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Litchfield, Connecticut
 
 
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Litchfield is a town
New England town

The New England town is the basic unit of local government in each of the six New England states. An institution that does not have a direct counterpart in most other U.S....
 in and former county seat
County seat

A county seat or parish seat is a term for an administrative center for a county or civil parish, primarily used in the United States. In the Northeast United States, the statutory term often is shire town, but colloquially county seat is the term in use there....
 of Litchfield County
Litchfield County, Connecticut

Litchfield County is located in the northwestern corner of the U.S. state of Connecticut and is the core of Upstate Connecticut. Litchfield County also has the least population density among Connecticut's counties....
, Connecticut
Connecticut

Connecticut is a U.S. state located in the New England region of the northeastern United States. The state borders New York to the west and south , Massachusetts to the north, and Rhode Island to the east....
, United States
United States

The United States of America is a Federal government constitutional republic comprising U.S. state and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its Contiguous United States and Washington, D.C., the Capital districts and territories, lie between the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Oceans, Borders of the U...
, and is known as an affluent summer resort. The population was 8,316 at the 2000 census. The borough
Borough (Connecticut)

In the U.S. state of Connecticut, a borough is an incorporated area that typically provides services to a section of a New England town. Borough governments are not autonomous and are subordinate to the government of the town they belong to....
s of Bantam
Bantam, Connecticut

Bantam is a borough in Litchfield County, Connecticut, Connecticut, United States. The population was 802 at the 2000 United States Census.While separated for census and historic reasons, Bantam is governed as an integral part of the town of Litchfield, Connecticut....
 and Litchfield
Litchfield (borough), Connecticut

Litchfield is a borough within the town of Litchfield, Connecticut in Litchfield County, Connecticut, Connecticut. The population was 1,328 at the 2000 United States Census....
 are located within the town. There are also two unincorporated villages: Northfield and Milton.

ded in 1721 Litchfield was designated the county seat in 1751, and by the 1790s the town had become the leading commercial, social, cultural and legal center of Northwestern Connecticut.






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Encyclopedia


Litchfield is a town
New England town

The New England town is the basic unit of local government in each of the six New England states. An institution that does not have a direct counterpart in most other U.S....
 in and former county seat
County seat

A county seat or parish seat is a term for an administrative center for a county or civil parish, primarily used in the United States. In the Northeast United States, the statutory term often is shire town, but colloquially county seat is the term in use there....
 of Litchfield County
Litchfield County, Connecticut

Litchfield County is located in the northwestern corner of the U.S. state of Connecticut and is the core of Upstate Connecticut. Litchfield County also has the least population density among Connecticut's counties....
, Connecticut
Connecticut

Connecticut is a U.S. state located in the New England region of the northeastern United States. The state borders New York to the west and south , Massachusetts to the north, and Rhode Island to the east....
, United States
United States

The United States of America is a Federal government constitutional republic comprising U.S. state and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its Contiguous United States and Washington, D.C., the Capital districts and territories, lie between the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Oceans, Borders of the U...
, and is known as an affluent summer resort. The population was 8,316 at the 2000 census. The borough
Borough (Connecticut)

In the U.S. state of Connecticut, a borough is an incorporated area that typically provides services to a section of a New England town. Borough governments are not autonomous and are subordinate to the government of the town they belong to....
s of Bantam
Bantam, Connecticut

Bantam is a borough in Litchfield County, Connecticut, Connecticut, United States. The population was 802 at the 2000 United States Census.While separated for census and historic reasons, Bantam is governed as an integral part of the town of Litchfield, Connecticut....
 and Litchfield
Litchfield (borough), Connecticut

Litchfield is a borough within the town of Litchfield, Connecticut in Litchfield County, Connecticut, Connecticut. The population was 1,328 at the 2000 United States Census....
 are located within the town. There are also two unincorporated villages: Northfield and Milton.

History

Founded in 1721 Litchfield was designated the county seat in 1751, and by the 1790s the town had become the leading commercial, social, cultural and legal center of Northwestern Connecticut. Its population grew from 1,366 in 1756 to 2,544 in 1774, and by 1810 Litchfield was the fourth largest settlement in the state with a population of 4,639.

