206 Years of Holding Back Lee’s Pond
Photo & Research by Preston Siroka.Lee’s Pond sat sun-drenched this afternoon, ready for the next generation of Camp Mahackeno kids. Built in 1815 to assist in powering the Richmondville Mill, the Lee’s Pond dam was gushing this afternoon as springtime swelling of local waterways added to the pond’s volume. The dam powered the Richmondville mill’s cotton yarn machinery until 1842, when the dam failed and stopped work. In 1844 “John Lees and John Dryden rebuilt it and started Lees Manufacturing Co.” according to Preservation Connecticut. The dam was operational until 1950 when the mill closed down; the pond and the dam were purchased by two locals, who later sold the property to the Westport-Weston YMCA in 1975.
With the new millenium came scrutiny from the US Army Corps of Engineers, which lead to later renovations thanks to a $30,000 FEMA grant applied for by the Westport Fire Department and a $90,000 investment by the YMCA, according to the New York Times. The new dam featured terracing and a fishway to allow migratory fish the ability to swim upstream, as well as an updated sluice gate to release pressure during storms, and an eel pass for the migration of American eels.