McLean Game Refuge
The McLean Game Refuge is a 4,400 acres (1,800 ha) nature preserve with the overwhelming majority of the land being in the town of Granby, with smaller tracts of land on the Granby border in Simsbury and Canton, Connecticut. Senator and Governor of Connecticut, George P. McLean had purchased the land throughout his life. It was left to the McLean Fund upon his death in 1932 and remains open to the public today. In November 1973, 1,800 acres (730 ha)[1] of the Refuge were designated a National Natural Landmark.[2]
History
In 1903, after serving as governor, McLean returned to his family farm and began purchasing land. In 1905, he received a $3 million inheritance which he immediately put to work increasing his land which continued until his death. He became a Senator in 1911 and served three terms, during which he helped pass the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918.[3] He often brought political colleagues to visit the Refuge, including United States Presidents Coolidge, Taft and Hoover.
In 1912, McLean met Amos Everett George, a Pequot Indian who became the caretaker of his lands, building the trails and huts throughout the Refuge. George's two sons followed him as caretaker in turn.[1]
McLean Fund
When McLean died in 1932, he created the McLean Fund to be responsible for McLean, a senior living community and health care services provider, as well as the Refuge. The McLean Fund has eight Trustees which are overseen by the Simsbury Probate Court.[4]
The McLean Fund continues to manage the Refuge today.
On October 1, 2008, the senior living community and services (McLean Village, Health Center, Home Care, and Hospice) were re-organized as a subsidiary of the McLean Fund named McLean Affiliates, Inc., and the McLean Game Refuge was set up as a separate corporation as a subsidiary of the parent company "The McLean Fund".[5]
Description
Geography
The diverse geology of the Refuge includes Paleozoic metamorphic rock in the western sections. In the east are trap rock ridges from the Triassic period including the Barn Door Hills which are part of the Metacomet Ridge. Other portions of the Refuge are sandy plains, esker fields and kettle ponds created by the melting glaciers in the Pleistocene period.[6]
Trout Pond and Spring Pond were created by damming creeks. East Barn Door hill at 560 feet (170 m) is inside the Refuge while West Barn Door hill at 671 feet (205 m) is in the nearby Granby Land Trust.[7]
Hiking trails
There are over 20 miles (32 km) of hiking trails as well as two horse trails. There are two main entrances and several access points.[6]
Archaeological survey
In 1993 and 1995, the McLean Game Refuge was the subject of an archaeological survey, conducted by Kenneth Feder of Central Connecticut State University and Marc Banks of the University of Connecticut. Their investigation "produced some important data about the prehistoric landscape signature of this region and implicitly of the prehistoric Indian use of an interior portion of the Farmington Valley."[8]
Flora and fauna
The Refuge is known as a beautiful and prolific birdwatching site. Many species of birds including pileated woodpecker, blue-headed vireo, winter wren, hermit thrush and Blackburnian warbler are commonly seen.[9]
Vegetation in the area varies with the terrain, but can include chestnut, oak, beech, birch, maple, and hemlock. Shrubs include huckleberry, blueberry, and mountain laurel. Since this area had been logged for timber and charcoal before McLean purchased it, many of these are stump sprouts.[6]
References
- ^ a b Holdt, David M. (January 25, 2002). George McLean and the George Family: A Bond with the Land (PDF). McLean Fund.
- ^ "NPS National Natural Landmark summary". National Park Service. Retrieved 2009-01-10.
- ^ "McLean Game Refuge brochure" (PDF). McLean Foundation. Retrieved 2009-01-11. [dead link]
- ^ Brown, Daniel Putnam. "Put Brown resume (including description of his responsibilities as Trustee)". Put Brown. Archived from the original on 2011-07-15. Retrieved 2009-01-11.
- ^ Bordonaro, David. "McLean Game Refuge Incorporates For The Future". Archived from the original on 2009-01-07. Retrieved 2010-11-16.
- ^ a b c "Sinsbury Land Trust Trail Guide" (PDF). Simsbury CT. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-10-19. Retrieved 2009-01-11.
