What is Black Rock?

From its earliest days, Black Rock has always been defined by its waters. Physically set apart -- by Ash Creek, the Sound, and a natural deep-water harbor -- it was one of the few places in the Connecticut colony established for sea trade, its residents largely seafaring families. Though it was part of Fairfield for its first 226 years, and absorbed by Bridgeport in 1870, it has always been its own little world, with an outreach far larger than its size. 

Tiny Black Rock played a standout role in the Revolution; became over the next century a major West Indies trading port; built massive, 400-ton packet ships that brought back wealth from the Orient; morphed into a Gilded Age yachting center and seaside resort of magnificent estates; and eventually developed into a tightly-knit community that still looks to the sea as an integral part of daily life, though more for health and recreation than commerce.  

Black Rock is more than a simple Bridgeport neighborhood overlooking Long Island Sound. Its seaside geography -- coupled with outward looking settlers -- created its long and profitable seafaring history. When the new age of steam and rail overtook the old age of wind and sail, small businesses appeared, along with an influx of new immigrant populations who found work in local and nearby industries. New immigrants continue to enrich the community to this day. And just as Fayerweather Lighthouse once protected sailors and ships entering the old Black Rock harbor, the historic lighthouse structure still stands tall, an emblem and a beacon that presides over Black Rock to this day. 

What happened 375 years ago?  

In 1644, Thomas Wheeler, a Puritan from Concord, Massachusetts, arrived in the area with a company of others. He established his home at the head of Black Rock harbor, and by 1649, it has been said that Wheeler built a fortified house armed with small cannons in defense against the Dutch and the Indian

How did Black Rock get its name? 

The first use of Black Rock is in 1676, when Sergeant John Wheeler was given permission to build a "wharfe at the blacke rocke." The name is thought to come from a dark ledge of rock that runs along the shoreline - visible evidence still exists in many cellars of the oldest buildings.