text:
Salisbury, Connecticut

Salisbury is a town situated in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. The town is the northwesternmost in the state of Connecticut; the Massachusetts-New York-Connecticut tri-state marker is located at the northwestern corner of the town. The population was 4,194 at the 2020 census. The town is part of the Northwest Hills Planning Region.

History
Salisbury was established and incorporated in 1741, and contains several historic homes, though some were replaced by larger modern structures in the late 20th century. Salisbury was named for Salisbury, a city in England. Historian Ed Kirby relates that traces of iron were discovered in what was to become Salisbury in 1728, with the discovery of the large deposit at Old Hill (later Ore Hill) in 1731 by John Pell and Ezekiel Ashley. From before the American Revolution, through the Federal Period of the nation, and until circa 1920, Salisbury was the seat of an important iron industry.

Additional iron mines were opened, mostly in the western end of the town, although historian Diana Muir dismisses them as "scarcely big enough to notice," with the further disadvantage of not being near a river large enough to ship iron to market at a reasonable cost. The solution, according to Muir, was to pour labor into the iron, working it into a quality of wrought iron so high that it could be used even for gun barrels. This fetched a high price and made Salisbury iron the celebrated choice of Connecticut's early nineteenth-century arms industry as well as the preeminent source of cast-iron railroad car wheels until they were superseded by steel wheels. Peter P. Everts, an agent of the mid-19th-century mines, however, stated the quality of Salisbury iron varied. The iron industry in Salisbury became inactive following World War I, a plan to revive it during World War II was never implemented, and the mines remain under water.

Scoville Library in Salisbury was the first in the United States open to the public free of charge. Salisbury is also home to the oldest Methodist church in New England, the Lakeville Methodist Church, constructed in 1789.

Geography
Salisbury occupies the northwest corner of Litchfield County and the state of Connecticut. It is bordered to the north by Berkshire County, Massachusetts, and to the west by Dutchess County, New York. Salisbury is 49 mi northwest of Hartford, Connecticut's capital; 38 mi south of Pittsfield, Massachusetts; and 39 mi northeast of Poughkeepsie, New York.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 155.6 sqkm, of which 148.3 sqkm are land and 7.3 sqkm, or 4.72%, are water. Within Salisbury there are several ponds and six lakes: Wononscopomuc, Washinee, Washining, Wononpakook, Riga Lake and South Pond. The Housatonic River forms the eastern boundary of the town. Although the summit of Mount Frissell lies in Massachusetts at an elevation of 2453 ft, the south slope of the mountain in Salisbury, is the highest point in Connecticut at 2380 ft.

Principal communities
The town of Salisbury includes the CDP of Lakeville, and the hamlets of Amesville, Lime Rock, Salisbury, and Taconic (formerly Chapinville). Taconic is located in the northern section of Salisbury and is a seasonal community of approximately 200 in population, with a town green and US post office. Historically the areas of Joyceville, Ore Hill, Hammertown, Weatogue and Twin Lakes were recognized as separate communities but are no longer.

Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 3,977 people, 1,737 households, and 1,042 families residing in the town. The population density was 69.4 PD/sqmi. There were 2,410 housing units at an average density of 42.0 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the town was 95.75% White, 1.66% African American, 0.33% Native American, 0.96% Asian, 0.45% from other races, and 0.85% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.53% of the population.

There were 1,737 households, out of which 25.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.4% were married couples living together, 7.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 40.0% were non-families. 33.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.19 and the average family size was 2.81.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 22.4% under the age of 18, 3.7% from 18 to 24, 20.4% from 25 to 44, 31.9% from 45 to 64, and 21.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 47 years. For every 100 females, there were 89.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.4 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $53,051, and the median income for a family was $69,152. Males had a median income of $43,807 versus $29,861 for females. The per capita income for the town was $38,752. About 4.9% of families and 7.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.6% of those under age 18 and 2.6% of those age 65 or over.

Parks and recreation
The Appalachian Trail runs through Salisbury.

Mount Riga State Park is located in Salisbury.

Sports
The Salisbury Winter Sports Association hosts ski jumping competitions at its Satre Hill venue in Salisbury. It has hosted United States Eastern Ski Jumping Championships each February since 1952.

The well-known automobile racing course of Lime Rock Park is in the southeast corner of Salisbury.

Government
Salisbury has an open town meeting form of government, with three selectmen.

Education
Salisbury is a member of Regional School District 01, which also serves the towns of Canaan, Cornwall, Kent, North Canaan, and Sharon. Public school students attend Salisbury Central School (grades K–8), and Housatonic Valley Regional High School, which is in Falls Village. There are also three boarding schools in the town, Salisbury School and Hotchkiss School, both high schools, and Indian Mountain School, Pre-K through grade 9.

Media
The community is served by a weekly newspaper, The Lakeville Journal, and the Republican-American, a daily newspaper based in Waterbury. The Salisbury Sampler is a 10-issue-per-year newsletter of community events, notices and news edited by the office of the Selectmen and mailed to all households. The Salisbury Association publishes a bi-annual newsletter covering the land trust, historical and civic committees news and activities. It is mailed to all households.

Transportation
U.S. Route 44 is the main east–west highway in the town, while Connecticut Route 41 is the main north–south highway. US 44 leads northeast 7 mi to North Canaan and southwest 6 mi to Millerton, New York. Route 41 leads south 8 mi to Sharon and north 17 mi to Great Barrington, Massachusetts. Connecticut Route 112 runs diagonally, northwest to southeast, and connects with U.S. Route 7, which runs north–south parallel to the Housatonic River.

Notable people

 * Ethan Allen (1738–1789), owned a blast furnace in Lakeville in the 1760s
 * Charles B. Andrews (1834–1902), Governor of Connecticut (1878–1881)
 * William Henry Barnum (1818–1889), congressman and US senator, longest-serving chairman of the U.S. Democratic Committee, president of Barnum & Richardson Company, lived in Lime Rock
 * Daniel Chipman (1765–1850), congressman from Vermont
 * Nathaniel Chipman (1752–1843), US senator from Vermont and Chief Justice of the Vermont Supreme Court
 * Martin Chittenden (1763–1840), seventh governor of Vermont (1813–1815); born in Salisbury
 * Thomas Chittenden (1730–1797), first governor of Vermont
 * Jill Clayburgh (1944–2010), Academy Award-nominated actress; lived and died in Lakeville
 * Maurice Firuski (1894–1978), bookseller, alumnus of Yale University
 * Jeff Greenfield (born 1943), ABC television journalist and commentator
 * Margaret Hamilton (1902–1985), actress who played the Wicked Witch of the West in The Wizard of Oz; spent her last years in town
 * Edward Herrmann (1943–2014), Emmy Award-winning actor
 * Horace Holley (1781–1827), minister of Hollis Street Church and president of Transylvania College
 * John M. Holley (1802–1848), US congressman
 * Myron Holley (1779–1841), Erie Canal builder
 * Maria Bissell Hotchkiss (1827–1901), widow of Benjamin B. Hotchkiss, founded Hotchkiss School in Lakeville
 * Josiah S. Johnston (1784–1833), US senator representing Louisiana
 * Alfred Korzybski (1879–1950), founded the Institute of General Semantics at a country estate in Lime Rock and directed it until his death; institute remained there until 1981
 * Richmond Landon (1898–1971), Olympic gold medal winner
 * Wanda Landowska (1879–1959), harpsichordist; resident of Lakeville from 1949 until death in 1959
 * Laura Linney (born 1964), Emmy and Golden Globe award-winning actress
 * Frederick Miles (1815–1896), congressman from Connecticut
 * Peter Buell Porter (1773–1844), U.S. Secretary of War (1828–1829); born in town
 * Joseph Schumpeter (1883–1950), economist; died in Taconic in 1950
 * Jonathan Scoville (1830–1891), congressman
 * Roy Sherwood (1932–2017), ski jumper in 1956 Olympics
 * Georges Simenon (1903–1989), prolific Belgian author, most notably of Maigret novels; lived in house called "Shadow Rock Farm" in Lakeville
 * Meryl Streep (born 1949), multiple Oscar-winning actress; lives in Salisbury with her family
 * Rip Torn (1931–2019), Emmy Award-winning and Oscar-nominated actor
 * Elisha Whittlesey (1783–1863), congressman

title: Salisbury, Connecticut


text:
Sharon, Connecticut

Sharon is a town in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States, in the northwest corner of the state. At the time of the 2020 census, the town had a total population of 2,680. The town is part of the Northwest Hills Planning Region. The ZIP code for Sharon is 06069. The urban center of the town is the Sharon census-designated place, with a population of 729 at the 2010 census.

History
The first inhabitants of the area they called Poconnuck were the Mattabesec Native Americans. These were part of what became known as the Wappinger confederacy, which in turn belonged to the loose Algonquian confederacy.

Sharon was incorporated in 1739. It is named after the Plain of Sharon.

