U.S. Presidents #3 LbNA #8677

Park up on Route 63 at the lot across from the green Naugatuck Town sign.
The lot is between the main entrance to the park and the Ranger House. Enter the park by going up the hill and through the double fence.
Follow the trail to the right thru a picnic area to the fence near the ranger’s house. Follow the chain link fence to the left and onto the road. Keep heading down at the bottom follow the road to the left.
**At your first clearing on the right, giving you a clear view of the lake look to the left for a large rock that looks wedged between a stump and a tree…..behind that boulder John Quincy Adams waits for thee.

6th President 1825-1829
Democrat-Republican (talk about sitting on the fence)
Vice President John C. Calhoun
Born: July 11, 1767 at Braintree (now Quincy) Massachusetts
Occupation Lawyer
Married Louisa Catherine Johnson
Died February 23, 1848 Washington DC

Early Years: Adams was educated in a village school, then under the guidance of his mother. At 14 he accompanied his father to Russia as a French interpreter. At 16 he began a diary, which he continued for over 60 years. His first career was a diplomat.

His Presidency: Adams wished to govern as a man for the whole nation. He favored federal power regarding public land, roads, canals and protection of Indian land. Unpopular with those who favored states rights, he was not re-elected, but in later life, he won the esteem of millions who hated slavery.

Did You Know? President Adams went swimming nude in the Potomac River every day in good weather.


**Follow the road to the other side of the lake. All the way past the beach, enter the Lakeside Trail. You will need boots for this hike. Go straight up the trail to an open meadow. Just follow the tree line on your right side past a sign for Spillway Trail. Just beyond that you will see a huge boulder on the right side of that boulder in a crevasse is Martin Van Buren.

8th President 1837 – 1841
Democrat
Vice President – Richard M. Johnson
Born: December 5, 1782
Occupation: Lawyer
Married: Hannah Hoes
Died: July 24, 1862 Kinderhook, New York

Early Years: Van Buren studied at the Kinderhook Academy until he left at 13 to work in a local law firm. As a teenager, he won many law cases and became successful in politics.

His Presidency: Van Buren’s term was marked by an economic depression. An independent treasury system was established and sound money loans were made available through local banks. Van Buren skillfully negotiated a boundary dispute with Canada. He refused to admit Texas to the Union, as that would
cause war with Mexico. He was a good president at the sacrifice of popularity.

Did you know? Van Buren was a short, jolly Dutchman and spoke Dutch at home with his wife.

**Go back to the meadow and keep heading straight. You will go over the cement causeway. This is where Max and I stopped to climb both set of rocks at either end. Keep going until you see a trail on the right side. The outcropping of rocks part way up hides your next find. If you are standing behind the rocks overlooking the meadow Andrew Jackson is in a crevasse to the left. Be careful here.

7th President 1829 – 1837
Democrat
Vice President – John C. Calhoun (1829-32) Martin Van Buren (1832-37)
Born: March 15, 1767 Waxhaw region, on the border of North and South Carolina.
Occupation: Lawyer and Soldier
Married: Rachal Donelson Robards
Died: June 8, 1845 Nashville, Tennessee

Early years: At the age of 9, Jackson read the Declaration of Independence to a large group of people gathered at his house. By fifteen he had fought the British, gotten captured, been slashed with a sword and orphaned by the death of his mother. Jackson achieved fame and earned his nickname, Old Hickory, by defending the city of New Orleans against attacking British forces.

His Presidency: Jackson was responsible for resettling all the eastern Indian tribes to the Great Plains. He paid off the national debt and approved federal funds for improvement f interstate roads, rivers and harbors. He removed federal funds from the Bank of the United States and denounced it as a dangerous monopoly.

Did you know? Jackson was the first president to ride on a train and the only one who adopted a child.

**Go back and continue up the trail. At the top follow the trail to the left. If the main trail is flooded you can follow the little trail that runs parallel it will bring you back to the same place. At the intersection of these trails in front of you to the left is a rock that looks like and elephant head and trunk. James Monroe is right where the tusk should be.

5th President 1817 – 1825
Democratic-Republican
Vice President – Daniel D. Tompkins
Born: April 28, 1758 Westmoreland County, Virginia
Occupation: Lawyer
Married: Elizabeth Kortright
Died: July 4, 1831, New York, New York

Early Years: Monroe attended the College of William and Mary for two years, but left to join the Third Virginia Regiment in 1776. He became a professional politician and his long friendship with Thomas Jefferson helped him advance in his political career.

His Presidency: He is most known for the Monroe Doctrine of 1823, which declared America’s political system separate and different from Europe’s. During his term, Missouri was admitted as a slave state and Maine as a free state in the Missouri Compromise. Also, the boundary between the U.S. and Canada was established.

Did you know? Monroe was the first president to ride on a steamboat and the first senator to become president.


**Keep heading in the same direction until you come to the dam. Follow the asphalt road to the right. Go up to the top and back into the woods. On this trail when you reach the highest peak and you can see the lake in front of you look for a group of rocks with a tree growing out of the center of them. Around back on the left corner is JFK.

35th President 1961 – 1963
Democrat
Vice President: Lyndon B. Johnson
Born: May 29, 1917 Brookline, Massachusetts
Occupation: Author, Public Official
Married Jacqueline Bouvier
Died: November 22, 1963 Dallas, Texas

Early Years: Kennedy attended private schools in Massachusetts and New York, then Choate School in Connecticut to prepare for college. He went to Princeton, then Harvard, and graduated with honors.

His Presidency: Kennedy supported the civil rights movement and encouraged resistance from his own party in the South. He supported anti-Castro Cubans in an attempt to establish a beachhead at the Bay of Pigs and resisted Communist pressures in West Berlin. He also established the Peace Corps to bring education and a variety of skills to underdeveloped countries. He was assassinated his third year in office.

Did you know? At 43 Kennedy was the youngest president elected to office and the first who had served in the U.S. Navy.



You can either follow this trail back to the meadow or go back to the dam and walk along the road to your car.

Happy trails!!