1870 - Derby-Shelton dam built allowing industrial development along the
Housatonic River.
1915 - The borough of Shelton incorporated as a city, named for Edward N.
Shelton, industrialist and promoter of the dam.
1919 - Town of Huntington became Shelton by act of General Assembly
Shelton
The Pootatuck Indians were the original inhabitants of Shelton. They
had a palisade fort above Riverview Park and their burying ground was in the
Park. By 1680 they had sold all their lands to the Stratford settlers and
moved north.
The first industry in the area was the Leavenworth Shipyards, 1685, on the
Housatonic River at Indian Well. The nearby hills were forested with
oak and chestnut, which was used for planking. As the lands were cleared,
farmers moved in. They sent cattle, pork products, corn, and oak timber to
the West Indies on Leavenworth ships.
the 1790 census listed 2742 adults and 120 slaves. By 1900 Shelton was
an industrial town of 5600 people and manufactured everything from pins to
pianos.
In 1977 Shelton has become a residential and light-industrial city with
30,000 people and more than 60 manufacturers.
Erected by the city of Shelton, the Huntington Historical Society and the
Connecticut Historical Commission, 1977