Gardner Lake

Description

Gardner Lake is a small lake lying at the junction of three Connecticut towns: Salem, Montville, and Bozrah. Named after the Gardner family who owned a large portion of the surrounding land, the 529acre lake has been expanded in size with the construction of an earthen dam. Three state parks are located around Gardner Lake: Minnie Island State Park, Hopemead State Park, and Gardner Lake State Park. Four campgrounds, a marina and dozens of private residences surround the lake. The lake is used for fishing and boating.HistoryGardner Lake is a natural lake and is named for the Gardner family which owned a large portion of the surrounding area, but the history of the lake itself is more identified as the site of "an extremely public miscalculation". Thomas LeCount, a grocer from Niantic, Connecticut wanted to move his two-story summer house from the south side of the lake to the east side of the lake, but believed that moving the house conventionally would be inefficient. LeCount raised up his fully furnished house and placed it on sleds and waited until February 1895 when the lake was frozen. After moving the house about 300ft off the south shore, the house slid sideways into a snowbank. The ice cracked as LeCount attempted to pull the house back, before abandoning the work at nightfall. That night, the mill operators utilized some of the lake's water for power and made a gap between the ice and surface of the water, causing the house to crack through the ice and pitch over. LeCount's summer home remained in this position until the spring thaw where it came to rest in 15ft of water with the second story and attic positioned above the water like a small lighthouse. For years, the house was the subject of children who fished off it in summer and ice skated through the house in the winter, but an enduring tale told by fishermen is that the house's piano could be heard playing on quiet nights. By 2005, the house was mostly rotted away.