New Haven, Connecticut was home to the Quinnipiack Indian tribe. In 1638, a group of Puritan settlers, led by Reverend John Davenport and Theophilus Eaton, sailed into New Haven. The Pequot and Mohawk Indians raided the settlers.

In 1646, the settlers built the Great Shippe in hopes of establishing a trade route with England. In 1661, Colonel Edward Whalley, Colonel William Goffe and John Dixwell hid in New Haven’s West Rock; these men were responsible for having King Charles I killed.

The Collegiate School was erected in 1700. Because Elihu Yale financially supported the school, it was later renamed Yale College. Roger Sherman, one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence, became New Haven’s major. Eli Whitney was another famous person from New Haven; not only did Whitney invent the cotton gin, he also started the Whitney Arms Company which later became the famous Winchester Arms Company.