Historic sites
Sharon has six sites listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places:
 * Ebenezer Gay House, 18 Main St., Sharon
 * George King House, 12 N. Main St., Sharon
 * Gov. Smith Homestead, South Main St., Sharon
 * James Pardee House, 129 N. Main St., Sharon
 * Sharon Historic District, roughly Main St. from Low Rd. to its junction with Mitchelltown, Amenia Union, and W. Woods Rds., Sharon
 * Sharon Valley Historic District

Geography
The town is bounded on the north by Salisbury, on the east across the Housatonic River by Cornwall, on the south by Kent, and on the west by Dutchess County, New York. Sharon is 42 mi north of Danbury, 52 mi west of Hartford, and 30 mi northeast of Poughkeepsie, New York.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 154.3 sqkm, of which 152.2 sqkm are land and 2.1 sqkm, or 1.33%, are water. It is the third largest town in Connecticut based on area. Sharon is part of the Northwest Highlands of Connecticut, a region in and around the watershed of the Housatonic River. The Appalachian Trail passes for a few miles through the east side of Sharon, near West Cornwall and U.S. Route 7. Housatonic Meadows State Park is in the eastern part of the town, next to the Housatonic River.

Principal communities

 * Amenia Union
 * Ellsworth
 * Sharon center
 * Sharon Valley
 * Main Street & Green
 * Calkinstown
 * West Woods

Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 2,968 people, 1,246 households, and 775 families residing in the town. The population density was 50.6 PD/sqmi. There were 1,617 housing units at an average density of 27.5 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the town was 96.87% White, 0.94% African American, 0.57% Asian, 0.44% Native American, 0% Pacific Islander, 0.34% from other races, and 0.84% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.95% of the population.

There were 1,246 households, of which 25.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.9% were married couples living together, 7.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.8% were non-families. 31.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.26 and the average family size was 2.87.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 21.3% under the age of 18, 4.2% from 18 to 24, 24.4% from 25 to 44, 29.1% from 45 to 64, and 21.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.2 males.

The median household income was $53,000, and the median family income for a family was $71,458. Males had a median income of $42,841 versus $31,375 for females. The per capita income for the town was $45,418. About 3.9% of families and 7.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.4% of those under the age of 18 and none of those 65 and older.

Education
Sharon is a member of Regional School District 01, which also includes the towns of Canaan, Cornwall, Kent, North Canaan, and Salisbury. Public school students attend Sharon Center School from grades K–8 and Housatonic Valley Regional High School from grades 9–12.

Transportation
The town is served by state highways 4, 41, 343, and 361. Route 4 has its western terminus in Sharon and leads southeast 8 mi to Cornwall Bridge and ultimately east 47 mi to West Hartford. Route 41 leads north 8 mi to Salisbury and southwest 4 mi to the New York state line, Route 343 leads west and becomes New York State Route 343, leading 5 mi to Amenia, New York, and Route 361 leads towards Millerton, New York, 6 mi north of Sharon.

Notable people

 * Kevin Bacon (born 1958), and his wife Kyra Sedgwick (born 1965), actors
 * Patricia Buckley Bozell (1927–2008), author and editor; reared in Sharon with her brother William at the Buckley family home, "Great Elm"
 * William F. Buckley Jr. (1925–2008), public intellectual, founder of National Review
 * Yancy Butler (born 1970), former Witchblade actress
 * William Coley (1862–1936), prominent New York bone surgeon and inventor of "Coley's toxins", an early form of cancer immunotherapy
 * Jane Curtin (born 1947), actress and comedian
 * Michael J. Fox (born 1961) and his wife Tracy Pollan (born 1960), actors
 * Frank R. Fratellenico (1951–1970), Medal of Honor recipient, Vietnam War
 * Arthur Getz (1913–1996), illustrator for The New Yorker magazine
 * Tom Goldenberg (born 1948), artist
 * Eunice Groark (1938–2018), Lieutenant Governor of Connecticut
 * Thomas Hart (1877–1971), U.S. Navy admiral and U.S. senator
 * Benjamin B. Hotchkiss (1826–1885), ordnance engineer, husband of Maria Bissell Hotchkiss
 * Maria Bissell Hotchkiss (1827–1901), educator, wife of Benjamin B. Hotchkiss
 * S. Holden Jaffe, musician behind Del Water Gap
 * Jasper Johns (born 1930), artist
 * Elijah Juckett (1760–1839), Continental Army soldier
 * Helen Coley Nauts (1907–2001), daughter of William Coley and co-founder of the Cancer Research Institute
 * Sam Posey (born 1944), retired racecar driver and sports broadcaster
 * Campbell Scott (born 1961), actor
 * Ansel Sterling (1782–1853), congressman from Connecticut
 * Charles A. Templeton (1871–1955), Governor of Connecticut
 * Bradley Whitford (born 1959) and his wife Jane Kaczmarek (born 1955), actors

Sharon Hospital, the birthplace of several persons who were not residents

 * Philip Amelio, 1980s child actor born in Sharon on November 3, 1977; raised in nearby Pine Plains, New York
 * Samuel Berger, U.S. National Security Advisor to President Bill Clinton, born in Sharon on October 28, 1945; raised in nearby Millerton, New York
 * Michael Cole (born Michael Shawn Coulthard), announcer on WWE Raw and former CBS Radio journalist, born in Sharon on December 8, 1968; raised in nearby Amenia, New York
 * Alfred Korzybski, founder of the nearby Institute of General Semantics, died at Sharon Hospital March 1, 1950

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Sharon, Connecticut


text:
Terryville, Connecticut

Terryville is a census-designated place (CDP) in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States, and is the largest village within the town of Plymouth. In the 2010 census, Terryville had a population of 5,387, out of 12,243 in the entire town of Plymouth. The village is named for Eli Terry Jr., the son of the well-known clockmaker Eli Terry Sr. Terryville is also home to the Lock Museum of America. There is a water wheel located in downtown Terryville that is dedicated to the son of Eli Terry Sr.

Geography
Terryville is in the eastern part of the town of Plymouth and the southeastern corner of Litchfield County. The community is bordered to the east by the city of Bristol in Hartford County, and it is 10 mi north of Waterbury in New Haven County. U.S. Route 6 passes through the center of Terryville, leading east into Bristol and west into Thomaston.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the Terryville CDP has a total area of 7.2 sqkm, of which 0.07 sqkm, or 0.95%, are water. The Pequabuck River, a tributary of the Farmington River, flows from west to east through the center of town.

Demographics
As of the census of 2010, there were 5,387 people, 2,222 households, and 1,426 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 753.5/km$2$ (1,952/mi2). There were 2,406 housing units, of which 7.6% were vacant. The racial makeup of the CDP was 95.1% White, 0.9% African American, 0.3% Native American, 1.1% Asian, 0.04% Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander, 0.8% some other race, and 1.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.4% of the population.

Of the 2,222 households, 30.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.0% were headed by married couples living together, 10.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.8% were non-families. Of all households, 28.2% were made up of individuals, and 11.3% were someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 2.97.

21.8% of the CDP population were under the age of 18, 8.3% were from 18 to 24, 26.4% were from 25 to 44, 30.8% were from 45 to 64, and 12.6% were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40.6 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.6 males.

For the period 2013–17, the estimated median annual income for a household in the CDP was $61,324, and the median income for a family was $84,674. Male full-time workers had a median income of $58,929 versus $51,667 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $33,286. About 4.6% of families and 7.2% of the population were living below the poverty line, including 5.8% of those under age 18 and 4.8% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Terryville has four public schools: two pre-K to grade 5 elementary schools, one middle school, and one high school. Its elementary schools are the Harry S. Fisher Elementary School and the Plymouth Center School. Its one middle school is the Eli Terry Middle School. Terryville High School is the only public high school that Plymouth and Terryville residents may attend. A new high school building is located on North Harwinton Avenue in Terryville.

The Prospect Street School was used as the high school up until the 1940s. A new high school building was built on North Main Street and was used until January 2008. Prospect Street School then became an elementary school until its closing in January 2008.

Notable people

 * Pete Appleton, Major League Baseball pitcher; born in Terryville
 * Dorence Atwater, Civil War hero; United States Consul to Tahiti; prominent businessman; called "Tupuuataroa" (Wise Man) by the people of Tahiti; born in Terryville
 * Betsey Johnson, fashion designer; lived in Terryville until c. 1960
 * Ted Knight, actor; born in Terryville

title: Terryville, Connecticut


text:
Thomaston, Connecticut

Thomaston is a town in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. The town is part of the Naugatuck Valley Planning Region. The population was 7,442 at the 2020 census. The urban center of the town is the Thomaston census-designated place, with a population of 1,928 at the 2020 census.

History
The town, originally part of the town of Plymouth and referred to as "Plymouth Hollow", was first settled by Henry Cook ("the soldier in the wilderness", 1683–1750) around 1728. The town is known for clockmaking, which started in 1803, when Eli Terry established a factory in the town. Terry brought mass production to the clockmaking industry, helping to reduce the cost of clocks. He introduced and patented the shelf clock in 1814, which reduced the cost of a clock from $25 to $5. His clocks were sold throughout the United States.

The town was incorporated in its own right and under the name "Thomaston" in 1875. The name derives from Seth Thomas, the early clockmaker, who established a factory in town in 1812. The Seth Thomas clock factory building still exists; however, the clockmaking industry has long since left the state as well as the country.

Geography
Thomaston is in southeastern Litchfield County, bordered on the south by the city of Waterbury in New Haven County. According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 31.6 sqkm, of which 31.0 sqkm are land and 0.6 sqkm  (1.94%) are water.

The town is located at the confluence of the Naugatuck River, Northfield Brook and Black Rock Brook, and is protected by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers flood control dams on each of these watercourses. These were all constructed in the years immediately following the devastating flood of 1955 which ravaged the town as well as the state in general.

