Old Saybrook Center in Lower Connecticut River Valley Region, Connecticut — The American Northeast (New England)
Lion Gardiner
Photographed by Michael Herrick, September 2, 2021
1. Lion Gardiner Marker
In 1635 Lieutenant Lion Gardiner, a tall redheaded military engineer, was engaged by Governor John Winthrop, Jr. to build a fort and lay out a town for the Warwick Patentees. His contract was for a period of four years at an annual salary of 100 English pounds. Gardiner arrived in the bark Batchelor with his wife Mary in March of 1636 and began to build a stout palisade fort and a windmill for grinding corn. The next month his son David was born the first recorded birth of an English child in Connecticut. When Gardiner's contract expired in 1639, he bought the island of Manahonake (now Gardiner's Island) from the friendly Montaukett Indians and moved his family there. He died in Easthampton, New York.
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Colonial Era • Science & Medicine. In addition, it is included in the Windmills series list. A significant historical month for this entry is March 1636.
Location. 41° 17.058′ N, 72° 21.17′ W. Marker is in Old Saybrook in Lower Connecticut River Valley Region, Connecticut. It is in Old Saybrook Center. It can be reached from College Street (Connecticut Route
this page online
Regionally, this marker is in the Connecticut River Valley, on the Connecticut Shoreline, and in Mystic and the Eastern Shore. It is also in the American Northeast, in New England, and on the Eastern Seaboard. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region, North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once Middlesex County and also one of the original Thirteen Colonies.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Battlefields of the Pequot War (here, next to this marker); Say Brooke Fort (a few steps from this marker); Fort Saybrook 1635 (within shouting distance of this marker); The Fenwicks (within shouting distance of this marker); The Pequot War (within shouting distance of this marker); Winthrop and the Warwick Patent (within shouting distance of this marker); The Connecticut River
Photographed by Michael Herrick, September 2, 2021
2. Lion Gardiner Marker
Also see . . . Lion Gardiner (Wikipedia). (Submitted on September 28, 2021, by Michael Herrick of Southbury, Connecticut.)
Photographed by Michael Herrick, September 2, 2021
3. Lion Gardiner
Lion Gardiner
Builder and Comander
of Saybrook Fort
1635 — 1639
Credits. This page was last revised on May 19, 2026. It was originally submitted on September 28, 2021, by Michael Herrick of Southbury, Connecticut. This page has been viewed 999 times since then and 67 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on September 28, 2021, by Michael Herrick of Southbury, Connecticut.
