The History of Dudleytown

The story sounded really good, didn't it? You may have even read accounts in magazines and books about it. Everybody thinks it's haunted--but is it? The sensational accounts are not the only ones. As a history teacher, I have found that if you know the facts concerning a historical occurrence, you can usually find out what REALLY happened.

Luckily for us, the situation at Dudleytown WAS historical. We have dates, names, etc., for what had supposedly happened there. This explanation will come through THREE articles. This first one will concern the ENVIRONMENT and geography of Dudleytown. The next will concern CURSES and genealogy. So lets move on to our first concern.


As you will see, maybe Dudleytown was just never meant to be.

It has generally been assumed that Dudleytown was founded in the early 1740's (most say 1747) by Thomas Griffis (some town records spell it "Griffin"), who obtained half ownership of the land now known as Dudleytown with George Halloway at the land auctions at Cornwall that occurred between 1735-95. Thomas died in 1758. This had nothing to do with the land grant from Yale University as some have stated. Thomas's land was again sold at auction on 8 June 1796 by Cornwall's tax collector. However, the Property Records show the land being bought on 7 December 1739, when Thomas was in Litchfield. He was actually in Cornwall by 4 April 1741, but was undoubtedly there earlier. Whether or not Thomas Griffis every really lived in Dudleytown is debated, and he is never mentioned in the "curse" stories. Most local historians say he settled not far from the border of what was then Kent---now Warren. The reason most historians point to 1747 is probably because that is the year the first Dudley (Gideon) bought land there.

Dudleytown was never a real town. It was (and still is) a part of Cornwall, Connecticut (there was also a Dibbletown and a Deantown–neither of which are said to be haunted). Cornwall itself had some historical residents. Perhaps the most famous being Ethan Allen, whose father was elected a town "selectman" in 1740. Ethan spent a number of years in Cornwall before moving on, and was there when Dudleytown was at its peak. Dudleytown itself sits in the middle of hills (the Coltsfoot Triplets, Bald Mountain, and Woodbury Mountain)--this accounts for the near darkness even at noon. (it also accounts for the constant hooting of the owls!) It had (and still has) rocky ground, and trees are everywhere. To get anything done, trees had to be chopped down--even to just build a fence. The ground was NOT suited to planting anything (it still isn't)--and while small gardens (such as potatoes, onions, and turnips) did survive, Dudleytown was never known for any crops. Everything needed had to be bought in nearby towns on the main roads. There were no stores, no churches, no meeting houses. There were a few schools, the closest being District School #10 located at the northern foot of Agag Mountain (the Dudleytown area itself was in District #13, which was technically service by Bald Mountain school). There was another school on the southern foot of Agag, whose longest resident school teacher was a man named Sam Dean. As for people, the population of the Dudleytown area never exceeded 100--if it ever got close to that number. Considering that there are approximately 10 cellar holes (or "root" cellars, as some call them) left, and allowing for the same number of above ground dwellings that didn't have cellars, this seems about right. According to a 1854 map of Cornwall, there were 26 families located in Dudleytown--and this is the most at any time. In fact, the entire population of Cornwall hardly exceeded 1,400 at its peak, and still doesn't. Some local historians put the population of Dudleytown far below 100, a few as low as 50, most of the time of its existence.

Most of the people lived on the two main roads–Dark Entry, where Gideon Dudley and the Patterson's lived; and Dudleytown, where the Carter's (formerly Abiel Dudley), and Jones' had their houses. Cook Road was, of course, named after the Cook's.

So why is Dudleytown believed to have been a "full-blown" town with churches, grave yards, stores, etc.? No one knows. Apparently the original Dudleytown story tellers never bothered to check it out.

It would seem odd to the casual visitor why a town would fail in the Cornwall area. There is so much fertile soil......until you get to the Dudleytown location. Dudleytown is in the hills, and had its soil washed away by (geologists claim) glaciers and water running downhill. Remember, Dudleytown is at an elevation of 1,500 feet, over 1,000 higher than Cornwall Plain. In addition to all of the above, there are the "fairy caves" (as some residents call them), which are gaps in the stones which have been covered over by grass. One wrong move and your foot is stuck fast. If you are able to remove it, a cut up ankle or broken foot could be the result. These are all over the area, and undoubtedly is the blame for so many missing cattle and other livestock that belonged to the early residents. Once stuck, they were an easy meal for the wildlife of the area.

