The Lost Lookout (1919-Present)

Welcome back, Monroe history lovers. This week’s history takes us to Roosevelt Drive in Stevenson, so named in 1934 for then President Franklin Delano Roosevelt after his motorcade from New London passed through Derby and Monroe on its way back to the president’s home at Hyde Park, New York. The naming of the road is certainly an interesting fact, but the focus of today’s historic subject dates back some fifteen years prior, coinciding with the opening of the Stevenson Dam in 1919.

During its construction, the Stevenson Dam and its hydroelectric powerplant were big news across America and beyond. The scale of the project and the advanced technologies used in its construction were celebrated feats of civil engineering which were widely published in the newspapers and engineering journals of the day. With the project’s completion, the former River Road and remains of Zoar Bridge upstream from the dam were submerged forever under Lake Zoar.

The former road and its traffic were now routed over the new dam connecting Monroe and Oxford, our shared town and county line located at the midpoint of the Housatonic River and the new dam. Imagine the sensation of driving across the dam when it officially opened in 1919, the road lined by modern electric streetlamps illuminating the way for those travelling at night. It must have been both terrifying and exhilarating for the generation of local residents so used to the slow crossing over the old wooden Zoar Bridge.

From its earliest days, the Stevenson Dam and its hydroelectric powerplant were a thing of modern wonder, something its constructors were well aware of. To further fuel the public’s interest and appreciation, a scenic lookout was built aside the new Roosevelt Drive for passersby to gaze out across Lake Zoar and the Housatonic River valley beyond the dam, the river’s rapids flowing onward toward the bend at Otter Rock. So, just where was this scenic lookout? Like so much of our history, it’s hidden in plain sight. Like I always say, “Our past is always present.”

The first supporting image is from the 1934 Fairchild aerial survey, which shows the scenic lookout highlighted in green, a short distance west of where the Lake Zoar Drive-In is today. Those of you with a keen eye may have spied the freight train steaming westward, its engine billowing black smoke from its stack as it’s just passing south of the dam. The next two supporting period photos are from the 1920s and show the lookout from two different vantage points, one from near the water’s edge below and the other from the railroad tracks above. Great photos, eh?

Today, the lookout property is owned by Firstlight CT Housatonic LLC, and access has been gated off to the public for decades now. It’s still there though, but no longer of practical scenic value as the tree line has matured to completely obscure the view of the lake and the dam beyond. If there was only a way, we could experience that view as it was back in 1919. Well, thanks to modern LIDAR technology we can. LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) uses pulsed laser technology and survey aircraft to accurately map the topography of the land in 12-inch increments of elevation.

The fourth supporting LIDAR image strips away the trees and shows the precise view of the lake and dam from the lookout. The fifth LIDAR image offers an aerial bird’s eye view of the area. That’s some pretty amazing imagery. So, there you have it, Monroe history lovers. You’ve probably been driving right past the scenic lookout for years and never knew it existed. That’ll never happen again. Now that you know it’s there, you’ll always look for the gates marking its location. I hope you enjoy this week’s historic spotlight on the lost scenic lookout at Lake Zoar in Stevenson. Please share this post with your family and friends, and as always, thank you for your continued support and interest in Monroe’s rich history. Until next time, be on the lookout for the lookout. You’ll find it. I have confidence in you.

Regards,

Kevin Daly
Historian, Monroe Historical Society
www.monroecthistory.org
Our Past is Always Present