- ^ "Western Barndoor Hill Preserve Trail Map" (PDF). Granby Land Trust. Retrieved 2009-01-11.
- ^ Feder, Kenneth L.; Marc Banks (1996). "Archaeological survey of the McLean Game Refuge, Granby and Simsbury, Connecticut" (PDF). The Archaeological Society of Connecticut (59). ISSN 0739-5612.
- ^ "Hartford Audubon Field Trips". Hartford Audubon Society. Retrieved 2009-01-11.
External links
- McLean Game Refuge
- v
- t
- e
- Above All
- Air Line
- Beaver Brook
- Becket Hill State Park Reserve
- Beckley Furnace Industrial Monument
- Bennett's Pond
- Bigelow Hollow
- Black Rock
- Bluff Point
- Bolton Notch
- Brainard Homestead
- Burr Pond
- Camp Columbia
- Campbell Falls
- Chatfield Hollow
- Collis P. Huntington
- Connecticut Valley Railroad
- Dart Island State Park
- Day Pond
- Dennis Hill
- Devil's Hopyard
- Dinosaur
- Eagle Landing
- Farm River
- Farmington Canal
- Fort Griswold Battlefield
- Fort Trumbull
- Gardner Lake
- Gay City
- George Dudley Seymour
- George Waldo
- Gillette Castle
- Haddam Island
- Haddam Meadows
- Haley Farm
- Hammonasset Beach
- Harkness Memorial
- Haystack Mountain
- Higganum Reservoir
- Hop River State Park Trail
- Hopemead
- Hopeville Pond
- Horse Guard
- Housatonic Meadows
- Humaston Brook
- Hurd
- Indian Well
- John A. Minetto
- Kent Falls
- Kettletown
- Killingly Pond
- Lake Waramaug
- Lamentation Mountain
- Larkin State Park Trail
- Lovers Leap
- Macedonia Brook
- Machimoodus
- Mansfield Hollow
- Mashamoquet Brook
- Mianus River
- Millers Pond
- Minnie Island
- Mohawk Mountain
- Mono Pond
- Moosup Valley State Park Trail
- Mooween
- Mount Bushnell
- Mount Riga
- Mount Tom
- Old Furnace
- Osbornedale
- Penwood
- Platt Hill
- Pomeroy
- Putnam Memorial
- Quaddick
- Quinebaug Lake
- Quinnipiac River
- River Highlands
- Rocky Glen
- Rocky Neck
- Ross Pond
- Salt Rock State Campground
- Satan's Kingdom State Recreation Area
- Scantic River
- Selden Neck
- Seth Low Pierrepont
- Sherwood Island
- Silver Sands
- Sleeping Giant
- Southford Falls
- Squantz Pond
- Stillwater Pond
- Stoddard Hill
- Stratton Brook
- Sunnybrook
- Sunrise
- Talcott Mountain
- Tri-Mountain
- Trout Brook Valley
- Wadsworth Falls
- West Rock Ridge
- Wharton Brook
- Whittemore Glen
- Windsor Locks Canal State Park Trail
- Windsor Meadows
- Wooster Mountain
- Algonquin
- American Legion
- Centennial Watershed
- Cockaponset
- Enders
- James L. Goodwin
- Housatonic
- Massacoe
- Mattatuck
- Meshomasic
- Mohawk
- Mohegan
- Nassahegon
- Natchaug
- Nathan Hale
- Naugatuck
- Nehantic
- Nepaug
- Nipmuck
- Nye-Holman
- Pachaug
- Paugnut
- Paugussett
- People's
- Pootatuck
- Quaddick
- Salmon River
- Shenipsit
- Topsmead
- Tunxis
- Wyantenock
- Aldo Leopold WMA
- Assekonk WMA
- Babcock Pond WMA
- Barber Pond WMA
- Barn Island WMA
- Bartlett Brook WMA
- Bear Hill WMA
- Belding WMA
- Bishops Swamp WMA
- Black Pond WMA
- Candlewood Hill WMA
