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{{About|the town|the county|Litchfield County, Connecticut|the borough|Litchfield (borough), Connecticut}}{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2024}}

factoids

{{smaller>"Unity Under the Law"}}}}(File:Litchfield County Connecticut Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Litchfield Highlighted 2010.svgframeless Litchfield County, Connecticut and Connecticut>(File:Northwest Hills incorporated and unincorporated areas Litchfield highlighted.svgframeless Northwest Hills Planning Region, Connecticut and Connecticut>default=1}}frame=yesframe-align=centerframe-height=200qid=Q755403}}###{{coord41507323zoom=SWITCH:10;6;3marker=citystroke-color=#000000type2=shapefill-opacity2=SWITCH:0;0.1;0.1stroke-color2=#808080switch=Litchfield;Connecticut;the United States}}41507323region:US-CT|display=inline,title}}| subdivision_type = CountryUnited States}}| subdivision_type1 = U.S. stateConnecticut}}County (United States)>CountyLitchfield County, Connecticut>LitchfieldCouncils of governments in Connecticut>RegionNorthwest Hills Planning Region, Connecticut>Northwest Hills| established_title = IncorporatedPUBLISHER=CITY-DATA.COM, November 4, 2012, Board of Selectmen>Selectman-town meeting| leader_title = First SelectmanDemocratic Party (United States)>D)| leader_title1 = SelectmenRepublican Party (United States)>R)Jonathan E. Torrant (R)Jeffrey J. Zullo (D)| unit_pref = Imperial| area_total_km2 = 147.1| area_total_sq_mi = 56.8| area_land_km2 = 145.3| area_land_sq_mi = 56.1| area_water_km2 = 1.8| area_water_sq_mi = 0.7| elevation_m = 329| elevation_ft = 1080| population_footnotes = | population_total = 81922020 United States Census>2020| population_density_km2 = 56.4| population_density_sq_mi = Eastern Time Zone>EST| utc_offset = -5Eastern Time Zone>EDT| utc_offset_DST = -4| postal_code_type = ZIP code| postal_code = 06750 [Bantam], 06759 [Litchfield], 06778 [Northfield]Area codes 860 and 959>860/959Federal Information Processing Standard>FIPS code| blank_info = 09-43370Geographic Names Information System>GNIS feature ID| blank3_name = Major highways25px25px|link=U.S. Route 202)| blank1_info = 0213452weblink}}| pop_est_as_of = | pop_est_footnotes = | population_est = PUBLISHER=UNITED STATES CENSUS BUREAU, July 2, 2020, }}Litchfield is a town in and former county seat of Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States.WEB,weblink June 7, 2011, Find a County, National Association of Counties, The population was 8,192 at the 2020 census.WEB,weblink United States Census Bureau, December 17, 2021, Census - Geography Profile: Litchfield town, Litchfield County, Connecticut, The town is part of the Northwest Hills Planning Region. The boroughs of Bantam and Litchfield are located within the town. There are also three unincorporated villages: East Litchfield, Milton, and Northfield. Northfield, located in the southeastern corner of Litchfield, is home to a high percentage of the Litchfield population.

