In 1964, Elizabeth Hird and her husband, Basil Rauch, purchased Outer Island as a summer retreat in Connecticut's Thimble Islands. More than three decades later, Hird made a decision that transformed the island's future: in 1995, she donated it to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in memory of her late husband. According to the Outer Island website's history, her goal was to protect the island's natural resources while ensuring it could continue to support education and research.
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