Drawing of Squaw's Cave of Bolton Notch State Park from the book The Story of Wunnee-Neetunah, or The Life of an Indian Princess of Connecticut by Mathia Spiess c. 1934
Native Americans are believed to have used the major trails crossing through Bolton Notch, which they called Saqumsketuck,[6] for at least 10,000 years. The notch is thought to have created the boundary between the Mohegan and Podunk territories.[7]
Folklore
The park grounds include Squaw's Cave, where according to legend, a Dutchcabin boy by the name of Peter Hager and his Podunk bride, Wunnee-Neetunah (US: /ˈwʌn.niːtunə/One Nee-TUNA) lived as outcasts around the year 1640. Hager came to the New World on a ship captained by Adriaen Block, the Onrust.[8][9]
Modern History
Prior to becoming a protected state park, the area was used for a railroad from the 1850s through the 1950s. The railroad carried both passengers and freight. A crucial use for the railroad was transporting rock from the historic Bolton Notch quarry located east of the park.[10]
The state purchased the park's first 70 acres in 1918 in anticipation of developing a Wayside Park.[11]
^"Appendix A: List of State Parks and Forests"(PDF). State Parks and Forests: Funding. Staff Findings and Recommendations. Connecticut General Assembly. January 23, 2014. p. A-3. Retrieved September 11, 2017.
^"Bolton Lakes Watershed: An Update"(PDF). Eastern Connecticut Resource Conservation & Development Area, Inc. April 2014. Retrieved September 11, 2017.
^ ab"Bolton Notch State Park". State Parks and Forests. Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection. Retrieved February 5, 2013.