East Hampton is a town in Middlesex County, Connecticut, United States.

The town is part of the Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region.

East Hampton includes the communities of Cobalt, Middle Haddam, and Lake Pocotopaug.

The southern trailhead of the Shenipsit Trail is in Cobalt, and the Airline State Park (a rail trail) has its southern trailhead in East Hampton, at Main Street in the Village Center.

Led by Isaac Smith, some of these settlers went on to the hills near Lake Pocotopaug, the present-day location of East Hampton.

The forge supplied the local needs and the shipbuilding industry on the banks of the Connecticut River.

Bell making continued to grow during the 1800s with firms utilizing the water power of the Pocotopaug Stream.

After the Civil War numerous coffin trimming concerns lined the stream.

So many bells were made in East Hampton that the town was given the name BellTown.

The most prominent names include William Barton and the numerous Barton companies of his sons, Bevin Brothers Manufacturing Company,[note 1] Starr Bros. Bell Co., The N. N. Hill Brass Co., The East Hampton Bell Co., Watrous Mfg.

The last remaining original operating bell shop, operated by Bevin Brothers, was razed by fire on May 27, 2012, but continues in full operation in a new East Hampton location; some other structures shut down while still structurally intact but remained unavailable for adaptive re-use, due to the presence of toxic substances at levels that resist remediation.

Other mills, which were remediated or did not contain toxics, have been converted into offices, stores, and other small businesses.

In 1841, the East Middletown parish, which had been a part of Chatham, separated and became a new township called Conway (later renamed to Portland).

Jesse Hurd was a master ship builder in Middle Haddam after the Revolutionary War until his death in 1839.

At the 2000 census there were 2,254 people, 821 households, and 596 families living in the East Hampton CDP.