Principal communities

 * Reynolds Bridge
 * Downtown
 * Highwood Farms
 * Hickory Hill
 * High Street Ext

Adjacent towns and city

 * Litchfield (north)
 * Harwinton (northeast)
 * Plymouth (east)
 * Waterbury (south)
 * Watertown (southwest)
 * Morris (west)
 * Northfield (north)

Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 7,503 people, 2,916 households, and 2,067 families residing in the town. The population density was 624.7 PD/sqmi. There were 3,014 housing units at an average density of 251.0 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the town was 97.85% White, Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.45% of the population, 0.60% African American, 0.11% Native American, 0.49% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.41% from other races,and 0.53% from two or more races.

There were 2,916 households, out of which 34.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.5% were married couples living together, 9.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.1% were non-families. 24.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.57 and the average family size was 3.07.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 25.3% under the age of 18, 6.2% from 18 to 24, 33.2% from 25 to 44, 23.2% from 45 to 64, and 12.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 97.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.8 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $54,297, and the median income for a family was $63,682. Males had a median income of $40,795 versus $31,744 for females. The per capita income for the town was $24,799. 4.2% of the population and 3.3% of families were below the poverty line. Of the total population, 5.8% of those under the age of 18 and 4.5% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.

Transportation
The Route 8 expressway runs along the Naugatuck River in the eastern part of town and has three exits in Thomaston. Other state highways in the town are U.S. Route 6, Connecticut Route 109, Route 222, and Route 254. Thomaston is headquarters of the Naugatuck Railroad, a heritage railway and short line freight operator that operates 21 mi of former New Haven trackage between Waterbury and Torrington. Interchange is with Pan Am Railways at Highland Junction.

Schools
The town is home to Thomaston High School, a school with roughly up to 375 students, from grade 7 to 12. It is also home to Black Rock Elementary School, hosting Pre-K to 3rd grade, and Thomaston Center School, hosting the town's 4th, 5th, and 6th grade students.

Landmarks

 * Hose and Hook and Ladder Truck Building
 * Railroad Museum of New England
 * Thomaston Opera House
 * Trinity Church

Notable people

 * Michael J. McGivney (1852–1890), Roman Catholic priest and founder of the Knights of Columbus; died in Thomaston
 * Grattan O'Connell (1902–1942), early professional football player; born in Thomaston
 * Thomas James Reeves (1895–1941), US Navy radioman killed during the December 7, 1941, attack on Pearl Harbor and posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor; born in Thomaston
 * Seth Thomas (1785–1859), 19th-century American clockmaker and pioneer of mass production; the town is named after him

title: Thomaston, Connecticut


text:
Warren, Connecticut

Warren is a town in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 1,351 at the 2020 census. The town is part of the Northwest Hills Planning Region. The town was named for Revolutionary War General Joseph Warren.

On July 1, 2006, businessman Joseph Cicio placed most of Warren's commercial district on eBay for $5,000,000.

Geography
Warren is in west-central Litchfield County, 28 mi north of Danbury, 24 mi northwest of Waterbury, and 42 mi west of Hartford. According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 71.4 sqkm, of which 68.1 sqkm are land and 3.2 sqkm|, or 4.50%, are water.

Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 1,254 people, 497 households, and 353 families living in the town. The population density was 47.7 PD/sqmi. There were 650 housing units at an average density of 24.7 per square mile (9.5/km$2$). The racial makeup of the town was 97.93% White, 0.16% African American, 0.32% Native American, 0.80% Asian, 0.08% from other races, and 0.72% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.24% of the population.

There were 497 households, out of which 29.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 63.6% were married couples living together, 5.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.8% were non-families. 21.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.52 and the average family size was 2.97.

In the town, the age distribution of the population shows 22.6% under the age of 18, 5.1% from 18 to 24, 28.3% from 25 to 44, 29.0% from 45 to 64, and 14.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 106.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 105.1 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $62,798, and the median income for a family was $66,563. Males had a median income of $50,469 versus $35,250 for females. The per capita income for the town was $36,801. About 2.8% of families and 3.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.3% of those under age 18 and 2.1% of those age 65 or over.

Transportation
Connecticut Route 45 is the main north–south highway, while Connecticut Route 341 is the main east–west highway in the town. Route 45 leads north 5 mi to U.S. Route 7 in Cornwall and south the same distance to New Preston, while Route 341 leads southeast five miles to U.S. Route 202 at Woodville and west 8 mi to Kent.

Notable location

 * Warren Congregational Church – built in 1818 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1991.

Notable people

 * Herbert Abrams (1921–2003), portrait artist
 * Lorenzo Carter (1767–1814), the first permanent settler of Cleveland, Ohio; born in Warren
 * Charles Finney (1792–1875), Presbyterian minister, leader in the Second Great Awakening; born in Warren
 * Miloš Forman (1932–2018), film director; lived in Warren with his wife, Martina Forman, an author
 * Morton Gottlieb (1921–2009), theatrical and film producer
 * Cleve Gray (1918–2004), painter
 * Francine du Plessix Gray (1930–2019), writer
 * Philip Roth (1933–2018), writer; maintained a house in Warren
 * Eric Sloane (1905-1985) American landscape painter and illustrator author of history and folklore.

title: Warren, Connecticut


text:
Washington, Connecticut

 Washington is a rural town in Litchfield County, Connecticut, in the New England region of the United States. The population was 3,646 at the 2020 census. Washington is known for its picturesque countryside, historic architecture, and active civic and cultural life. The town has strong ties to New York City, and is home to many cultural and business elites. The town is part of the Northwest Hills Planning Region.

Prehistoric period
Archeological evidence suggests that Native Americans first settled along the banks of the Shepaug River about 10,000 years ago, following the conclusion of the last ice age. Before the arrival of European settlers, the lands today comprising Washington were inhabited by the Wyantenock tribe.

Colonial era
In 1734, Joseph Hurlbut settled the eastern section of what is now Washington, marking the beginning of the town's inhabitation by colonists. The area around the Hurlbut homestead came to be known as the Judea Parish, a name preserved in the still active Judea Cemetery. The area was initially part of Woodbury.

In 1746, Edward Cogswell secured the right to mine iron ore, as part of the New Milford North Purchase, and established an ironworks along the East Aspetuck River in New Preston. 1746 also marked the purchase of land from the Wyantenock tribe by the Averill family for a homestead on Baldwin Hill, which is still occupied and farmed by direct descendants of the original inhabitants.

Washington was incorporated in 1779, with lands carved from the towns of Woodbury, Litchfield, Kent and New Milford. The town was named after George Washington, who traveled through the area several times during the American Revolution, and proverbially slept in New Preston in 1781. Major William Cogswell, son of Edward Cogswell, was elected the town's first selectman.

19th century
Industrial Revolution. Early in the 19th century, small mills and factories proliferated along the Shepaug River in present-day Washington Depot, which came to be known as "Factory Hollow". Small-scale industry simultaneously appeared along the banks of the East Aspetuck River in New Preston.

Invention of Summer Camp. In 1861, Frederick W. Gunn, the abolitionist founder of the Gunnery prep school, opened one of America's earliest summer camp's in Washington.

Slavery Safe Harbor. Washington was a stop on the Underground Railroad. Local residents provided a safe harbor for slaves fleeing captivity, and organized efforts to throw bounty hunters off the tracks of their pursuits.

Arcadian Movement. The arrival of the Shepaug Railroad in Washington in 1872 introduced rail service to New York City, which brought an influx of new visitors. Architect Ehrick Rossiter, then a recent graduate of the local Gunnery prep school, saw an opportunity to establish an understated alternative to Greenwich, Newport, and the ostentation favored by the nouveaux riches of the day. In collaboration with a coterie of wealthy New York patrons, Rossiter remade the Washington Green area into an idyllic summer colony, transforming it into an idealized version of the quintessential New England village. During this period, the Congregational church received a makeover, commercial enterprises were eliminated for aesthetic purposes, and restrained but elegant summer homes—many of them designed by Rossiter himself—were constructed. Contemporaneously, new seasonal residents established themselves at Lake Waramaug in New Preston.

20th century
Birth of Steep Rock. In 1925, architect Ehrick Rossiter donated 100 acre of land along the Shepaug River to a group of trustees for the purpose of preserving it as open space, marking the founding of the Steep Rock Association land trust, which today holds land and conservation easements protecting more than 2700 acre in Washington.

Flood of 1955. In August 1955, two large storms passed over Litchfield County in close succession, flooding many local river valleys. North of Washington Depot, twin culverts carrying the Shepaug River under U.S. Route 202 were plugged with debris, causing floodwaters to accumulate upstream. The culverts and roadway succumbed to the resulting pressure, causing a wall of water to race down the river valley, washing away many of the homes and businesses in the Depot's village center, and killing a couple who ignored warnings to evacuate. A reconstruction effort, led by Henry B. Van Sinderen, and modeled after a town on Long Island, was quickly commenced. Homes and businesses soon reemerged, but the village lost many historic structures, and it has never regained its pre-flood density or vitality. The layout and visual character of the Depot were also radically altered, and the village center assumed its contemporary appearance, which varies considerably from Washington's traditional architectural vernacular.

Invasion of the Iroquois. In 1986, Iroquois Gas Transmission System sought permission from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to construct a 356 mi natural gas pipeline through New York and Connecticut. The proposed route ran through Lake Waramaug's eastern watershed, across the Shepaug River, and through the Steep Rock Reservation, with a secondary spur running through Washington Green and Nettleton Hollow. The Washington Environmental Council became an intervenor in the proceedings, retained a prominent Washington, D.C., law firm, and mounted a vigorous opposition campaign. In 1989, Iroquois decided to reroute the pipeline, shifting it south of Washington's borders.