Beginning in 1784, Litchfield lawyer, Tapping Reeve, systematized his law lectures for young students, creating the Litchfield Law School
Litchfield Law School

The Litchfield Law School of Litchfield, Connecticut was the first law school in the United States, having been established in 1773 by Tapping Reeve, who would later became the Chief Justice of the Connecticut Supreme Court....
. Reeve was the first to develop a series of formal, regular lectures that insured that all students had access to the same body of knowledge. Among those who attended was David Sherman Boardman
David Sherman Boardman

David Sherman Boardman was an American lawyer, judge, and state assemblyman in the early United States.The youngest child of Deacon Sherman and Sarah Boardman, he was born 8 December, 1768....
, a prominent nineteenth-century lawyer and judge in the county.

Established in 1792, Sarah Pierce
Sarah Pierce

Sarah Pierce was a teacher, educator and founder of one the earliest schools for girls in the United States, the Litchfield Female Academy in Litchfield, Connecticut....
's Litchfield Female Academy
Litchfield Female Academy

Litchfield Female Academy in Litchfield, Connecticut, Connecticut was established in 1792 by Sarah Pierce, making it one of the first Timeline of women's colleges in the United States in the United States....
 was one of the first major educational institutions for women
Women's colleges in the United States

Women's colleges in the United States are higher education in the United States that exclude or limit males from admission. They are often Liberal arts colleges in the United States....
 in the United States.

Harriet Beecher Stowe
Harriet Beecher Stowe

Harriet Beecher Stowe was an abolitionist, whose novel Uncle Tom's Cabin depicted life for African-Americans under slavery; it reached millions as a novel and play, and became influential in the U.S....
, Henry Ward Beecher
Henry Ward Beecher

Henry Ward Beecher was a prominent, Congregational church clergyman, social reformer, abolitionist, and Orator in the mid to late 19th century....
, Charles Beecher
Charles Beecher

Charles Beecher was an United States minister of religion, composer of religious hymns, and prolific author.Beecher was born in Litchfield, Connecticut, the son of Lyman Beecher, an abolitionist Congregationalist preacher from Boston and Roxana Foote Beecher....
, Edward Beecher
Edward Beecher

Edward Beecher was a noted theologian, the son of Lyman Beecher and the brother of Harriet Beecher Stowe and Henry Ward Beecher. He was born August 27, 1803 in East Hampton , New York....
, Isabella Beecher Hooker
Isabella Beecher Hooker

Isabella Beecher Hooker was a leader in the women's suffrage movement and an author.Born in Litchfield, Connecticut, she was a daughter of Reverend Lyman Beecher, a noted abolitionist....
, and Catharine Beecher
Catharine Beecher

Catharine Esther Beecher was an American educator known for her forthright opinions on women?s education as well as her vehement support of the many benefits of the incorporation of kindergarten into children's education....
 all grew up in Litchfield where their father, Lyman Beecher
Lyman Beecher

Lyman Beecher was a Presbyterian clergyman, temperance movement leader, and the father of many noted leaders, including Harriet Beecher Stowe, Henry Ward Beecher, Charles Beecher, Edward Beecher, Isabella Beecher Hooker, and Catharine Beecher, and a leader of the Second Great Awakening of the United States....
 was the minister.

During its "Golden Age" (1784-1834) Litchfield had an unusual number of college educated inhabitants. In 1791 Samuel Miles Hopkins, a student at the Litchfield Law School, described Litchfield in his journal as a town of "hard, active, reading, thinking, intelligent men who may probably be set forth as a pattern of the finest community on earth."

Litchfield's fortunes declined during the later years of the nineteenth century. The town did not have the ample water supply and rail transportation necessary to establish industry and the village became a sleepy backwater. Rediscovered as a resort community in the late nineteenth century Litchfield became a popular spot for vacation, weekend and summer homes. The town embraced the Colonial Revival movement and by the early Century many of the homes began to sport the white paint and black shutters seen today.

Geography

Located southwest of Torrington
Torrington, Connecticut

Torrington is the largest city in Litchfield County, Connecticut, Connecticut and the northwestern Connecticut region. It is also the core city of the largest United States micropolitan area in the United States....
, it also includes part of Bantam Lake. According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau

The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data....
, the town has a total area of 56.8 square mile
Square mile

The square mile is an Imperial system and US customary system of measure for an area equal to the area of a square of one mile. It should not be confused with miles square, which refers to the number of miles on each side squared....
s (147.1 kmē), of which, 56.1 square miles (145.2 kmē) of it is land and 0.7 square miles (1.9 kmē) of it (1.27%) is water.

