Giuffrida Park was originally part of an area farmed in the late 1600's and early 1700's by Jonathan Gilbert and later Captain Andrew Belcher. This farm, the first white settlement in this region, became know as the "Meriden Farm", and from which the whole area eventually took its name.
Mount Lamentation was named in 1636 when a member of Wethersfield Colony became lost and was found by a search party three days later on this ridge, twelve miles from home. There is some controversy whether the Lamentation refers to his behavior or that of those looking for him.
In 1735 a group of local men leased land on the western edge of this mountain in an attempt to find gold, as quartz formations there seemed promising. None was ever found. The reservoir was built by the Bradley and Hubbard Manufacturing Company for its use in the late 1800's. The dam was raised three feet in 1927. Eventually International Silver acquired the property, because it guaranteed the company a reliable source of water which it used in great quantities in its manufacturing processes. After International Silver built its new factory on South Broad Street, it no longer needed the reservoir. As there was a shortage of water at the time, International Silver gave the city special permission to pipe into their now unused reservoir.
The property was offered for sale and the Connecticut Light and Power Co. (CL&P) purchased it in order to provide itself with the land to cross high voltage lines into the Westfield section of Middletown and beyond. CL&P then sold the rest of the land to the city, which bought it under the open spaces program.
The reservoir remains a backup water source today.
