Politics & Government

Your Take: Should Fishers Island Be Part Of Connecticut?

"It is obvious to anyone looking at a map that Fishers Island should be part of Connecticut and not New York."

That's the argument of William Vincent, a Meriden resident who is asking for the island to once again become part of the Nutmeg state. Vincent's petition on Change.org says the island has stronger connections to Connecticut than to New York, and that the island would help boost the state's tax revenue.

According to the news site FishersIsland.net, the island has a year-round population of about 235 that increases to about 2,000 in the summer months. The only mainland connection to the island is a ferry service that runs from New London.

The site says John Winthrop Jr. of Connecticut purchased the island in 1664 and included it in a royal charter after he became governor, but that a conflicting royal charter in New York also laid claim to the island. The dispute was resolved in 1889 when a joint commission made Fishers Island a hamlet of New York.
 
Vincent says other connections between Fishers Island and Connecticut include the island's use of Lawrence + Memorial Hospital in New London for medical services, trash removal to Connecticut, and sports competitions against Connecticut schools.

Do you think Fishers Island should become part of Connecticut or should it remain part of New York? Let us know in the comments.


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