Shepaug River Lawsuit. In 1997, Washington residents voted unanimously to join a lawsuit against the City of Waterbury, which operates a reservoir at the headwaters of the Shepaug River in the adjacent town of Warren. Waterbury, which had long relied on the reservoir to supply water to its citizens, had come to view the river as a revenue stream, and was removing extra water to sell to neighboring municipalities. The lawsuit, which the town of Roxbury also joined, sought to compel Waterbury to release more water into the river, which slowed to a trickle during summer months, impeding important ecological functions. After considerable legal maneuvering on both sides, river advocates prevailed in February 2000, when a Superior Court judge ordered Waterbury to release more water into the Shepaug.

Sempra Fight. In 1998, Sempra Energy submitted a proposal to the Connecticut Siting Council to construct a power plant approximately 10 mi south of Washington in New Milford. The plant was to emit 443 tons of pollutants per year, many of which would have projected toward Washington, owing to the region's prevailing wind patterns and complex terrain. The Washington Environmental Council hired environmental consultants, who demonstrated that the plan would be particularly harmful to New Preston and Lake Waramaug. The council became an intervenor in the proceedings and generated scientific evidence that was cited by the Siting Council when it unanimously rejected the permit application in 1999.

Contemporary Washington
In 2008, Optasite submitted an application to the Connecticut Siting Council to erect a telecommunications tower atop Tanner Hill in a visually conspicuous location above the Macricostas Preserve, some 250 ft north of the Washington town line. The State of Connecticut had previously purchased the development rights for the land beneath the proposed tower site for farmland preservation. Washington's Conservation Commission became an intervenor in the application. Working with a coalition that included Governor Jodi Rell, Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, and an ad-hoc community organization called CROWW, they built an environmental and legal case against the tower proposal. In 2009, Optasite withdrew its application, and legislation was subsequently introduced in the Connecticut General Assembly to hold companies liable for costs incurred as a consequence of applications submitted to the Siting Council in bad faith.

Geography
Washington is located in the Litchfield Hills region of Connecticut, approximately 22 mi northeast of Danbury, 40 mi west of Hartford, and 80 mi northeast of New York City.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 100.1 sqkm, of which 98.6 sqkm are land and 1.5 sqkm, or 1.48%, are water.

The dominant geographic features of Washington are the Shepaug, East Aspetuck, and Bantam river valleys. Lake Waramaug is in the northeast corner of the town. The landscape is characterized by rolling hills, high plateaus, and river and stream valleys. Mixed deciduous and coniferous forest covers most of Washington, but open agricultural fields are also prevalent.

Principal communities

 * Washington Green
 * Washington Depot
 * New Preston
 * Marbledale
 * Woodville

Natural resources

 * The Shepaug River flows north to south, roughly through the center of Washington, through a winding, largely undeveloped river valley. Substantial areas along the Shepaug have been preserved as open space, yielding a large and regionally unique protected riparian corridor. Major preserved areas include the 998 acre Steep Rock Preserve and the 700 acre Hidden Valley Preserve.
 * Lake Waramaug, which is situated at the town's northwestern corner, at its border with Warren and Kent, is the second largest natural lake in Connecticut.
 * Mount Tom and Mount Tom Pond are in Washington's northeast corner and share municipal boundaries with the towns of Morris and Litchfield. Mount Tom State Park is one of Connecticut's oldest state parks. A stone tower at the top of the mountain affords distant views and attracts many hikers.
 * Meeker Swamp is a large complex of exceptionally high-quality wetlands which overlay a geologically distinctive aquifer. Primary portions of the swamp are located within the 360 acre Macricostas Preserve. The area provides regionally unique habitat areas for migratory birds and numerous rare plant and animal species, while the aquifer—Washington's largest—includes substantial reserves of potable water.
 * The ridgeline running east–west along Washington's northern boundary, between Lake Waramaug and the Shepaug River, forms the edge of the northern portion of the Highlands of Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania.

Demographics
Many families have local histories dating back to the Colonial period. The town is overwhelmingly caucasian, has a substantial gay population, and is unusually urbane for a rural community. A significant percentage of homes are occupied on a part-time basis, with their owners residing principally in New York City or elsewhere. Consequently, census data may not accurately reflect the population's demography.

As of the census of 2000, there were 3,596 people, 1,416 households, and 951 families residing in the town. The population density was 94.2 PD/sqmi. There were 1,764 housing units at an average density of 46.2 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the town was 95.66% White, 0.64% African American, 0.11% Native American, 1.56% Asian, 0.78% from other races, and 1.25% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.14% of the population.

There were 1,416 households, out of which 28.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.6% were married couples living together, 6.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.8% were non-families. 26.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 2.94.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 24.4% under the age of 18, 6.0% from 18 to 24, 23.9% from 25 to 44, 29.9% from 45 to 64, and 15.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females, there were 100.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.9 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $65,288, and the median income for a family was $80,745. Males had a median income of $51,610 versus $35,337 for females. The per capita income for the town was $37,215. About 2.7% of families and 3.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 1.5% of those under age 18 and 9.3% of those age 65 or over.

Government
Washington has a traditional New England town meeting form of government, which operates under the Connecticut General Statutes. Town meetings serve as Washington's chief legislative body, and several specialized boards and commissions, run by volunteer residents, tend to municipal business.

An elected board of selectmen manages day-to-day town affairs, and an elected board of finance tends to municipal financial matters. A planning commission, consisting of members appointed by the board of selectmen, engages in long-range town planning—particularly with respect to land-use—and decennially prepares a Plan of Conservation and Development. The planning commission also establishes regulations concerning the subdivision of land, and reviews and acts upon subdivision proposals. An elected zoning commission promulgates and applies zoning regulations, and an inland wetlands commission, appointed by the board of selectmen, regulates activities in or near wetlands and watercourses. A historic district commission reviews development proposals within Washington's historic districts, and issues certificates of appropriateness for proposals it approves. A conservation commission, also appointed by the board of selectmen, establishes advisory conservation policies, advocates for the conservation of Washington's natural and cultural resources, and acquires and manages municipal open space, consisting of land owned by the town and conservation easements held on private property.

Washington's volunteer boards and commissions are supplemented by a small paid staff, which includes the full-time elected positions of First Selectman, Town Clerk, Tax Collector, and Judge of Probate. The town also has a paid land-use coordinator, zoning enforcement officer, inland wetlands enforcement officer, assessor, building inspector, and administrative staff, as well as a road crew and building maintenance person.

Civic life
Washington has a culture of volunteerism and active civic engagement. Many residents give freely of their time and resources to operate town government, provide emergency services, and support local community organizations. The town has unusually high voter turnout rates, and, in several elections, has had the highest level of voter participation of any municipality in Connecticut. For example, Washington's voter turnout rate in the 2004 presidential election was as high as 93.08%

Conservation focus
Successive generations of Washington residents have actively supported land conservation efforts, and their gifts of property and conservation easements to local land trusts have yielded large tracts of permanent open space.

The town's strong conservation ethic is also evident in its land-use policies, which strictly limit new development. Washington was one of the first Connecticut municipalities to establish zoning regulations, which were enacted in 1939, The town's contemporary land-use policies are substantially natural resource-based, and they have been expressly conceived to maintain the community's rural character. Washington is one of only two municipalities in Connecticut to base permissible residential density on the soils composition of land parcels, and it was one of the first Connecticut towns to adopt net-density subdivision regulations, which render wetlands, flood plains, and steep slopes ineligible for satisfying the minimum acreage requirements for creating new building lots Consequently, even large tracts of land may not qualify for subdivision. Washington's inland wetlands regulations are similarly rigorous

Development proposals seen as posing a threat to the town's natural resources or rural character typically elicit controversy and often result in litigation, which is quietly underwritten by Washington's deep-pocketed and well-connected residents.

Economy
Washington's economy has changed considerably over the course of the town's history. At various points, iron works, logging, manufacturing, and farming have driven local economic activity, but contemporary Washington has no industrial base, and only a handful of farms remain active. Today, the local economy is centered on the town's population of affluent, part-time residents, whose income, for the most part, is not locally derived. The design, construction, renovation, decoration, maintenance, and sale of country houses accounts for a substantial portion of local economic activity. Restaurants, inns, speciality retail shops, and professional services also play an important role in Washington's economy, as do educational institutions.

Transportation
U.S. Route 202 runs east–west in the northern part of town, connecting the villages of Marbledale, New Preston, and Woodville. Connecticut Route 109 runs east–west near the town's geographic center, connecting Washington Depot with New Milford and Morris. The main north–south highways are Route 47, Route 199, and Route 45. There is no public transportation within the town.

Architecture
A substantial percentage of the houses in Washington were built prior to 1950, and many of the structures built since then have faithfully followed the town's rural New England vernacular, resulting in an unusual degree of architectural cohesion. Washington has many well preserved historic homes, built in the Georgian, Greek Revival, Italianate, and Shingle styles, and many 19th century mill structures, barns, and other agricultural outbuildings.

The Connecticut Historical Commission conducted a comprehensive inventory of historic structures in Washington and in 2000 published the voluminous "Historic and Architectural Resource Survey of Washington, Connecticut," which includes detailed information about dozens of historic structures throughout the town.