History

Originally called Bantam township, Litchfield incorporated in 1719.EB1911, Litchfield (Connecticut), Litchfield, 16, 783, The town derives its name from Lichfield, in England.BOOK, The Connecticut Magazine: An Illustrated Monthly,weblink 1903, Connecticut Magazine Company, 332, In 1751 it became the county seat of Litchfield County, and at the same time the borough of Litchfield (incorporated in 1879) was laid out. From 1776 to 1780, two depots for military stores and a workshop for the Continental army were maintained, and the leaden statue of George III., erected in Bowling Green (New York City), in 1770, and torn down by citizens on July 9, 1776, was cut up and taken to Litchfield, where, in the house of Oliver Wolcott, it was melted into bullets for the American army by Wolcott's daughter and sister.During the American Revolution, several prominent Loyalists were held prisoner in the town, including William Franklin, son of Benjamin Franklin,A LITCHFIELD JAIL FOR BEN FRANKLIN'S SON Retrieved January 30, 2019 and David Mathews, Mayor of New York City.Dictionary of Canadian Biography - Mathews, David Retrieved January 30, 2019In 1784, the first law school in the United States, the so-named Litchfield Law School, was established by judge and legal scholar Tapping Reeve. Prior to its establishment, Reeve had accepted several legal apprentices since he had settled there in 1773, but saw such demand for his expertise that he formally opened the one-room school within a decade.BOOK, Historic Litchfield, 1721-1907, Bulkeley, Alice Talcott, 15, The Case, Lockwood & Brainard Company, 1907,weblink WEB, The Oldest Law School, August 15, 2006, Oman, Nate, February 19, 2018,weblinkweblink Concurring Opinions, During the school's fifty-year history it would accept more than 1,100 students, including Aaron Burr, Jr., Horace Mann, and Levi Woodbury, the first justice of the US Supreme Court to attend law school.BOOK, Catalogue of the Litchfield Law School, Hartford, CT, Press of Case, Tiffany and Company, 1849, Litchfield was also home to a pioneering institution of young women's education, the Litchfield Female Academy, founded in 1792 by Sarah Pierce.Litchfield has a very rich history. The Litchfield Historical Society, located in the center of town, contains a wide variety of items with historical importance to the town.WEB,weblink Litchfield Historical Society, August 2, 2020, Litchfield Historical Society,

Geography

Located southwest of Torrington, Litchfield also includes part of Bantam Lake. According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 56.8 square miles (147.1 km2), of which 56.1 square miles (145.2 km2) is land and 0.7 square mile (1.9 km2) (1.3%) is water.Litchfield is about {{convert|95|mi|km|abbr=on}} from Central Park in New York, approximately {{convert|50|mi|km|abbr=on}} from the Hudson River Valley, and about {{convert|40|mi|km|abbr=on}} from the nearest sea coast, on Long Island Sound.

Principal communities

• Bantam (borough)
• East Litchfield (unincorporated village)
• Litchfield (borough / town center)
• Milton (unincorporated village)
• Northfield (unincorporated village)

Demographics

{{US Census population|1790= 20342|1800= 4285|1810= 4639|1820= 4610|1830= 4456|1840= 4038|1850= 3953|1860= 3200|1870= 3113|1880= 3410|1890= 3304|1900= 3214|1910= 3005|1920= 3180|1930= 3574|1940= 4029|1950= 4964|1960= 6264|1970= 7399|1980= 7605|1990= 8365|2000= 8316|2010= 8466|2020= 8192PUBLISHER=CENSUS.GOV, June 4, 2015, }}{{See also|List of Connecticut locations by per capita income}}As of the censusWEB,weblink United States Census Bureau, January 31, 2008, U.S. Census website, of 2000, there were 8,316 people, 3,310 households, and 2,303 families residing in the town. The population density was {{convert|148.4|PD/sqmi|PD/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. There were 3,629 housing units at an average density of {{convert|64.7|/sqmi|/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. The racial makeup of the town was 96.99% White, 0.75% Black or African American, 0.23% Native American, 0.47% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.46% from other races, 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 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 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.{| class=wikitable! colspan = 6 | Voter registration and party enrollment as of October 31, 2023WEB,weblink Registration and Party Enrollment Statistics as of October 31, 2023, Connecticut Secretary of State, March 4, 2024, ! colspan = 2 | Party! Active voters! Inactive voters! Total voters! PercentageDemocratic Party (United States)}}Democratic Party (United States)>Democratic 1,865 143 2,008 30.61%Republican Party (United States)}}Republican Party (United States)>Republican 1,893 109 2,002 30.51%Independent Party (United States)}}Independent voter>Unaffiliated 2,226 193 2,419 36.88%Independent Party (United States)}}| Minor Parties 119 12 131 2.00%! colspan = 2 | Total! style="text-align:center;"| 6,103! style="text-align:center;"| 457! style="text-align:center;"| 6,560! style="text-align:center;"| 100%

