Horizon VII: 350 Years Ago-Present A Period of Dramatic Change Beginning about 350 years ago, the character of the swamp was profoundly changed by the arrival of a new local inhabitant -- European colonists.  When the colonists first arrived, they found the swamp covered with a mixed forest of cedar, red maple, and white pine trees, as it had been for several thousand years.  Soon, though, the colonists transformed the swamp and the land around it through logging, farming, hunting and flooding. 1. Dense Swamp Vegetation Cedar Swamp -- called cuppacommock or place of refuge -- was always considered a safe place during times of conflict such as the Pequot War. 2. Colonial Logging Colonists saw Cedar Swamp as a plentiful source of timber.  Towering white pines were ideal for ships’ masts while Atlantic white cedar was useful for house shingles and clapboards. 3. Colonial Farm with Cleared Fields Much of the upland around Cedar Swamp was cleared as the colonial population grew and Pequots, too, established European-style farms.  A layer of silt visible in the core is the result of erosion caused by clearing lands in and around Cedar Swamp. 4. Dam for Water Regulation A stone foundation with attached iron plates and gears was discovered in Indiantown Brook, which drains Cedar Swamp from the north.  The gears were part of a dam that raised and lowered the water level of a portion of the swamp, perhaps damming water in order to power mills located downstream. 5. Ash Trees Ash and Oak trees abundant in and around Cedar Swamp provided the Pequots with materials to make woodsplint baskets. 6. Beaver Beavers were among the swamp’s animal inhabitants until extensive hunting led to the animal’s virtual extinction in this region by the early 18th century.