Historic districts
Washington includes three municipal historic district and one federally designated National Register district.
 * The Washington Green Historic District encompasses the area around the Congregational Church and includes portions of Green Hill Road, Kirby Road, Parsonage Lane, and Old North Road. The district includes several buildings designed by architect Ehrick Rossiter, together with well-preserved 18th- and 19th-century houses designed in the Georgian, Greek Revival, and Italianate styles.
 * The Calhoun–Ives Historic District runs along Calhoun Street and Ives Road. It is Connecticut's only agricultural historic district and is characterized by modestly scaled 18th- and 19th-century farmhouses, built in the Georgian and Greek Revival styles, together with accompanying agricultural outbuildings, farm fields, and fruit orchards.
 * The Sunny Ridge Historic District encompasses the area along Sunny Ridge Road, just south of its junction with Connecticut Route 109, and includes several well-preserved 18th century Georgian homes.
 * The New Preston Hill Historic District overlays portions of the top of New Preston Hill, along New Preston Hill Road and Findlay Road, approximately three quarters of a mile west of the New Preston village center. The structures in this district are built principally in the Georgian style.

Education
Washington is part of the Connecticut Region 12 School District, which operates the following schools in Washington:
 * Reach Preschool
 * Washington Primary School
 * Shepaug Valley School (secondary)

The town is also home to four private educational institutions:
 * Rumsey Hall School
 * The Gunnery
 * Devereux Glenholme School
 * Washington Montessori School

Notable people

 * Christopher Andersen, journalist and author
 * Helen Armstrong, violinist
 * Christine Baranski, actress
 * Robert Barnett, choreographer
 * Peter Brimelow, magazine editor
 * Graydon Carter, editor of Vanity Fair magazine
 * Marie-Chantal, Crown Princess of Greece
 * Jim Dine, artist
 * Rufus Easton, U.S. congressman
 * Ezra Hasbrouck Fitch, co-founder of Abercrombie & Fitch
 * Benjamin Delahauf Foulois, aviator
 * Matthew Franjola, former reporter and photographer for the Associated Press
 * William Hamilton Gibson, illustrator, author and naturalist
 * Frederick Gunn, abolitionist, educator, and inventor of summer camp
 * Thomas Hastings, composer
 * Ann Hodgman, author
 * Alfred R. Kelman, film producer & director
 * Dan Lufkin, co-founder of Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette
 * Paul Marks, scientist
 * Jeff McCracken, actor, director, producer
 * Danny Meyer, restaurateur
 * Robert Mnuchin, art dealer and former banker
 * Conan O'Brien, comedian
 * David Owen, author
 * Pavlos, Crown Prince of Greece
 * Moses Pendleton, choreographer
 * Orville Hitchcock Platt, U.S. senator, 1879–1905, author of the Platt Amendment dictating U.S.-Cuba relations after 1901
 * Joan Rivers, comedian
 * Ehrick Rossiter, architect
 * Scott Rudin, film producer
 * George Soros, financier
 * Art Spiegelman, cartoonist
 * Phil Stong, novelist
 * Peter C. Sutton, art historian
 * James Taylor, musician
 * William vanden Heuvel, diplomat and author
 * Chris von Wangenheim, photographer
 * Heather Watts, dancer
 * Elisha Whittlesey, US congressman
 * Damian Woetzel, dancer
 * Jonathan Wolken, choreographer
 * Stuart Woods, author

In popular culture
Television writer/producer Amy Sherman-Palladino used a trip to Washington Depot and the Mayflower Inn with her husband Daniel as the inspiration and basis for the fictional town of Stars Hollow seen in her television series Gilmore Girls, along with Lorelai Gilmore's workplace, the Independence Inn. A Gilmore Girls fan festival took place in the town in October 2016, in anticipation of the series' Netflix revival.

Portions of the 1981 horror movie Friday the 13th, Part 2, were filmed in New Preston.

Author Stuart Woods' principal character Stone Barrington had a house in Washington and often ate at the Mayflower Inn. He drives from Manhattan to Washington in numerous novels.

title: Washington, Connecticut


text:
Watertown, Connecticut

Watertown is a town in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. The town is part of the Naugatuck Valley Planning Region. The population was 22,105 at the 2020 census. The ZIP Codes for Watertown are 06795 (for most of the town) and 06779 (for the Oakville section). It is a suburb of Waterbury. The urban center of the town is the Watertown census-designated place, with a population of 3,938 at the 2020 census.

History
Watertown, before colonization, belonged to the Paugasuck Indians. In that time, the colony was called "Mattatock", though it had several variations in spelling through the years. Colonization of the area today called Watertown began in 1684 when Thomas Judd and other proprietors bought the land as a group. The land where Watertown is now located, having originally belonged to Mattatock, officially changed its name to Watterbury (now Waterbury) by record on March 20, 1695, by consensus of a council.

In 1729, the Garnsey family settled in an area of Watterbury, now called Guernseytown. The oldest house in Watertown today was built in 1735 on Main Street. A poet from the Revolutionary War, John Trumbull, was born here in 1750.

With a population of 338, the First Ecclesiastical Society of Westbury was formed. The Town of Watertown was officially established in 1780 when Westbury separated from Watterbury.

Some years later, in 1893, The Taft School was established in Watertown and has been there ever since.

Geography
Watertown is in southeastern Litchfield County and is bordered to the southeast by the city of Waterbury in New Haven County. Other bordering towns are Middlebury to the south, Woodbury and Bethlehem to the west, Morris to the northwest, and Thomaston to the east. It is in the Eastern Standard time zone. The elevation at the town center is 583 ft.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 76.4 sqkm, of which 75.1 sqkm are land and 1.3 sqkm, or 1.72%, are water. Oakville, which is often mistaken for a separate town, is in the southeastern part of Watertown. Although Oakville has its own post office and ZIP code, it does not have a charter or town government of its own. Oakville receives all of its town services (police, fire, water and so on) from Watertown.

Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 21,661 people, 8,046 households, and 5,994 families residing in the town. The population density was 743.0 PD/sqmi. There were 8,298 housing units at an average density of 284.6 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the town was 96.46% White, 0.75% African American, 0.12% Native American, 1.27% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 0.48% from other races, and 0.87% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.87% of the population.

There were 8,046 households, out of which 34.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.7% were married couples living together, 9.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.5% were non-families. 21.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.67 and the average family size was 3.13.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 24.8% under the age of 18, 6.3% from 18 to 24, 29.9% from 25 to 44, 24.9% from 45 to 64, and 14.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.6 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $59,420, and the median income for a family was $68,761. Males had a median income of $47,097 versus $31,822 for females. The per capita income for the town was $26,044. About 1.1% of families and 2.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 0.8% of those under age 18 and 3.7% of those age 65 or over.

Transportation
The Route 8 expressway runs through the eastern edge of town, with two exits inside the town. Route 8 leads north 14 mi to Torrington and south through Waterbury 34 mi to Bridgeport. The main routes through the center of Watertown are U.S. Route 6 running east–west and Connecticut Route 63 running north–south. Route 6 leads northeast 30 mi to Hartford, the state capital, and southwest 30 mi to Danbury, while Route 63 leads north 10 mi to Litchfield and south the same distance to Naugatuck. Other important highways include Route 73 (a more direct route leading through Oakville to Waterbury) and Route 262, which runs north from Oakville through the eastern part of Watertown.

Public transportation is provided by buses of Northeast Transportation Company.

Local media

 * Waterbury Republican-American, a Waterbury-based independent daily newspaper
 * Town Times, Prime Publishers Inc., a local newspaper serving Watertown, Oakville, Bunker Hill in Waterbury, Thomaston and Northfield. Voices, its sister paper, covers Southbury, Middlebury, Oxford, Seymour, Naugatuck, Woodbury, Bethelhem, New Preston, Washington, Washington Depot, Roxbury, Bridgewater, Monroe, Sandy Hook and Newtown.
 * Macaroni Kid, an online magazine for families in Watertown

Schools
The Watertown Public School District has a total of 2,579 students enrolled in its five schools, according to Niche. Out of these five schools, there is one preschool, John Trumbull Primary School, and two elementary schools, the Judson and Polk Elementary Schools. After coming from these schools, children go to Swift Middle School and then to Watertown High School. The high school has a graduation rate of 91%.

Watertown also is the home to a private boarding school, The Taft School. The school provides boarding and day education for grades 9-12 and has been nestled in Watertown since 1908.

