A Look at the Legend of Devil’s Hopyard State Park in East Haddam, CT
You don't have to look too far to find something strange, supernatural or just plain creepy in the state of Connecticut. Legend and superstitions are always cool to explore, especially one that involves the "Devil" himself.
Today it's a beautiful hiking, fishing, bicycling, picnicking, and camping area located at Eightmile River's Chapman Falls in East Haddam, Connecticut. According to their wiki page, Devil's Hopyard State Park is a 1000-acre state park managed by the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection. History of the site includes an attack by the Sons of Liberty on a pro-British loyalists mill in 1775. In 2002, a portion of a broken millstone was found and a sign was put up at the park to tell the tale.
Ok, now how does it get its name? Good question. Wiki goes on to say that before 1800, a guy named Griffin had a farm not far away called "Malt House Brook." On this farm, Mr. Griffin, or George, grew some hops in a small section or "hopyard", an early "craft beer" type of guy you might say. Apparently, there are more than a few theories why the "Devil's" name was used from the landowner to supernatural explanations for the "potholes" that are near the falls. Here is a sign that is displayed at the park laying out some of the legends of the name.
The sign reads:
"Hopyard Folklore"
"A search for the origin of the name "Devil's Hopyard" reveals a wide variety of different stories: none of them are verifiable and all are likely to be more fiction than fact. One of the most popular of these stories is about a man named Dibble, who had a garden for growing hops used in the brewing of beer. It seems that through usage, Dibble's Hopyard became Devil's Hopyard. There are records of several farmers having hopyards in the area, but there is no mention of a landowner named Dibble. However, Dibble might have been a tenant.
Another tale focuses on the potholes near the falls, which are some of the finest examples of pothole stone formations in this section of the country. Perfectly cylindrical, they range from inches to several feet in diameter and depth. These potholes were formed by stones moved downstream by the current and trapped in an eddy where the stone was spun around and around, wearing a depression in the rock. When the rock wore itself down, another would catch in the same hole to enlarge it. We know this now, but in the early settlers, the potholes were a great mystery that they tried to explain with references to the supernatural. They thought that the Devil has passed by the falls, accidentally getting his tail wet. This made him so mad he burned holes in the stones with his hooves as he bounded away.
The most widely-circulated legend tells of the many times Satan has been seen, sitting on a huge boulder at the top of Chapman's Falls, playing his violin while the evil witches of Haddam stirred a "hell broth for a charm of powerful trouble" in the cauldron-like potholes formed in the rocks below. Another story reports that a lone traveler while walking through the Hopyard one night, saw some weird, shapeless forms leaping from hedges and trees near the falls. Later, these phantoms accosted the terrified man, who then beat a hasty retreat to the nearest tavern, where he related his experience to anyone who would listen. Some say that the traveler had spent too much time at the tavern before he took his ramble through the Hopyard. "
We also found a couple of YouTube videos that go deeper into Devil's Hopyard. DarkHour Paranormal seems like a really nice guy and even tries to interview a young lady about her experiences with the paranormal. The mic doesn't work quite right but we all get the idea, my thanks to him and to MICROPROG for taking us even further and getting some great shots of the falls. So check out the pics of "Devil's Hopyard" and thanks for hanging out, see ya again real soon!