Of the small crops that Dudleytown DID produce, perhaps the most revealing is Rye---used to make bread. If one is experienced in making bread, you are well aware that if Rye is left for a while, it goes bad. The resulting mold is almost a hallucinogen., and yes, it makes you SEE things, and it could also KILL you. Could that account for the supposed sightings of demons? If not, it is at least something to think about! Also, the town did grow Flax--but barely enough for the local people to sustain themselves.

Dudleytown was noted for its timber, usually burnt and used to make wood coal for the nearby Litchfield County Iron Furnaces in Cornwall and other towns. Local pictures made in the 1800's show Cornwall almost depleted of its trees, and books state that Dudleytown was in the same situation. When the Furnaces moved nearer the Railway, and more industrial towns, along with the Bessemer Process for steel, then there was no need for all that timber. While we are on the subject, let us remember that all those trees being felled provided little to stop rains from washing away what topsoil there was! Pictures of Cornwall from the Dudleytown times shows only a few apple trees left.

There is the Iron Ore in the area—some in Dudleytown, but most of it in nearby Salisbury. That, along with all the trees, could very well explain the lightning strikes. One person told me that there are more lightning strikes in that area than anywhere else they knew. Yet, they went on to say that Cornwall had the most (again, not realizing that Dudleytown is part of Cornwall. I would imagine that they have never been to the plains States. At any rate, so much Iron Ore and trees would make anything vulnerable to strikes.

There were three water powered mills in Dudleytown, one ground limestone for plaster on houses; another a grist mill. It is unknown what the third was, but is supposed by some a saw mill. Most of the mills closed because of the long trip down the mountain to deliver their goods. There were farms also, mostly near the bottom of the hill.

The land used to belong to Indians (Mohawks), some say. History shows that while were Indians in the area, the only major Indian trail ran through northern Cornwall, not the Dudleytown area. The nearest Indian burial ground was about 30 miles away. In 1955, there was a flood, and the authorities decided to build what is now Sucker Brook Dam right on top of it.

Dudleytown, like other towns in the early years of our country, was visited by disease. Two epidemics ran through the town (actually, through all of Cornwall)--one in 1774, and the other in 1813. Scores of people died during them. What is surprising, thought, is that some writers actually have laid these epidemics on the curse.

Wildlife abounds in the area. Bobcats, snakes, a few black bear, and chipmunks abound there. And the birds–everywhere! Residents will readily talk about the wildlife–but many visitors never see any. In fact, most remark that there is no wildlife there. The reasons could be many. Wildlife does not like humans, and will usually leave the area. In addition, should a predator wonder into the area, an inhuman silence will occur quickly.

So why did all the people move? Well, what was there to keep the young, and the newly married in Dudleytown? There were no factories, no large farms, no textiles--nothing. What little was there had left. As the iron factories diminished, so did many jobs. There wasn't even a church in Dudleytown--the spiritual needs were met in the Congregational Church in Cornwall Plain, and Warren. When one died, a trip to Cornwall was necessary as there wasn't even a graveyard there. So the young moved on to better opportunities, jobs in some other town, and once established never returned to Dudleytown. In fact, Mrs. Clark comments on letters she has found by those who left Dudleytown encouraging the remaining residents to join them!

Let us remember, however, that Dudleytown DID survive over 100 years. It was long-lived for Colonial towns of the time. It was, perhaps, one of the first of the New England towns that simply died due to where it was built. Simply that.

Before we go on though---when, exactly, did Dudleytown die? Well, that, of course, depends on whom you read. The truth you will shortly read.

We cannot stop, though, until we broach the subject of the mysterious occurrences. Was there a curse?

That will be examined in the NEXT article...below!

Bibliography

Chamberlain, Paul H. Dudleytown, 1966, The Cornwall Historical Society.

Clark, Harriet Lydia, True Facts About Dudleytown, 1989, The Cornwall Historical Society.

Gannett, Michael, The Distribution of the Common Land of Cornwall, Connecticut 1738-1887 1990, The Cornwall Historical Society.
Starr, Rev. Edward, The History of Cornwall, 1928.