Brookfield, Connecticut
Brookfield, Connecticut | ||
---|---|---|
Town | ||
| ||
Location in Fairfield County and the state of Connecticut. | ||
Coordinates: 41°28′07″N 73°23′31″W / 41.46861°N 73.39194°WCoordinates: 41°28′07″N 73°23′31″W / 41.46861°N 73.39194°W | ||
Country | United States | |
State | Connecticut | |
NECTA | Danbury | |
Region | Housatonic Valley | |
Incorporated | 1788 | |
Government | ||
• Type | Selectman-town meeting | |
• First selectman | Stephen C. Dunn (D) | |
• Selectman | Susan D. Slater (D) | |
• Selectman | Martin E. Flynn, Jr. (R) | |
Area | ||
• Total | 20.4 sq mi (52.8 km2) | |
• Land | 19.8 sq mi (51.3 km2) | |
• Water | 0.6 sq mi (1.6 km2) | |
Elevation | 459 ft (140 m) | |
Population (2010) | ||
• Total | 16,452 | |
• Density | 810/sq mi (310/km2) | |
Time zone | EST (UTC−5) | |
• Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC−4) | |
ZIP code | 06804 | |
Area code(s) | 203 | |
FIPS code | 09-08980 | |
GNIS feature ID | 0213399 | |
Website |
www |
Brookfield is a town located in northern Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States in the southern foothills of the Berkshire Mountains. The population was 16,487 at the 2010 census.[1] Brookfield was first settled in 1710 by John Muirwood, as well as other colonial founders including Hawley, Peck and Merwin. They bartered for the land from the Wyantenuck Nation and the Pootatuck nation who were ruled under the Sachem Waramaug and Pocono. The purchase of the south part of town involved the current municipal center where sachem Pocono then had his village and lived in an enormous palisade along the Still River. Eventually, when the town was settled, it was first established as the Parish of Newbury, which incorporated parts of neighboring Newtown and Danbury. The town of Brookfield was established in 1788. It was named after the first minister of the parish's Congregational church, Reverend Thomas Brooks.
History
Early people who lived in Brookfield were subsistence farmers, gatherers and hunters. The main food sources were corn, beans, squash and wild foods found in the rocky, heavily forested foot hills of the Berkshire Mountains of Brookfield and New Milford. Such wild foods that were harvested were white oak acorns, American chestnuts, shag bark hickory nuts, may apples, beach nuts and Solomon's seal. The hunted foods that were taken[2] from the forest and rivers were deer, passenger pigeon, turkey, bass, trout, crawfish, squirrel, rabbit and others.[3] In the 18th century the community was called "Newbury", a name that came from the three towns from which its land was taken – New Milford, Newtown, and Danbury.[2]
As traveling to surrounding churches was difficult in winter, in 1752 the General Assembly granted the community the right to worship in area homes from September through March. In 1754, the General Assembly granted permission for the Parish of Newbury to build its own meeting house and recruit its own minister. On September 28, 1757, the first Congregational Church building was dedicated. The Reverend Thomas Brooks was ordained as the first settled minister. Incorporated in 1778, the town's name was changed to Brookfield in honor of Brooks, who was still the minister.[2]
Along the Still River, mills were in operation as early as 1732 in an area that became known as the Iron Works District. Brookfield was a thriving town with iron furnaces, grist mills, sawmills, comb shops, carding and cotton mills, a paper mill, a knife factory, hat factories, stage-coach shops, lime kilns, harness shops and other plants in operation. The grist mill still stands, as the Brookfield Craft Center. The Iron Works Aqueduct Company, formed in 1837 to supply water from mountain springs to the Iron Works District, still supplies water as the Brookfield Water Company.[2][3]
Before 1912 the town had two train stations: one in the Iron Works District near the present Brookfield Market and a second, Junction Station, near the corner of Junction Road and Stony Hill Road.[2]
The Danbury & Bethel Gas and Electric Company brought electricity to Brookfield in 1915.[2] The .475 Wildey Magnum gun, later made famous in the 1985 Charles Bronson movie Death Wish 3, was developed by Wildey J. Moore in Brookfield in the early 1970s (the factory has since moved to Warren, Connecticut).
