Co ecticut’s
Oute
Isla d
(Image
C edit:
oute isla d.o g)
I
1964,
Elizabeth
Hi d
a d
he
husba d,
Basil
Rauch,
pu chased
Oute
Isla d
as
a
summe
et eat
i
Co ecticut’s
Thimble
Isla ds.
Mo e
tha
th ee
decades
late ,
Hi d
made
a
decisio
that
t a sfo med
the
isla d’s
futu e:
i
1995,
she
do ated
it
to
the
U.S.
Fish
a d
Wildlife
Se vice
i
memo y
of
he
late
husba d.
Acco di g
to
the
Oute
Isla d
website’s
histo y,
he
goal
was
to
p otect
the
isla d’s
atu al
esou ces
while
e su i g
it
could
co ti ue
to
suppo t
educatio
a d
esea ch.
F om
summe
et eat
to
p otected
isla d
Oute
Isla d
lies
off
the
coast
of
B a fo d,
Co ecticut,
a d
is
the
southe most
of
the
Thimble
Isla ds.
The
five-ac e
isla d
is
cha acte ised
by
g a ite
outc oppi gs,
boulde
a d
cobble
beaches,
i te tidal
a eas
a d
small
salt
ma shes.
Today,
it
fo ms
pa t
of
the
Stewa t
B.
McKi ey
Natio al
Wildlife
Refuge.The
isla d’s
histo y
st etches
back
much
fu the
tha
Hi d’s
ow e ship.
Acco di g
to
the
Oute
Isla d
histo y,
glacie s
helped
shape
its
la dscape
thousa ds
of
yea s
ago,
leavi g
exposed
g a ite
bed ock
a d
la ge
boulde s
behi d.
The
Mattabesic
Native
Ame ica s
who
lived
i
the
Sto y
C eek
a ea
also
used
the
Thimble
Isla ds
du i g
the
summe
a d
called
Oute
Isla d
“Two
T ee
Isla d,”
efe i g
to
two
p omi e t
pi e
t ees
that
o ce
stood
the e.
I
1889,
Addiso
Ve ill,
Yale’s
fi st
p ofesso
of
zoology,
pu chased
the
isla d
a d
spe t
summe s
the e
with
his
family.
A
late
fi e
dest oyed
the
house,
but
its
la ge
sto e
fi eplace
a d
chim ey
su vived
a d
we e
i co po ated
i to
the
p ese t
buildi g.
Hi d’s
co se vatio
visio
Elizabeth
Hi d
a d
Basil
Rauch
became
the
isla d’s
ow e s
i
1964.
Rauch
was
a
p ofesso
of
histo y
at
Columbia
U ive sity,
while
Hi d
was
a
a chitect,
a tist
a d
active
co se vatio ist.
Acco di g
to
The
Oute
Isla d
histo y,
the
couple
used
the
p ope ty
as
a
summe
et eat
befo e
Hi d
ultimately
decided
that
its
futu e
should
exte d
beyo d
p ivate
ow e ship.I
1995,
afte
Rauch’s
death,
Hi d
do ated
Oute
Isla d
to
the
U.S.
Fish
a d
Wildlife
Se vice.
The
U.S.
Fish
a d
Wildlife
Se vice
co fi ms
that
the
isla d
had
bee
p ivately
ow ed
u til
1995,
whe
Hi d
do ated
it
to
the
efuge
to
p otect
its
atu al
esou ces
a d
p ovide
access
fo
educatio
a d
esea ch.The
do atio
was
mo e
tha
a
t a sfe
of
p ope ty.
It
eflected
Hi d’s
desi e
to
p ese ve
a
place
whe e
people
could
study
the
atu al
e vi o me t
a d
lea
di ectly
f om
it.
The
Oute
Isla d
histo y
otes
that
she
co ti ued
to
use
the
isla d
as
he
summe
home
u til
he
death
i
2002,
at
age
87.