Principal communities

  • Bantam
    Bantam, Connecticut

    Bantam is a borough in Litchfield County, Connecticut, Connecticut, United States. The population was 802 at the 2000 United States Census.While separated for census and historic reasons, Bantam is governed as an integral part of the town of Litchfield, Connecticut....
     (borough)
  • East Litchfield
  • Litchfield
    Litchfield (borough), Connecticut

    Litchfield is a borough within the town of Litchfield, Connecticut in Litchfield County, Connecticut, Connecticut. The population was 1,328 at the 2000 United States Census....
     (borough / town center)
  • Milton
  • Northfield
    Northfield (Litchfield)

    Northfield is an unincorporated village in the town of Litchfield, Connecticut, Litchfield County, Connecticut, Connecticut.The village of Northfield resides in the southeastern corner of Litchfield....


Demographics


Historical population of
Litchfield
18304,456
18404,038
18503,953
18603,200
18703,113
18803,410
18903,304
19003,214
19103,005
19203,180
19303,574
19404,029
19504,964
19606,264
19707,399
19807,605
19908,365
20008,316


As of the census
Census

A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population....
 of 2000, there were 8,316 people, 3,310 households, and 2,303 families residing in the town. The population density
Population density

Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans....
 was 148.4 people per square mile (57.3/kmē). There were 3,629 housing units at an average density of 64.7/sq mi (25.0/kmē). The racial makeup of the town was 96.99% White, 0.75% Black or African American
Race (United States Census)

Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the United States Census Bureau and the Federal Office of Management and Budget , are Self-concept data items in which residents choose the Race in the United States or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are of Hispanic or Latino origin ....
, 0.23% Native American, 0.47% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.46% from other races
Race (United States Census)

Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the United States Census Bureau and the Federal Office of Management and Budget , are Self-concept data items in which residents choose the Race in the United States or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are of Hispanic or Latino origin ....
, and 1.09% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.56% of the population.

There were 3,310 households out of which 31.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.9% were married couples
Marriage

Marriage is a social, spirituality, or law union of individuals. This union may also be called matrimony, while the ceremony that marks its beginning is usually called a wedding and the married status created is sometimes called wedlock....
 living together, 7.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.4% were non-families. 26.5% 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 2.45 and the average family size was 2.98.

In the town the population was spread out with 25.2% under the age of 18, 3.6% from 18 to 24, 25.6% from 25 to 44, 28.6% from 45 to 64, and 17.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females there were 92.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.3 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $58,418, and the median income for a family was $70,594. Males had a median income of $50,284 versus $31,787 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income

Per capita income means how much each individual receives, in monetary terms, of the yearly income generated in the country. This is what each citizen is to receive if the yearly national income is divided equally among everyone....
 for the town was $30,096. About 2.8% of families and 4.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.6% of those under age 18 and 5.2% of those age 65 or over.

Voter Registration and Party Enrollment as of October 25, 2005
Party Active Voters Inactive Voters Total Voters Percentage Republican
Republican Party (United States)

The Republican Party is one of the two major party contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party . It is often called the Grand Old Party or the GOP....
 2,044 90 2,134 33.59% Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)

The Democratic Party is one of two major party contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party . It is the oldest political party in continuous operation in the United States and it is one of the oldest parties in the world....
 1,384 67 1,451 22.84% Unaffiliated 2,596 165 2,761 43.45% Minor Parties 8 0 8 0.13%
Total 6,032 322 6,354 100%


Transportation

Route 202 is the main east-west road connecting Bantam and Litchfield center to the city of Torrington
Torrington, Connecticut

Torrington is the largest city in Litchfield County, Connecticut, Connecticut and the northwestern Connecticut region. It is also the core city of the largest United States micropolitan area in the United States....
. Route 63
Route 63 (Connecticut)

Route 63 is a secondary state highway in the U.S. state of Connecticut, from New Haven, Connecticut up to Canaan, Connecticut, running for . It connects the Greater New Haven area to Northwestern Connecticut via the western suburbs of Waterbury, Connecticut....
 runs north-south through the town center. The Route 8
Route 8 (Connecticut)

Route 8 is the portion of the multistate New England Route 8 within the state of Connecticut. It is a state highway running north-south from Bridgeport, Connecticut, through Waterbury, Connecticut, all the way to the Massachusetts state line where it continues as Route 8 ....
 expressway runs along the town line with Harwinton
Harwinton, Connecticut

Harwinton is a New England town in Litchfield County, Connecticut, Connecticut, United States. The population was 5,283 at the 2000 United States Census....
. It can be accessed from the town center via Route 118. The town is also served by buses from the Northwestern Connecticut Transit District connecting to the city of Torrington
Torrington, Connecticut

Torrington is the largest city in Litchfield County, Connecticut, Connecticut and the northwestern Connecticut region. It is also the core city of the largest United States micropolitan area in the United States....
.