Notable places

 * The Taft School, a private boarding school
 * Watertown Historical Society

Notable people

 * Rico Brogna, MLB first baseman who played for the Detroit Tigers, New York Mets, Philadelphia Phillies, Boston Red Sox, and Atlanta Braves from 1992 to 2001
 * Joe Cipriano, television announcer CBS, Fox, radio personality WWCO, WRQX, and KIIS FM
 * Erastus L. De Forest (1834–1888), mathematician
 * Edward Fitzsimmons Dunne (1853–1937), 31st mayor of Chicago (1905–1907); governor of Illinois (1913–1917); born in Watertown
 * David Gravel, racing driver
 * Benjamin B. Hotchkiss (1826–1885), for whom the Hotchkiss School was named by his widow, was one of the leading American ordnance engineers of his day; born in Watertown but in early childhood moved to Sharon
 * Leatherman (1839–1889), drifter within the Connecticut and Hudson River Valley areas, known for his leather clothing
 * Meredith Mallory, former US congressman
 * Chris McKenna, actor featured in State of Affairs, The Young and the Restless, and One Life to Live
 * Terry Michaels, born in Waterbury and a long time Watertown resident; Radio Personality WWCO Waterbury, WNVR 14-NVR Waterbury/Naugatuck, KEIN Great Falls, MT, WTIC-FM Hartford, WDRC-FM Hartford, WWYZ Country 92.5 Hartford, (Clear Channel Communications) WICC Bridgeport, (Cumulus Broadcasting Corp) Kicks 105.5 /Danbury/Westchester County, New York
 * Thomas Tessier, writer of horror novels and short stories
 * John Trumbull (1750–1831), political satirist and poet; born in Watertown
 * David Kenyon Webster (1922–1961), soldier, journalist and author
 * Allen B. Wilson and Nathaniel Wheeler, founders of Wheeler & Wilson Manufacturing Company in Watertown, one of the first manufacturers of sewing machines

title: Watertown, Connecticut


text:
Winchester, Connecticut

Winchester is a town in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 10,224 at the 2020 census. The city of Winsted is located in Winchester. The town is part of the Northwest Hills Planning Region.

History
Winchester was incorporated on May 21, 1771, and named after Winchester in England.

Geography
The town is in northeastern Litchfield County and is bordered to the south by the city of Torrington. It is 28 mi northwest of Hartford, the state capital, and 27 mi north of Waterbury. Winsted, with a population of 7,321 by far the largest community in Winchester, is in the eastern part of the town.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 87.6 km2, of which 84.2 km2 are land and 3.4 km2, or 3.87%, are water. Highland Lake, Crystal Lake, and Winchester Lake are three of the larger water bodies in the town. The Still River, a tributary of the Farmington River, flows from south to north through the eastern side of the town.

Principal communities

 * Winchester Center
 * Winsted

Demographics
At the 2000 census there were 10,664 people, 4,371 households, and 2,849 families living in the town. The population density was 330.4 PD/sqmi. There were 4,922 housing units at an average density of 152.5 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the town was 94.44% White, 1.24% African American, 0.23% Native American, 0.93% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 1.69% from other races, and 1.46% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 3.17%.

Of the 4,371 households 28.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.3% were married couples living together, 10.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.8% were non-families. 28.0% of households were one person and 11.9% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 2.97.

The age distribution was 23.3% under the age of 18, 7.1% from 18 to 24, 29.4% from 25 to 44, 25.0% from 45 to 64, and 15.2% 65 or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.5 males.

The median household income was $46,671 and the median family income was $57,866. Males had a median income of $41,076 versus $28,058 for females. The per capita income for the town was $22,589. About 4.3% of families and 6.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.9% of those under age 18 and 7.4% of those age 65 or over.

Transportation
The town is served by buses of the Northwestern Connecticut Transit District.

The city of Winsted is located at the junction of Connecticut Route 8 and U.S. Route 44. Route 263 connects Winchester Center and Winsted.

Education
Winchester Public Schools is the public school district for grades K-6, while The Gilbert School serves as the public school for grades 7-12. Prior to 2011, middle school students went to schools operated by the Winchester district.

Northwestern Regional School District No. 7 maintains Northwestern Regional High School, which is partly in Winsted. However, the school does not act as the public school for Winsted. Students who live in Winchester can attend Northwestern Regional High School through their Agricultural Education Program.

Also located in the town, is Explorations Charter School. Created to serve a diverse body of students, the school was designed to accommodate the unique educational, social, and emotional needs of its students.

Prior to closing in 2020, the town also had a parochial Catholic school called St. Anthony School, of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Hartford. The school opened in 1865, and maintained a class of around 200 students. Experiencing a large decrease in enrollment, the school dropped from serving around 200 students, to just 90. When in operation, it was the oldest school continually operated by the archdiocese.

Northwestern Connecticut Community College is in Winsted.

Notable people

 * Ralph Nader, author and activist
 * Phineas Miner (1777–1839), congressman from Connecticut; born in Winchester
 * Guy Gilchrist, cartoonist

title: Winchester, Connecticut


text:
Winsted, Connecticut

Winsted is a census-designated place and an incorporated city in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. It is part of the town of Winchester. The population of Winsted was 7,712 at the 2010 census, out of 11,242 in the entire town of Winchester. Winsted is part of the Northwest Hills Planning Region.

History
Settled in 1750, the city of Winsted was formed at the junction of the Mad River and Still River and was one of the first mill towns in Connecticut. Manufactured products started with scythes at the Winsted Manufacturing Company in 1792. The city is within the town of Winchester, and its name derives from the fact that it is the business center for the towns of Winchester and Barkhamsted.

Winsted, along with New Haven, Connecticut, was a center for the production of mechanical clocks in the 1900s. The Gilbert Clock Company, located along the Still River north of town, was founded in 1871 by William L. Gilbert (1806–1890) and became one of the largest clock companies in the world around the start of the 20th century.

The Winsted post office contains an oil on canvas mural, Lincoln's Arbiter Settles the Winsted Post Office Controversy, painted by muralist Amy Jones in 1938. Federally commissioned murals were produced from 1934 to 1943 in the United States through the Section of Painting and Sculpture, later called the Section of Fine Arts, of the Treasury Department.

The Gilbert School, originally endowed with more than $600,000 by William L. Gilbert, is a private secondary school that serves as the public high school for the town of Winchester.

In 1955, Hurricane Connie and Hurricane Diane passed over Connecticut within one week, flooding the Mad River and Still River through downtown. The Mad River, which parallels Main Street, caused flooding up to 10 ft deep through the center of town. This damaged the buildings between Main Street and the river such that all buildings on that side of Main Street through the center of town were subsequently removed and Main Street widened to four lanes. The buildings on the north side of Main Street for the most part survived and were repaired. Further downstream, the Still River flowed between the buildings of the Gilbert Clock Company. The flooding caused extensive damage to their buildings, and this was the final blow to a company which was already in poor financial condition.

Northwestern Connecticut Community College was founded in 1965 by Winsted residents, including Ralph Nader's older brother, Shafeek. It occupies the original Gilbert School building. NCCC was one of the first four community colleges in Connecticut, and is accredited by both the Connecticut Board of Governors for Higher Education and by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges. The Northwestern Community College Foundation was incorporated in 1981 to support the mission of Northwestern Connecticut Community College. NCCF generates private funds for the purpose of benefiting the students attending NCCC and the community of Winsted.

In 2013, Henry Centrella, the former city finance director, was served a complaint which stated that over $2.2 million was misappropriated during his 30-year tenure.

Ralph Nader opened the American Museum of Tort Law in 2015, inside the former Winsted Savings Bank building at 654 Main Street.

Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 12.4 km2, of which 12.0 km2 are land and 0.5 km2, or 3.73%, are water.

Winsted sits in the eastern part of the town of Winchester at the confluence of the Still and Mad Rivers. This Mad River is one of seven rivers with the same name in New England, one other of which is also in Connecticut. The Still River continues north as a tributary of the Farmington River and is part of the Connecticut River watershed.

The city is laid out in a horseshoe-shaped valley ringed by seven hills; two other hills stand amid this, comprising a total of nine named hills.

There are five stone churches in a crescent from east to west. In their exact center is the Castle Tower Civil War monument, a stone tower of over 40 feet erected in 1890.

The city is crossed by U.S. Route 44, Connecticut Route 8, Connecticut Route 183 and Connecticut Route 263. US 44 leads southeast 25 mi to Hartford, the state capital, and northwest 17 mi to North Canaan. Route 8 leads south 9 mi to Torrington and 28 mi to Waterbury, and north 26 mi to U.S. Route 20 in West Becket, Massachusetts.

Demographics
As of the census of 2010, there were 7,712 people, 3,346 households, and 1,920 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 1,668 PD/sqmi. There were 3,828 housing units, of which 482, or 12.6%, were vacant. The racial makeup of the CDP was 91.6% White, 2.2% African American, 0.3% Native American, 1.3% Asian, 2.7% some other race, and 2.0% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 6.5% of the population.

Of the 3,346 households in the community, 28.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.7% were headed by married couples living together, 13.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 42.6% were non-families. 35.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.4% were someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.28, and the average family size was 2.95.

21.5% of the CDP population were under the age of 18, 8.7% were from 18 to 24, 24.6% were from 25 to 44, 30.1% were from 45 to 64, and 15.1% were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41.3 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.2 males.

For the period 2013–2017, the estimated median annual income for a household in the CDP was $45,597, and the median income for a family was $58,962. Male full-time workers had a median income of $41,842 versus $45,208 for females. About 20.1% of families and 23.5% of the population were living below the poverty line, including 31.8% of people under the age of 18 and 13.0% of those age 65 or over.

Public transportation
The closest major airport is Bradley International Airport (BDL), 24 mi to the east in Windsor Locks, Connecticut. Amtrak stations within a 30-mile radius include Windsor (WND ), Hartford (HFD ), Berlin (BER ), and Springfield, Massachusetts (SPG ). Greyhound Lines also has a bus station.

Public transportation service is provided by the Northwestern Connecticut Transit District, which operates a weekday bus service and a dial-a-ride service.

Arts and Culture
Winsted is home to a growing number of arts and cultural organizations, including the arts and education center The American Mural Project, which holds the record for the largest indoor, collaborative mural in the world; Whiting Mills art studios, which offers art workshops; Ralph Nader's nonprofit The American Museum of Tort Law; and the Winchester Historical Society.