In the early 1970s, the town was home to LEGO USA headquarters.[4]
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 20.4 square miles (53 km2), of which 19.8 square miles (51 km2) is land and 0.6 square miles (1.6 km2), or 2.94%, is water. It borders Bethel to the south, Newtown to the southeast, Danbury to the southwest, New Fairfield to the west, New Milford to the north, and Bridgewater to the northeast.
Principal communities
- Brookfield Four Corners (town center)
- Brookfield Center (original town center, now a historic district)
Other named minor communities and geographic locations in the town are Barkwood Falls, Brookfield Junction, Candlewood Lake East, Candlewood Shores, East Iron Works, Huckleberry Hill, Iron Works, Long Meadow Hill, Obtuse, Pocono Ridge, Prospect Hill, West Iron Works, and Whisconier.
Climate
Brookfield has a humid continental climate, similar to that of New York City, with mild to warm humid summers and cold to very cold winters. The highest recorded temperature was 103 °F (39 °C) in July 1966, while the lowest recorded temperature was -15 °F (-26 °C) in 1968.[5] Snowfall is generally frequent in winter while average precipitation is most common in September.
Demographics
Historical population | |||
---|---|---|---|
Census | Pop. | %± | |
1820 | 1,159 | — | |
1850 | 1,359 | — | |
1860 | 1,224 | −9.9% | |
1870 | 1,193 | −2.5% | |
1880 | 1,152 | −3.4% | |
1890 | 989 | −14.1% | |
1900 | 1,046 | 5.8% | |
1910 | 1,101 | 5.3% | |
1920 | 896 | −18.6% | |
1930 | 926 | 3.3% | |
1940 | 1,345 | 45.2% | |
1950 | 1,688 | 25.5% | |
1960 | 3,405 | 101.7% | |
1970 | 9,688 | 184.5% | |
1980 | 12,872 | 32.9% | |
1990 | 14,113 | 9.6% | |
2000 | 15,664 | 11.0% | |
2010 | 16,452 | 5.0% | |
Est. 2014 | 17,055 | [6] | 3.7% |
As of the census[8] of 2000, there were 15,664 people, 5,572 households, and 4,368 families residing in the town. The population density was 791.1 people per square mile (305.4/km²). There were 5,781 housing units at an average density of 292.0 per square mile (112.7/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 95.29% White, 0.76% Black or African American, 0.07% Native American, 2.48% Asian, 0.61% from other races, and 0.79% from two or more races. 2.37% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 5,573 households out of which 39.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 68.1% were married couples living together, 7.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 21.6% were non-families. 17.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.80 and the average family size was 3.18.
In the town, the population was spread out with 27.4% under the age of 18, 4.9% from 18 to 24, 29.2% from 25 to 44, 27.8% from 45 to 64, and 10.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 94.7 males, slightly under the US average. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.0 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $82,706, and the median income for a family was $91,296. Males had a median income of $63,396 versus $36,318 for females. The per capita income for the town was $37,063. About 1.2% of families and 2.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.4% of those under age 18 and 2.3% of those age 65 or over.
Voter registration and party enrollment as of October 25, 2005[9] | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Party | Active voters | Inactive voters | Total voters | Percentage | |
Republican | 3,607 | 382 | 3,989 | 37.07% | |
Democratic | 1,801 | 250 | 2,051 | 19.06% | |
Unaffiliated | 3,968 | 699 | 4,667 | 43.37% | |
Minor parties | 49 | 6 | 55 | 0.51% | |
Total | 9,425 | 1,337 | 10,762 | 100% |
Education
Brookfield's public schools are Brookfield High School, Center School, Whisconier Middle School, and Huckleberry Hill School. The town parochial school is St. Joseph School.
