Turnback Tuesday features Yale Boathouse in Derby

This week's "Turnback Tuesday" visits the Yale Boathouse on the Housatonic River. 

DERBY - The boathouse is located above the Housatonic Dam and was built in 1918. It was named the Robert Cooke Boathouse. The view of the boathouse in this photo is from the Shelton side of the river. Boat races were once major events in the area as spectators would line up and down the river to view them. 
A new facility, the Gilder Boathouse, was constructed and opened in 2000. 
Named after Olympic rower Virginia Gilder (Yale '79) and her father, Richard Gilder (Yale '52), they both financially supported its construction.


Thanks go to the Derby Public Library for sharing this interesting local history each week.

'Turnback Tuesday' features Housatonic River Dam

This week's "Turnback Tuesday" features the Housatonic River Dam. The Housatonic Water Co. was organized in 1866 for the purpose of erecting a dam across the river. The dam was built in 1870 near the present-day Yale Boathouse. 
A short canal was built on the Derby side while a much longer canal was built on the Huntington side that later became Shelton. 
On Jan. 21, 1891, the dam burst from damage wrought by freshets and ice blocks. Even after it was rebuilt, ice and heavy water flows continued to damage the Housatonic River Dam until the Stevenson Dam was built upriver in Monroe in 1918.


Thanks go to the Derby Public Library for sharing this interesting local history. 

'Turnback Tuesday' Valley photo shared on Wednesday

Sharing from the Derby Librarians Facebook page:

This week's "Turnback Tuesday" features an image of Yale's Robert Cooke Boathouse. 

It was located at 280 Roosevelt Drive in Derby, where the Yale Gilder Boathouse now resides. 

The Cooke Boathouse was a Frank Lloyd Wright design and was dedicated in 1918. However, the boathouse was deemed too small to house the number of rowers that were using it, hence the need for its demolition and replacement by the Gilder Boathouse, opened in 2000. 
This image was taken from the Shelton side of the Housatonic River near Riverview Park.