Barkhamsted Hollow was a village in northwestern

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

. It was part of the town of

Barkhamsted, Connecticut Barkhamsted ( ) is a town in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. It contains seven villages: West Hill, Mallory, Barkhamsted Center, Center Hill, Washington Hill, Pleasant Valley, and Riverton. The population was 3,647 at the 2020 ...

Litchfield County, Connecticut Litchfield County is a County (United States), county in northwestern Connecticut, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 185,186. The county was named after Lichfield, in England. Litchfield Count ...

, incorporated as part of Barkhamsted in 1779. It was flooded by the creation of the

Barkhamsted Reservoir Barkhamsted ( ) is a town in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. It contains seven villages: West Hill, Mallory, Barkhamsted Center, Center Hill, Washington Hill, Pleasant Valley, and Riverton. The population was 3,647 at the 2020 ...

in 1940, splitting Barkhamsted and the nearby town of

Hartland, Connecticut Hartland is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 1,901 at the 2020 census. The rural town is part of the Northwest Hills Planning Region and forms the northwestern border of Hartford County. Currently, the t ...

in half.

History

The

reservoir A reservoir (; ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam, usually built to water storage, store fresh water, often doubling for hydroelectric power generation. Reservoirs are created by controlling a watercourse that drains an existing body of wa ...

was conceived to address the water needs of

Hartford, Connecticut Hartford is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The city, located in Hartford County, Connecticut, Hartford County, had a population of 121,054 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ce ...

. The earthen

Saville Dam Saville Dam is an earthen embankment dam with masonry work on the eastern branch of the Farmington River in southwestern Barkhamsted, Connecticut and central Hartland, Connecticut, dividing the latter into two villages along its hilltops, East an ...

was built to stem the east branch of the Farmington River, thus creating the reservoir. The dam was named for the project's chief

engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who Invention, invent, design, build, maintain and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials. They aim to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while ...

, Caleb Mills Saville. According to Paul Hart
Barkhamsted Historical Society
as quoted a

"The Saville Dam, which backs up the Barkhamsted Reservoir, was completed in 1940. I believe it took several years for the reservoir to fill with water. "The reservoir covers what was private land—mostly small farms. The property was bought by the

Metropolitan District Commission of Connecticut The Metropolitan District Commission of Connecticut (MDC) is a public not-for-profit municipal corporation chartered by the Connecticut General Assembly in 1929 to provide potable water and sewer systems to the Hartford area. The original agreeme ...

mostly during the depression years. On the Barkhamsted side, there was one village, known as Barkhamsted Hollow that was covered with water. This was located at a crossroads about a mile north of the dam and on the east side of the river. There was a store, church and a few other buildings here. Several roads were put underwater, including a north/south road that followed the river on the east side. There were many house locations that were covered by the water, and even more that were bought and torn down or moved that were not covered by water but were located on the watershed property now owned by the water company." The site of the one-room Center Schoolhouse was not covered with water. The building stood just off the west shore of the reservoir for many years until the Historical Society moved it to the current location on Route 181 about 1980.

References

External links

Town of BarkhamstedBarkhamsted Historical Society
(alternat
site'sGoogle cache

Metropolitan District Commission
{{authority control Barkhamsted, Connecticut Former populated places in Connecticut Former populated places in Litchfield County, Connecticut 1940 disestablishments in Connecticut 1779 establishments in Connecticut