Marine Patrol

The Branford Police Department has an extremely active marine division staffed by certified Marine Officers. Along the shores of Branford's coastline lie the Thimble Islands. The Thimble group  consists of 365 islands, 32 of them inhabited, the  largest are Horse Island, Governor's Island and Money Island and the smallest is Dogfish Island, three-quarter of an acre.  The pirate, Captain Kidd is reputed to have stashed booty on treasure Island.

The islands, discovered by European explorer Adrian Block in 1614,  are glacial deposits of Stony Creek granite, which was quarried at the turn of the century to make sturdy foundations for the Statue of Liberty and the Brooklyn Bridge, Grant's tomb and the Lincoln Memorial.

Another legend regarding a local place name has it  that between 1637 and 1640 a battle of the Pequot War was fought on Horse Island. After the battle it's said that the head of a native American, slain in combat, was placed by Uncas in the fork of a tree where the skull remained for many years, giving the point of land its present name, Indian Head, the northern most point of that island.

Over 100 families live on the Thimble Islands and the department provides police services to them via the Marine Division.

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Last modified: 07/23/08