Education
Winchester Public Schools is the public school district for grades K-6, while The Gilbert School serves as the public school for grades 7-12. Prior to 2011, middle school students went to schools operated by the Winchester district.

Northwestern Regional School District No. 7 maintains Northwestern Regional High School, which is partly in Winsted. However, the school does not act as the public school for Winsted. Students who live in Winchester can attend Northwestern Regional High School through their Agricultural Education Program.

Also located in the town, is Explorations Charter School. Created to serve a diverse body of students, the school was designed to accommodate the unique educational, social, and emotional needs of its students.

Prior to closing in 2020, the town also had a parochial Catholic school called St. Anthony School, of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Hartford. The school opened in 1865, and maintained a class of around 200 students. Experiencing a large decrease in enrollment, the school dropped from serving around 200 students, to just 90. When in operation, it was the oldest school continually operated by the archdiocese.

Northwestern Connecticut Community College is also located in Winsted.

Beardsley Library and the Memorial Library is the local public library. Mrs. Eliot Beardsley donated $10,000 to establish the library. The buying of the land was funded by Jenison Whiting, who submitted a bequest in 1898, with the first building built the following year.

Notable people

 * Crane Brinton, historian
 * James J. Casey, politician
 * James P. Glynn, congressman
 * John Groppo, businessman and politician
 * David Halberstam, journalist and author
 * Mason Hale, educator
 * Samuel B. Horne (1843–1928), Medal of Honor recipient in the American Civil War, entered service in Winsted and is buried there
 * Arphaxed Loomis, congressman
 * Ralph Nader, author and activist
 * Rose Nader, activist
 * Henry R. Pease, senator
 * Charles H. Smith, historian of science
 * James Wakefield (1825–1910), congressman
 * Guy Gilchrist, cartoonist

title: Winsted, Connecticut


text:
Woodbury, Connecticut

Woodbury is a town in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. The town is part of the Naugatuck Valley Planning Region. The population was 9,723 at the 2020 census. The town center, comprising the adjacent villages of Woodbury and North Woodbury, is designated by the U.S. Census Bureau as the Woodbury Center census-designated place (CDP). Woodbury was founded in 1673.

The center of Woodbury is distinctive for its mile-long stretch of older buildings lining both sides of the road. The public buildings in the National Register Historic District include the First Congregational Church (1818), the Old Town Hall (1846), the United Methodist Church, the St. Paul's Episcopal Church (1785), and the North Congregational Church (1816).

The most eye-catching of the public buildings is the Masonic Temple (1839). It is a modest, clapboard, Greek Revival temple, notable less for its architecture than for its dramatic location, situated atop a high cliff accessed by a long flight of steps (there is a modern road at the rear). It is visible from a distance and is especially dramatic at night, when it is illuminated by spotlights. The Woodbury Temple echoes the many temples of the Greek world that were perched at the edge of high places from which they could be seen from miles around and from far out at sea.

Originally, the many historic houses on the street were residential. In the late twentieth century, they were occupied by a series of antique shops. Woodbury is often referred to as Connecticut's antiques capital.

Woodbury is one of the two towns in Litchfield County, along with Bethlehem, served by the area code 203/area code 475 overlay.

Geography
Woodbury is in southern Litchfield County and is bordered to the south by New Haven County. It is 10 mi west of Waterbury and 21 mi northeast of Danbury. According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 94.9 km2, of which 94.3 km2 are land and 0.6 km2, or 0.67%, are water. The CDP covering the town center has a total area of 5.0 km2, all land.

Woodbury lies in the Pomperaug River valley, a tributary of the Housatonic River. The Pomperaug River is formed in Woodbury by the confluence of the Nonnewaug River and the Weekeepeemee River.

Principal communities

 * Hotchkissville
 * Minortown
 * Neufa
 * North Woodbury
 * Pomperaug
 * Woodbury Center
 * Woodlake

Climate
Woodbury has a humid continental climate (Köppen climate classification Dfb).

History
The founders of Woodbury came from Stratford, Connecticut, in the early 1670s. Ancient Woodbury consisted of the present towns of Woodbury, Southbury, Roxbury, Bethlehem, most of Washington and parts of Middlebury and Oxford.

Two groups of settlers came from Stratford. The first, religious dissidents unhappy with the church in Stratford, was led by Woodbury's first minister, the Reverend Zachariah Walker. The second, led by Deacon Samuel Sherman, had been given approval by the general court to purchase land from local Native Americans in order to establish a new settlement. Together, fifteen families (about fifty people), arrived in ancient Woodbury, known as "Pomperaug Plantation", early in 1673.

In 1673, these original settlers drew up an agreement called the "Fundamental Articles", which proclaimed that as many settlers as could be accommodated would be welcomed to the new settlement. The Fundamental Articles stated that expenses of establishing the settlement would be shared by its inhabitants, and that no one was to be given more than twenty-five or less than ten acres of land. Other sections of the articles provided for common land and for land saved to be divided up for future inhabitants of the settlement. Signers of the Fundamental Articles: • Samuel Sherman, Sr.

• Joshua Curtiss

• Lt. Joseph Judson, Sr.

• Titus Hinman

• Israel Curtiss

• David Jenkins

• John Wheeler

• John Judson

• Roger Terill

• Barry Bonds

• Moses Johnson

• John Wyatt

• Samuel Munn

• John Sherman

• Samuel Stiles

• John Minor

• Eleazur Knowles

• Thomas Fairchild

• Roger Wheeler

The settlement was named Woodbury, which means "dwelling place in the woods", and was first recognized as a town in 1674. Deacon and captain John Minor was the first leader of the community during Woodbury's early years. Minor was the first town clerk and, along with Lieutenant Joseph Judson, served as the first deputy to the Connecticut General Court from the town of Woodbury. On October 9, 1751, the town of Woodbury was transferred from Fairfield County at the formation of Litchfield County.

On March 25, 1783, a meeting of ten Episcopal clergy in Woodbury elected Samuel Seabury the first American Episcopal bishop, the second presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church in the United States, and the first bishop of Connecticut.

The Woodbury Songbook
The German composer Hanns Eisler, who had taken asylum in the United States after fleeing from the Nazi rule in Germany, spent three and a half months (from June 15 to September 30, 1941) in Woodbury as the guest of another German refugee, Joachim Schumacher, and his wife Sylvia. Joachim taught classes in art history, musicology, philosophy, and other subjects at the Westover School in Middlebury. Sylvia taught piano at Westover School and privately in her home. Joachim enticed Eisler to compose 20 songs on 16 US children's verses or nursery rhymes and four texts in the German language by Goethe, Eduard Mörike and Ignazio Silone. The songs were composed for female voices and suitable for a school chorus. This was published as The Woodbury Songbook, or, in German, Das Woodbury Liederbüchlein with the lyrics in English and German, unfortunately with a wrong spelling of Woodbury (with two "r"s). The German translations are by Wieland Herzfelde.

Demographics
At the 2010 census there were 9,984 people, 4,219 households, and 2,772 families in the town. The population density was 252.2 PD/sqmi. There were 3,869 housing units at an average density of 106.1 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the town was 97.25% White, 0.53% African American, 0.22% Native American, 1.15% Asian, 0.07% Pacific Islander, 0.22% from other races, and 0.57% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.65%.

Of the 3,715 households 31.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.9% were married couples living together, 8.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.7% were non-families. 25.4% of households were one person and 8.7% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 2.99.

The age distribution was 24.0% under the age of 18, 4.4% from 18 to 24, 29.3% from 25 to 44, 29.3% from 45 to 64, and 13.0% 65 or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.8 males.

The median household income was $68,322 and the median family income was $82,641. Males had a median income of $53,246 versus $35,298 for females. The per capita income for the town was $37,903. About 2.3% of families and 4.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.9% of those under age 18 and 6.3% of those age 65 or over.

CDP
At the 2000 census, there were x people, 618 households, and 336 families in the CDP. The population density was 668.8 PD/sqmi. There were 644 housing units at an average density of 331.8 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the CDP was 98.07% White, 0.85% African American, 0.15% Native American, 0.39% Asian, 0.31% from other races, and 0.23% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.16% of the population.

Of the 618 households 25.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.9% were married couples living together, 9.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 45.5% were non-families. 39.3% of households were one person and 15.7% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.10 and the average family size was 2.82.

The age distribution was 20.6% under the age of 18, 5.2% from 18 to 24, 30.2% from 25 to 44, 28.1% from 45 to 64, and 15.9% 65 or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 85.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 79.1 males.

The median household income was $51,136 and the median family income was $65,227. Males had a median income of $50,625 versus $40,729 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $30,277. None of the families and 4.6% of the population were living below the poverty line, including no under eighteens and 8.9% of those over 64.

Government
Woodbury is currently located in Connecticut's 5th congressional district, and is represented by Democrat Jahana Hayes. The town is part of Connecticut's 32nd State Senate District and is represented by State Sen. Eric Berthel.