- Cedar Swamp WMA
- Charles E. Wheeler WMA
- Cromwell Meadows WMA
- Durham Meadows WMA
- East River Marsh WMA
- East Swamp WMA
- Eightmile River WMA
- Franklin Swamp WMA
- Goshen WMA
- Great Harbor WMA
- Higganum Meadows WMA
- Housatonic River WMA
- King's Island Coop WMA
- Kollar WMA
- Larson Lot WMA
- Little River Fish and Wildlife Area
- Lord's Cove WMA
- Maromas Coop WMA
- Meadow Brook WMA
- Menunketesuck WMA
- Messerschmidt WMA
- Newgate WMA
- Nod Brook WMA
- Nott Island WMA
- Pease Brook WMA
- Plum Bank WMA
- Quinebaug River WMA
- Quinnipiac River Marsh WMA
- Ragged Rock WMA
- Raymond Brook Marsh WMA
- Robbins Swamp WMA
- Roger Tory Peterson Wildlife Area
- Roraback WMA
- Rose Hill WMA
- Ross Marsh WMA
- Salmon River Cove and Haddam Neck WMA
- Sessions Woods WMA
- Simsbury WMA
- Skiff Mountain Coop WMA
- James V. Spignesi WMA
- Stanley Works WMA
- Suffield WMA
- Talbot WMA
- Tankerhoosen WMA
- Wangunk Meadows WMA
- Wopowog WMA
- Zemko Pond WMA
- Aspetuck Reservoir
- Barkhamsted Reservoir
- Beaver Dam Lake
- Candlewood Lake
- Easton Reservoir
- Far Mill Reservoir
- Hemlock Reservoir
- Hop Brook Lake
- Lake Lillinonah
- Mansfield Hollow Lake
- Means Brook
- Saugatuck Reservoir
- Trap Falls Reservoir
- West Hartford Reservoir
- West Pequonnock Reservoir
- Lake Zoar
- Aspetuck Land Trust
- Aton Forest
- Audubon Center at Bent of the River
- Bartlett Arboretum and Gardens
- Bear Mountain
- Beckley Bog
- Branford Land Trust
- Case Mountain
- Cathedral Pines
- Connecticut Audubon Society Center at Fairfield
- Connecticut College Arboretum
- Devil's Den Preserve
- Earthplace
- Great Mountain Forest
- Higby Mountain
- Highstead Arboretum
- Joshua's Tract Conservation and Historic Trust
- McLean Game Refuge
- New Canaan Nature Center
- Peter's Rock
- Pine Mountain Reserve
- Saltonstall Mountain
- Stamford Museum & Nature Center
- Steep Rock Association
- Weantinoge Heritage Land Trust
- White Memorial Foundation
- Woodcock Nature Center
- Yale-Myers Forest
- American Legion State Forest Trails
- Aspetuck Valley Trail
- Blue-Blazed Trails
- Chatfield Trail
- Hancock Brook Trail
- Housatonic Range Trail
- Lillinonah Trail
- Mattabesett Trail
- Menunkatuck Trail
- Metacomet Trail
- Narragansett Trail
- Natchaug Trail
- Naugatuck Trail
- Nehantic Trail
- Nipmuck Trail
- Paugussett Trail
- Pequot Trail
- Quinnipiac Trail
- Regicides Trail
- Salmon River Trail
- Shenipsit Trail
- Tunxis Trail
- Westwoods Trails
- Whitestone Cliffs Trail
- Zoar Trail
Forest/Parks
- Bear Mountain Reservation
- Beardsley Park
- Burr Farm Protected Open Space
- East Rock Park
- Gurski Farm Protected Open Space
- Happy Landings Protected Open Space
- Lighthouse Point Park
- Lillinonah Woods
- Mill River Park
- Old Bridge Sanctuary
- Pleasure Beach
- Roosevelt Forest
- Salt Meadow Park
- Seaside Park
- Webb Mountain Discovery Zone
- Webb Mountain Park