Notable residents


  • Ethan Allen
    Ethan Allen

    Ethan Allen was an early American revolutionary and guerrilla warfare leader who fought against the Province of New York's settlement of Vermont, and later for Vermont's independence during the American Revolutionary War....
  • Andrew Adams
    Andrew Adams (congressman)

    Andrew Adams was an United States lawyer, jurist, and Politician in Litchfield, Connecticut, during the American Revolutionary War. He was a delegate for Connecticut to the Continental Congress and later Chief Justice of the Connecticut Supreme Court....
  • Henry Ward Beecher
    Henry Ward Beecher

    Henry Ward Beecher was a prominent, Congregational church clergyman, social reformer, abolitionist, and Orator in the mid to late 19th century....
  • Harriet Beecher Stowe
    Harriet Beecher Stowe

    Harriet Beecher Stowe was an abolitionist, whose novel Uncle Tom's Cabin depicted life for African-Americans under slavery; it reached millions as a novel and play, and became influential in the U.S....
  • Uriel Holmes
    Uriel Holmes

    Uriel Holmes was a United States Representative from Connecticut. He was born in East Haddam, Connecticut, and then moved with his parents to Hartland, Connecticut....
  • Phineas Miner
    Phineas Miner

    Phineas Miner was a United States Representative from Connecticut. He was born in Winchester, Connecticut where he completed preparatory studies....
  • Samuel S. Phelps
    Samuel S. Phelps

    Samuel Shethar Phelps was a United States Senator from Vermont. He was a member of the Whig Party .Phelps was born in Litchfield, Connecticut....
  • Oliver Wolcott, Sr.
    Oliver Wolcott

    Oliver Wolcott , was a signer of the United States Declaration of Independence and also the Articles of Confederation as a Representation of Connecticut....
  • Admiral Charles B. McVay III
    Charles B. McVay III

    Rear Admiral Charles Butler McVay III was a career naval officer and the Commanding Officer of the USS Indianapolis when it was lost in action in 1945 and rescue efforts were delayed, resulting in massive loss of life....
  • Madeleine L'Engle
    Madeleine L'Engle

    Madeleine L'Engle was an United States writer best known for her Young-adult fiction, particularly the Newbery Medal-winning A Wrinkle in Time and its sequels A Wind in the Door, A Swiftly Tilting Planet, Many Waters, and An Acceptable Time....
  • Oliver Wolcott, Jr.
    Oliver Wolcott, Jr.

    Oliver Wolcott Jr. was United States Secretary of the Treasury from 1795 to 1800 and List of Governors of Connecticut of Connecticut from 1817 to 1827....
  • Elisabeth Gilbert


On the National Register of Historic Places

  • Capt. William Bull Tavern — CT 202 (added July 30, 1983)
  • Henry B. Bissell House — 202 Maple St. (added October 7, 1990)
  • J. Howard Catlin House — 14 Knife Shop Rd. (added September 6, 1993) (Since demolished)
  • Litchfield Historic District
    Litchfield Historic District

    Litchfield Historic District, in Litchfield, Connecticut, is a notable example of a typical late 18th century New England town. The district was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1968....
     — Roughly both sides of North and South Sts. between Gallows Lane and Prospect St. (added December 24, 1968)
  • Milton Historic District (added March 14, 1978)
  • Northfield Knife Company Site (added May 8, 1997)
  • Oliver Wolcott House
    Oliver Wolcott House

    Oliver Wolcott House is a historic American colonial architecture home in Litchfield, Connecticut. It was the home of Oliver Wolcott, a signer of the Declaration of Independence and the Articles of Confederation....
     — South St. (added December 11, 1971)
  • Rye House — 122-132 Old Mount Tom Rd. (added September 10, 2000)
  • Tapping Reeve House and Law School — South St. (added November 15, 1966)
  • Topsmead — 25 and 46 Chase Rd. (added December 19, 1993)


External links

  • in Winsted