Connecticut, CT

Connecticut is a state located in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. Southwestern Connecticut is also considered part of the New York metropolitan area. Connecticut is the 29th most populous state with 3.4 million residents and ranked 48th in size by area, making it the 4th most densely populated state.

Called the "Constitution State," Connecticut has a long history dating from the early colonial times, and was influential in the development of early American government. While Connecticut's first European settlers were Dutch, 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 disparate colonies 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 thanks to its long coastline on the 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. In the 19th and 20th centuries, financial organizations flourished: first insurance companies in Hartford, then hedge funds along the Gold Coast.

This prosperity has helped give Connecticut the highest per capita income and median household income in the country.

Geography

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, New Britain, Norwich, Milford, Norwalk, Stamford, Waterbury, Danbury and Bridgeport. There are 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 the rivalry between New Haven Colony and Connecticut Colony.

The highest peak in Connecticut is Bear Mountain in Salisbury in the northwest corner of the state.

The highest point is just east of where Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New York meet (42° 3' N; 73° 29' W), on the southern slope of Mount Frissell, whose peak lies nearby in Massachusetts.

The Connecticut River cuts through the center of the state, flowing into Long Island Sound, Connecticut's outlet to the Atlantic Ocean. Further information: List of Connecticut rivers Despite its size, the state 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," (such as the New Haven Green), Litchfield Green, Simsbury Green, and New Milford Green(the largest in the state).

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' 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.

The dispute over the border slowed development in the region, since neither state would invest in public services 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 the towns of Greenwich, Stamford, New Canaan and Darien.

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.

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.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Connecticut".