Benjamin Burt
1679-1759
Born in England, Benjamin and his wife Sarah sailed to America in 1706 and settled in Norwalk. A skilled blacksmith, he moved his family to Ridgefield in 1713 to become its first blacksmith. The 27 Original Proprietors of Ridgefield were so thrilled to have a blacksmith move to their remote village that they gave Burt 1/28th of all the land in town. His home was on the corner of Catoonah and Main Street, where the Carnall Building now stands.
The blacksmith was an essential tradesman in any colonial town. Among his jobs were forging nails and bolts for building houses, making and repairing iron farm tools, horseshoes and branding irons. There was a State-assigned ear brand required on all the horses in town. It was in the shape of an upside-down heart.
With the profits from his business, Benjamin Burt built a sawmill. It was located along Danbury Road at the base of Copp’s Mountain, which is just north of the present day Copp’s Hill Shopping Plaza. In 1742 he bought the town gristmill at Lake Mamanasco, which at the time was called Burt’s Pond.
Sarah and Benjamin Burt had six children. After his death at 80 in 1759, his sons carried on the family businesses. When the Revolutionary War broke out, they remained loyal British subjects. Unfortunately, this decision resulted in the confiscation of their land and property by the American government. In fear of their lives, they fled to Canada. Some family members returned after the war. But by then the businesses created by Benjamin Burt were lost to the family.