Government and infrastructure

File:PostcardLitchfieldCTLitchfieldCountyJail1907.jpg|thumb|left|150px|Litchfield County JailLitchfield County JailThe 1812 Litchfield County Jail, the town's oldest public building, is in Litchfield.MAGAZINE, Cooper, Anneliese,weblink 'Orange Is the New Black's Prison Location Isn't Real, But It's Not Entirely Fictional Either, Bustle (magazine), Bustle, June 6, 2014, August 4, 2017, While controlled by the Connecticut state government, the facility historically held inmates convicted of minor offenses.NEWS, Ryan, Bill,weblink Litchfield's Jail Begins Another Era With Women Hoping for New Lives, The New York Times, October 16, 1994, August 5, 2017, Governor of Connecticut Lowell P. Weicker Jr. ordered the facility closed for financial reasons in 1993. It was converted into the McAuliffe Manor, a substance abuse treatment center for women operated by Naugatuck Valley HELP Inc., but in 2009 the contract between Naugatuck Valley HELP Inc. and the state expired, leading to the closure of McAuliffe Manor.WEB,weblink Taylor, Alex, Rehab center closing: McCauliffe Manor's contract expires, The Register Citizen, May 22, 2009, August 5, 2017,

Transportation

U.S. Route 202 is the main east-west road connecting Bantam and Litchfield center to the city of Torrington and New Milford, Connecticut. Route 63 runs north-south through the town center. The Route 8 expressway runs along the town line with Harwinton. 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. The Shepaug Valley Railroad opened a Litchfield terminal in 1872, but passenger service ended in 1930 and freight service in 1948.JOURNAL, The Lure of the Litchfield Hills, June 1949, Shepaug Epic, Alfred S. Dillistin,weblink April 30, 2014,

Education

Litchfield Public Schools operates public schools. Litchfield High School is the area high school. Students may also attend Wamogo Regional Six to study agriculture, located in Litchfield, or Oliver Wolcott Technical School, located in Torrington.Litchfield Center School hosts children in grades K–3, with a Pre-K program available. Students then move on to Litchfield Intermediate School, where they will remain through sixth grade. Students then finish their Litchfield Public School career at Litchfield High School.Litchfield is also home to Forman School, a private boarding school for students in grades 9–12/PG with learning differences such as ADD/ADHD and dyslexia.WEB, Forman School - Private School for Students with ADHD & Dyslexia, formanschool.org, April 6, 2022,