Politics
Woodbury is one of the most reliably Republican towns in the United States. Since its founding in 1854, every Republican presidential candidate has carried Woodbury, even in nationwide Democratic landslides such as 1912, 1936, and 1964 in which Democratic candidates won Connecticut. Only four times, in 1884, the aforementioned 1912, 1992, and 1996 has the GOP candidate for president not received an absolute majority of the vote. In the eleven elections from 1920–1960, the Republican candidates all broke 70% of the vote in Woodbury, with the party's best showing coming in 1928 when Herbert Hoover received 84.17% of the vote. The best showing for any Democrat in Woodbury since the founding of the GOP occurred in 1964 when Lyndon Johnson received 48.82% of the vote in an election where he won Connecticut with 67.81% of the vote.

Similarly, Woodbury has also supported the last 36 GOP campaigns for governor of Connecticut.

Prior to the GOP’s founding, Woodbury supported Whig presidential nominees Winfield Scott, Zachray Taylor, Henry Clay, and John Quincy Adams in 1852, 1848, 1832, and 1828 respectively. Adams of whom has the largest percentage of the vote since 1828 for a presidential candidate in Woodbury at 88.36%. In 1836, 1840, and 1844, Martin Van Buren, and James K. Polk carried Woodbury, they remain the only two Democratic presidential candidates to carry the town, as of the 2020 presidential election.

The results for Woodbury in all presidential elections since 1828, and all gubernatorial elections since 1916 can be found below:

Education
Woodbury is part of the Region 14 School District consisting of Nonnewaug High School, Woodbury Middle School, Bethlehem Elementary School, Mitchell Elementary School, and STAR Preschool Program.

Transportation
U.S. Route 6 is the main thoroughfare in the town, leading northeast 7 mi to Watertown and south 5 mi to Southbury. Connecticut Route 64 is a main highway leading east five miles to Middlebury and 10 mi to Waterbury. Other highways in the town include Route 47, leading northwest to Washington; Route 61, leading north from the eastern part of town to Bethlehem; Route 132, leading north from the center of Woodbury to Bethlehem; and Route 317, leading west to Roxbury.

Notable locations

 * Glebe House
 * Jabez Bacon House
 * Hotchkissville Historic District, listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1995
 * St. Paul's Episcopal Church
 * The Soldiers Monument
 * The Hollow Park

Notable people

 * Leroy Anderson (1908–1975), composer ("Sleigh Ride" and many other works); lived in Woodbury from 1948 until his death in 1975. His widow Eleanor Anderson (1918–2014) lived in Woodbury from 1948 until her death
 * Malcolm Baldrige (1922–1987), 26th United States Secretary of Commerce; lived in Woodbury until his death in 1987
 * Joe Beck (1945–2008), jazz guitarist; lived in Woodbury until his death in 2008
 * Hayden Carruth (1921–2008), poet and critic; grew up in the town
 * Santino Ferrucci, racing driver; born in the town in 1998
 * Alexander Hamilton (1847–1928), rector of St. Paul's Episcopal Church
 * Matthew Lyon (1749-1822), U.S. Representative from Vermont and Kentucky, lived in Woodbury after emigrating from Ireland
 * Kay Sage (1898–1963), surrealist painter; lived in Woodbury from 1940 until her death
 * Henry Shelton Sanford (1823–1891), diplomat and the founder of Sanford, Florida; born in Woodbury
 * Yves Tanguy (1900–1955), surrealist painter; lived in Woodbury from 1940 until his death
 * William Robert Taylor (1820–1909), governor of Wisconsin; born in Woodbury
 * Robert Templeton (1929–1991), presidential portraitist and civil rights artist; lived in Woodbury and maintained his studio there from 1965 until his death
 * Rob Zombie, musician and movie director; moved to the town in January 2009 with his spouse Sheri Moon and has since sold his house and moved from town.

Local media

 * Waterbury Republican-American, independent daily newspaper
 * Voices, a local newspaper serving Southbury, Middlebury, Oxford, Seymour, Naugatuck, Woodbury, Bethlehem, New Preston, Washington, Washington Depot, Roxbury, Bridgewater, Monroe, Sandy Hook and Newtown

title: Woodbury, Connecticut


text:
Chester, Connecticut

Chester is a town in Middlesex County, Connecticut, United States. The town is part of the Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region. The population was 3,749 at the 2020 census. The town center is defined by the U.S. Census Bureau as a census-designated place (CDP). The name is a transfer from Chester, in England.

History
The area was home to a Native American (possibly Hammonasset) village named Pattaquonk. Pattaquonk was also the name and approximate location of a 30-acre Wangunk reservation established in 1662 as part of the English acquisition of the land encompassing Haddam and East Haddam, which was home to three Wangunk villages. English settlement of the area began in 1692. The town was formed from the northern quarter of Saybrook and incorporated in 1836.

In 1769, Jonathan Warner was granted permission to operate a ferry across the Connecticut River that became the Chester-Hadlyme Ferry, the second-oldest continuously operating ferry service in Connecticut. Its location is currently a state historical landmark.

Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 16.8 sqmi, of which, 16.0 sqmi is land and 0.8 sqmi (4.75%) is water. The CDP has a total area of 2.1 sqmi of which 1.46% is water.

Demographics
At the 2000 census there were 3,743 people, 1,510 households, and 1,005 families living in the town. The population density was 233.5 PD/sqmi. There were 1,613 housing units at an average density of 100.6 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the town was 96.79% White, 0.85% African American, 0.35% Native American, 0.83% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 0.24% from other races, and 0.88% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 1.71%.

Of the 1,510 households, 29.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.9% were married couples living together, 7.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.4% were non-families. 28.1% of households were one person, and 13.0% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 2.93.

The age distribution was 22.3% under the age of 18, 4.4% from 18 to 24, 30.1% from 25 to 44, 26.1% from 45 to 64, and 17.2% 65 or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.6 males.

The median household income was $65,156 and the median family income was $79,941. Males had a median income of $45,515 versus $40,444 for females. The per capita income for the town was $32,191. None of the families and 1.3% of the population were living below the poverty line, including no under eighteens and 2.6% of those over 64.

CDP
At the 2000 census, there were 1,546 people, 632 households, and 401 families living in the Chester Center CDP. The population density was 762.1 /mi2. There were 669 housing units at an average density of 329.8 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the CDP was 96.31% White, 1.29% African American, 0.06% Native American, 1.36% Asian, 0.06% from other races, and 0.91% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.29% of the population.

Of the 632 households, 30.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.8% were married couples living together, 6.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.4% were non-families. 30.5% of households were one person, and 10.1% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.32 and the average family size was 2.91.

The age distribution was 21.9% under the age of 18, 4.9% from 18 to 24, 31.8% from 25 to 44, 26.1% from 45 to 64, and 15.4% 65 or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females, there were 93.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.8 males.

The median household income was $64,236 and the median family income was $71,250. Males had a median income of $38,900 versus $46,354 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $32,087. None of the families and 0.5% of the population were living below the poverty line, including no under eighteens and none of those over 64.

Education
Chester, like the other two towns in the "tri-town area" (Essex and Deep River), is a member of Regional School District #4. John Winthrop Junior High School is on Warsaw Street in Deep River, and Valley Regional High School, is on Kelsey Hill in Deep River. They serve students in grades 7–8 and 9–12, respectively. Each town in the area also has their own elementary school, serving grades K–6.

Media
The 1959 film It Happened to Jane, starring Doris Day and Jack Lemmon, was filmed in Chester. Portions of the 1971 horror film Let's Scare Jessica to Death were filmed in Chester, including the Chester–Hadlyme Ferry.

Points of interest

 * The Beth Shalom Rodfe Zedek synagogue is noted for the architecture of its "spectacular" building.
 * Goodspeed-at-Chester, Goodspeed Musicals' second theatre
 * The Chester Museum at the Mill, a museum of the Chester Historical Society
 * The Chester–Hadlyme Ferry is the second oldest continuously operating ferry service in the state of Connecticut and is a designated state historical landmark.
 * Camp Hazen YMCA

On the National Register of Historic Places

 * Charles Daniels House – 43 Liberty St. (added March 19, 1988)
 * Dr. Ambrose Pratt House – Pratt St. (added December 9, 1972)
 * Jonathan Warner House – 47 Kings Hwy. (added 1978)
 * Old Town Hall – on the green between Liberty St. and Goose Hill Rd. (added March 23, 1972)
 * Villa Bella Vista – 7 Old Depot Rd. (added 2000)

Industry
The Whelen Engineering Corporation, a major designer and distributor of public service warning equipment (warning lights, sirens, etc.) in North America, is headquartered in Chester.

Air
The Chester Airport is a local facility with one paved runway. It is privately owned by Whelen Aviation.

Ground
The Estuary Transit District provides public transportation throughout Chester and the surrounding towns through its 9 Town Transit Service. Services include connections to the Old Saybrook Train Station, served by Amtrak and Shoreline East railroads.

Notable people

 * Constance Baker Motley (1921–2005), civil rights leader
 * Art Carney (1918–2003), actor; resident, died in town
 * Paul Hopkins (1904–2004), major league relief pitcher; born in town
 * Sol LeWitt (1928–2007), artist
 * Michael P. Price (born 1938), theatre producer and artistic director
 * Richard Sachs (born 1953), bicycle framebuilder and cyclist; lives in town
 * Morley Safer (1931–2016), CBS news correspondent and anchor on 60 Minutes
 * Max Showalter (1917–2000), film and television actor; retired to Chester
 * Washington F. Willcox (1834–1909), US Congressman; resident

title: Chester, Connecticut


text:
Chester Center

Chester Center can refer to:

 * Chester Center, Connecticut
 * Chester Center Historic District, Massachusetts

title: Chester Center