Lake Compounce, Bristol, CT
Posted by: 
RIclimber
N 41° 38.444 W 072° 55.333
18T E 673046 N 4611973
On October 6, 1846, Samuel Botsford persuaded Gad Norton to let him conduct "a series of beautiful experiments in electricity."
Well publicized, the event drew thousands of spectators.
Waymark Code: WM6VEB
Location: Connecticut, United States
Date Posted: 07/23/2009
Views: 10
On October 6, 1846, Samuel Botsford, an influential Bristol scientist, persuaded property owner Gad Norton, an original settler descendant, to let him conduct "a series of beautiful experiments in electricity." Well publicized, the event drew thousands of spectators who witnessed the demonstration amidst the beauty of the woods and water. Although the final experiment of "blowing up from shore, two huge jugs of gunpowder tied under a raft in the middle of the lake" failed, it did inspire Mr. Norton to action. He put a path around the lake, set up picnic tables, allowed public swimming and rowing on the lake and built a gazebo for lakeside band concerts. Lake Compounce had officially opened to the public as a picturesque "picnic" park.
The Casino, the first permanent building on the property, was built in 1895 with a restaurant downstairs and a ballroom upstairs. A full course dinner cost fifty cents. Public transportation also began that year as the Bristol and Plainville Tramway Company and later, the Southington and Compounce Line, brought thousands of park goers to Lake Compounce by trolley.
Around that time, Timothy Murphy of Savin Rock, Connecticut, began to assemble the Carousel. Combining the works of four master carvers and a Looff mechanism, Lake Compounce purchased it for $10,000 and it opened to the public on Memorial Day, 1911. In 1914, the Green Dragon, Lake Compounce's first electric powered roller coaster opened to the public. It was replaced by the "Wildcat," a wooden classic built in 1927 by the Philadelphia Toboggan Company. The "Wildcat" operates to this day, and in fact, was recently designated as the best amusement park by readers of Connecticut Magazine.
Date Built: 10/06/1846
Open Dates: From: 05/15/2009 To: 10/31/2009
Open to the public?: yes
Main Attraction: Wildcat, Boulder Dash
|