Notable people

{{More citations needed section|date=November 2012}}{{div col|colwidth=30em}}

• Andrew Adams,ENCYCLOPEDIA,weblink ADAMS, Andrew, (1736–1797), Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, November 4, 2012, political leader during and after the Revolutionary War
• Josephine Cables Aldrich (1843–1917), spiritualist, Theosophist, editor, and publisher
• Ethan Allen, one of the founders of Vermont
• Catharine Beecher, educator
• Henry Ward Beecher, Congregationalist clergyman
• Lyman Beecher, Presbyterian minister
• Mary Charlotte Ward Granniss Webster Billings, writer, evangelist, and missionary
• Solyman Brown, creator of the first dental school
• Adelaide Deming, painter
• Dick Ebersol, television executive
• Caroline Fitzgerald (1865–1911), poetBOOK, Pallastrelli, Gottardo, Ritratto di signora in viaggio : un'americana cosmopolita nel mondo di Henry James, Portrait of a Travelling Lady, 2018, Donzelli editore, Roma, 978-88-6843-7770, it, eBook,
• Eugene Fodor, travel writer
• Jerome Fuller, chief justice of Minnesota Territorial Supreme Court, 1851–1852
• Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Eat, Pray, Love
• Jane Grant, writer
• F. Norton Goddard, Republican politician
• Benjamin Hanks (1755–1824), goldsmith and instrument makerWEB,weblink Bell Casting in Troy, Skinner, Charles, Meneeley Bell Online Museum, July 12, 2013, dead,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20140630205204weblink">weblink June 30, 2014, mdy-all,
• Uriel Holmes, US congressmanENCYCLOPEDIA,weblink HOLMES, Uriel, (1764–1827), Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, November 4, 2012,
• Isabella Beecher Hooker, women's suffrage activistWEB,weblink Isabella Beecher Hooker, Connecticut Women's Hall of Fame, May 23, 2014,
• Susan Saint James, actressWEB,weblink Susan Saint James, Connecticut Women's Hall of Fame, May 23, 2014,
• Daniel Albion "Jumping Jack" Jones (1860–1936), professional baseball pitcher
• Madeleine L'Engle,WEB,weblink Madeleine L'Engle, IMDb, November 4, 2012, author
• Thomas McKnight, painter
• Charles B. McVay III, US naval officer
• Phineas Miner, US congressmanENCYCLOPEDIA,weblink MINER, Phineas, (1777–1839), Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, November 4, 2012,
• Joseph Robert Morris, entrepreneur, investor, mayor of Houston, Texas; born and raised in MiltonBOOK, History of Texas, together with a biographical history of the cities of Houston and Galveston,weblink 393–396, Lewis Publishing Company, Chicago, 1895,
• Samuel S. Phelps, US senator from VermontENCYCLOPEDIA,weblink PHELPS, Samuel Shethar, (1793–1855), Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, November 4, 2012,
• Sarah Pierce, teacher, educator and founder of the Litchfield Female Academy
• John Pierpoint, Chief Justice of the Vermont Supreme CourtBOOK, Ullery, Jacob G., 1894, Men of Vermont Illustrated,weblink Brattleboro, VT, Transcript Publishing Company, 183–184, {{sfnRef, Men of Vermont Illustrated, }}
• Robert Pierpoint, Lieutenant Governor of Vermont{{sfn|Men of Vermont Illustrated|}}
• Austin M. Purves Jr., 20th century artist and educator
• Tapping Reeve, lawyer, judge, and law educator
• Mary Livingston Ripley, horticulturist, entomologist, and photographerNEWS, Mary L. Ripley, Smithsonian Leader,weblink The Washington Times, November 10, 2012,
• Richard Skinner, governor of VermontWEB,weblink Biography, Richard Skinner, 2010, The Ledger: A Database of Students of the Litchfield Law School and the Litchfield Female Academy, Litchfield Historical Society, Litchfield, CT, July 8, 2017,
• Roger Skinner, judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of New YorkBOOK, Johnson, Crisfield, 1878, History of Washington Co., New York,weblink 118, Everts & Ensign, Philadelphia, PA, {{sfnRef, History of Washington Co., New York, }}
• BOOK, Kilbourne, Payne Kenyon, 1859, Sketches and Chronicles of the Town of Litchfield, Connecticut,weblink Hartford, CT, Case, Lockwood and Company, 211,
• Charles Smith, Arizona lawman and friend of Wyatt Earp
• Elihu Hubbard Smith, physician and man of letters, one of the Hartford Wits
• Harriet Beecher Stowe, abolitionist and author
• Benjamin Tallmadge, American military officer during the Revolutionary WarENCYCLOPEDIA,weblink TALLMADGE, Benjamin, (1754–1835), Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, November 4, 2012,
• Frederick A. Tallmadge, lawyer and New York politician
• Frank Livingston Underwood (1844–1918), banker, copper magnate, railroad founder
• Emily Noyes Vanderpoel (1842–1939), painter, writer, philanthropist
• Louis Fenn Wadsworth (1825–1908), early baseball pioneer
• Paul Winter, saxophonist
• Oliver Wolcott Sr., signer of the U.S. Declaration of Independence
• Oliver Wolcott Jr., US Secretary of the Treasury, 24th governor of ConnecticutWEB,weblink Connecticut Governor Oliver Wolcott Jr.publisher=National Governors Association, November 4, 2012,

{{div col end}}

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 – Roughly both sides of North and South Sts. between Gallows Lane and Prospect St. (added December 24, 1968)
• Milton Center Historic District (added March 14, 1978)
• Humaston Brook State Park (added May 8, 1997)
• Oliver Wolcott House – 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)

See also

• List of newspapers in ConnecticutLitchfield
• Litchfield Law School
• White Memorial Foundation
• White Memorial Conservation Center

References

{{reflist|2}}

Further reading

• Carley, Rachel. Litchfield: The Making of a New England Town (Litchfield: Litchfield Historical Society, 2011). 303 pp.

External links

{{Commons category}}

• Official town website
• Litchfield Historical Society
• Litchfield, Connecticut, at City-Data.com
• weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20150414023434weblink">ePodunk Profile for Litchfield, Connecticut

{{Litchfield, Connecticut}}{{Northwest Hills Planning Region, Connecticut}}{{Litchfield County, Connecticut}}{{Connecticut}}{{New York metropolitan area}}{{New England}}{{Connecticut county seats}}{{authority control}}