Captain's Cove Seaport

on Historic Black Rock Harbor in Bridgeport, Connecticut

This Queen Anne style Victorian was build by Richard Dundon, who operated a coal yard on Burr Creek.  The house has been moved twice in its existence, once from its original site on Fairfield Avenue to Hope Street, and from there to its present location at Captain’s Cove in 1991.

The Dundon House has undergone an extensive renovation over the past years, and now features an exhibit on the maritime history of our area.  On view are photos, models and artifacts relating to Black Rock Harbor and the oyster industry in Connecticut.  A collection of objects salvaged from the bottom of Long Island Sound by local divers is on display; and a series of photos presents the history of the three area lighthouses.  Models, eighteenth century navigational instruments and sail maker’s tools on loan from private collections, are among the other items displayed.

The Dundon House is open by appointment only from May through September.  Please call the Seaport Office at 203-335-1433 for more details.

At the end of the main dock, you’ll find the Gustave Whitehead hangar.  Whitehead was a German immigrant who settled in the West End of Bridgeport, in 1900.  An aviation pioneer and mechanical genius, Whitehead conducted numerous experiments with gliders and heavier then aircraft, culminating in a one half mile powered flight over Long Island Sound, on August 14, 1901.  This flight, verified by numerous witnesses, took place 28 months before the first flight of the Wright Brothers at Kittyhawk.  Whitehead conducted other flights at Sport Hill in Easton; Lordship; the Tunxis Hill and Turney Road areas of Fairfield; and near the present site of Captain’s Cove Seaport.  Unfortunately, Whitehead kept no photographic record of these experiments, while the Wright brothers were careful to scientifically document, and promote, their work.

Displayed in the hangar, is an one-half scale model of the Whitehead #21 aircraft, built by local model maker Bill Wargo.  On December 29, 1986, at Sikorsky Memorial Airport, pilot Andrew Hosch flew a full-scale replica of #21, for a distance of 330 feet.  This aircraft is now on tour in Germany, where Whitehead, not the Wrights, is considerer first in flight.