There is also a magnet school in Danbury, Connecticut that students from Brookfield are accepted into, Students to this school are also accepted from Redding, New Milford, Newtown, and other regional communities.
The Brookfield Craft Center is a specialized, non-degree school which teaches the skills of craftsmanship and offers courses and workshops to the general public. It is largely housed in an old historic mill house, on the Still River.
Points of interest
- Brookfield Center Historic District — Long Meadow Hill Rd. (added September 15, 1991)
- Brookfield Craft Center — An educational center that brings arts and crafts to people of all ages. Located in the former Brookfield Train Station.
- Brookfield Public Library — located directly across the street from Williams Park.
- Candlewood Lake — the largest lake in Connecticut, Candlewood spans five towns and forms the western border of Brookfield.
- Down the Hatch Restaurant — Seasonally-open, the only restaurant available directly on the lake, it offers docking space for those who want to grab a quick bite during a day or evening on the lake.
- Brookfield Town Center — Also known as "Four Corners", A shopping district of Brookfield and future site of downtown area and possible railway station. Known officially as the "downtown area".
- The Regional YMCA of Western Connecticut —Located on Huckleberry Hill Rd.
- Still River Greenway — A paved trail through the woods used for walking and biking that connects the Brookfield Municipal Center to Brookfield Town Center.
- Sunset Hill Golf Course — A public golf course on Sunset Hill Rd. established by former resident Gene Sarazen.
- William's Park — A trail for walking and biking through the woods. Entrance is across the street from the Brookfield Library.
Notable people
Media
- WINE-AM 940; 1,000 watts
- WRKI-FM 95.1; 50,000 watts; the station has a "mainstream rock" format and covers Fairfield, Litchfield, New Haven counties in Connecticut and Putnam, Dutchess, Westchester counties in New York
- The Brookfield Daily Voice and The Brookfield Patch are the two most prominent local online newspapers.
Rankings
Brookfield was selected as the best small town in Connecticut by Money Magazine in 2013.[10] It was selected as the 26th best town to live in nationwide by Money Magazine in 2013.[11]
References
- ↑ "Race, Hispanic or Latino, Age, and Housing Occupancy: 2010 Census Redistricting Data (Public Law 94-171) Summary File (QT-PL), Brookfield town, Connecticut". U.S. Census Bureau, American FactFinder 2. Archived from the original on September 11, 2013. Retrieved August 8, 2011.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 "About Brookfield", web page on the Town of Brookfield Web site, accessed August 7, 2012
- 1 2 "Newbury to Brookfield" Web page at Brookfield Historical Society Web site, accessed April 6, 2007
- ↑ "Lego History, 1970".
- ↑ "Average weather for Darien, CT". weather.com. Retrieved February 1, 2014.
- ↑ "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Incorporated Places: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2014". Retrieved June 4, 2015.
- ↑ "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Archived from the original on May 12, 2015. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
- ↑ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on 2013-09-11. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
- ↑ "Registration and Party Enrollment Statistics as of October 25, 2005" (PDF). Connecticut Secretary of State. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2006-09-23. Retrieved 2006-10-02.
- ↑ http://www.newstimes.com/local/article/Brookfield-earns-a-spot-in-top-small-towns-ranking-4726896.php CNN Money Rankings
- ↑ http://time.com/money/collection-post/2791439/26-brookfield-ct/ 26th Best town in the US
External links
- Town of Brookfield official website
- Brookfield Public Schools
- Brookfield Library
- Brookfield Chamber of Commerce
- Brookfield Craft Center
- Brookfield Museum and Historical Society
- Brookfield Theatre for the Arts
- Candlewood Lake Authority
- Brookfield Vol. Fire Co.
- Brookfield Vol. Fire Dept. Candlewood Co. Inc.