CONNECTICUT
Introduction
The State of Connecticut (state code CT) is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and New York to the west and south (because various islands of New York span Connecticut's entire coast).
Southwestern Connecticut is part of the New York metropolitan area; three of Connecticut's eight counties, including most of the state's population, are in the New York City combined statistical area, commonly called the Tri-State Region. Connecticut's center of population is in Cheshire, New Haven County.
Connecticut is the 29th most populous state, with 3.4 million residents, and is ranked 48th in size by area, making it the 4th most densely populated state. Called the Constitution State and the Nutmeg State, Connecticut has a long history dating from early colonial times and was influential in the development of the federal government.
Connecticut's first European settlers were Dutch and established a small, short-lived settlement in present-day Hartford at the confluence of the Park and Connecticut rivers, called Huys de Goede Hoop. Initially, half of Connecticut was a part of the Dutch colony, New Netherland, which included much of the land between the Connecticut and Delaware rivers.
The first major settlements were established in the 1630s by the English. Thomas Hooker led a band of followers overland from the Massachusetts Bay Colony and founded what would become the Connecticut Colony; other settlers from Massachusetts founded the Saybrook Colony and the New Haven Colony. Both the Connecticut and New Haven Colonies established documents of Fundamental Orders, considered the first constitutions in North America. In 1662, the three colonies were merged under a royal charter, making Connecticut a crown colony. This colony was one of the Thirteen Colonies that revolted against British rule in the American Revolution.
Connecticut enjoys a temperate climate due to its long coastline on Long Island Sound. This has given the state a strong maritime tradition. Modern Connecticut is also known for its wealth. In the 18th and 19th centuries, Connecticut had ready access to raw materials which helped to develop a strong manufacturing industry, and financial organizations flourished: first insurance companies in Hartford, then hedge funds in Fairfield county. This prosperity has helped give Connecticut the highest per capita income, Human Development Index, and median household income in the country.
Geography-Climate
Connecticut is bordered on the south by Long Island Sound, on the west by New York State, on the north by Massachusetts, and on the east by Rhode Island. The state capital is Hartford, and the other major cities include New Haven, New London, Norwich, Stamford, Waterbury, Danbury and Bridgeport. In all, there are a total of 169 incorporated towns in Connecticut. There is an ongoing civic pride and economic competition between Hartford and New Haven, which stems back to the days when the two cities shared the state's capital, and even back to when New Haven and Hartford were two separate colonies.
The highest peak in Connecticut is Bear Mountain in Salisbury in the northwest corner of the state. Once the location of a stone tower, currently a stone plaque alongside the Appalachian Trail identifies the point as "the highest ground in Connecticut, 2,354 feet above the sea"; however, this is wrong on both counts. The current estimate of the height of the summit is only 2,316 feet 706 m); and although it is the highest peak in Connecticut, it is not actually the highest point in the state. That distinction belongs to an anonymous location just east of the point where Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New York meet (42° 3' N; 73° 29' W), on the southern slope of 2,453 foot (747 m) high Mount Frissell, whose peak lies 740 feet (225 m) north in Massachusetts. Only a green metal stake set into a rock ledge marks this, the 2,372 foot (723 m) high top of Connecticut. Connecticut is the only state whose highest point is not also its highest peak. [1]
The Connecticut River cuts through the center of the state, flowing into Long Island Sound, Connecticut's outlet to the Atlantic Ocean.
The state, although small, has regional variations in its landscape and culture from the wealthy estates of Fairfield County's "Gold Coast" to the rolling mountains and horse-farms of the Litchfield Hills of northwestern Connecticut. Connecticut's rural areas and small towns in the northeast and northwest corners of the state contrast sharply with its industrial cities, located along the coastal highways from the New York border to New Haven, then northwards to Hartford, as well as further up the coast near New London. Many towns center around a small park, known as a "green," (like New Haven Green). Near the green may stand a small white church, a town meeting hall, a tavern and several colonial houses. Forests, rivers, lakes, waterfalls and a sandy shore add to the state's beauty.
The northern boundary of the state with Massachusetts is marked by the distinctive Southwick Jog/Granby Notch, an approximately 2.5 mile (4.0 km) square detour into Connecticut slightly west of the center of the border. Somewhat surprisingly, the actual origin of this anomaly is not absolutely certain, with stories ranging from surveyors who were drunk, attempting to avoid hostile Native Americans, or taking a shortcut up the Connecticut River; Massachusetts residents attempting to avoid Massachusetts' (even then) high taxes for the low taxes of Connecticut; Massachusetts' interest in the resources represented by the Congamond Lakes which lie on the border of the jog; and the need to compensate Massachusetts for an amount of land given to Connecticut due to inaccurate survey work.[2] [3] [4] Perhaps the only suggested reason which can be safely ruled out is that the jog is necessary to prevent Massachusetts from sliding out into the Atlantic Ocean. In any event, the dispute over the border retarded the development of the region, since neither state would invest in even such basic amenities as schools for the area until the dispute had been settled.
The southwestern border of Connecticut, where it abuts New York State, is marked by a panhandle in Fairfield County, containing Greenwich, Stamford, New Canaan, and Darien, housing some of the wealthiest residents in the world. This irregularity in the boundary is the result of territorial disputes in the late 1600s, culminating with New York giving up its claim to this area, whose residents considered themselves part of Connecticut, in exchange for an equivalent area extending northwards from Ridgefield, Connecticut to the Massachusetts border as well as undisputed claim to Rye, New York.[5]
Areas maintained by the National Park Service include: Appalachian National Scenic Trail; Quinebaug & Shetucket Rivers Valley National Heritage Corridor; and Weir Farm National Historic Site
The state of Connecticut can be said to be sub-divided into eight general regions which generally correspond with the eight counties of the state, though there are differences in the boundaries. Each region boasts varied qualities which distinguish it within the state, and at times there are minor cultural frictions between the regions and their major cultural centers as each competes for tourists, new residents, and internal state pride. Fairfield County's "Gold Coast" and towns west of Waterbury and New Haven, for example, are often derided by residents of the rest of the state as being more similar to New York than to New England. Many of the residents go for years or even decades without ever traveling to other regions of the state, considering themselves more attached to New York City and its suburbs in eastern New York State.
The eight regions of Connecticut are:
* Gold Coast
* Litchfield Hills
* Naugatuck River Valley
* Greater New Haven
* Greater Hartford
* Lower Connecticut River Valley
* The Quiet Corner
* Southeastern Connecticut
Connecticut lies in a Humid Continental Climate. Winters are Cold, with average temperatures of 31°F (-2c) in the southeast and 23°F (-6c) in the northwest in January. Snowfall averages 25-100" (64-254 cm) across the state- higher in the northwest. Spring has variable temperatures with frequent rainfall. Summer is hot and very humid across the state, with average highs in New London of 81°F (27c) and 87°F (31c) in Windsor Locks. Thunderstorms are common during the summer months and sometimes reach severe magnitude. Fall months are mild, and bring foliage across the state in October and November. During Hurricane season, Tropical Cyclones occasional effect the region.
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