Hamden, Connecticut

Originally settled by Puritans as part of the town of New Haven, Hamden was purchased by Theophilus Eaton and Reverend John Davenport in 1638 from the local Quinnipiack Native American tribe. It remained a part of New Haven until 1786 when 1,400 local residents incorporated the area as a separate town, naming it after the English statesman John Hampden.

Largely developed as a nodal collection of village-like settlements, (which remain distinct today,) including Mount Carmel, (home to Quinnipiac University), Whitneyville, Spring Glen, West Woods, and Highwood, Hamden has a long-standing industrial history. In 1798, four years after Eli Whitney began manufacturing the cotton gin in New Haven, he made arms for the U.S. Government at a mill site in Hamden, where a waterfall provided a good source of power. At that site, Whitney introduced the modern era of mass production with the concept of interchangeable parts.

The major thoroughfare through Hamden has been named Whitney Avenue in honor of Eli Whitney, and it runs past Whitney's old factory, now the Eli Whitney Museum.

Whitney constructed stone houses for his employees in the nearby area, which is still referred to as Whitneyville; this is believed to be the first example of employer-provided homes in U.S. history. In 1806, the dam that Eli Whitney built at the mill site was enlarged to create a reservoir, Lake Whitney. The first truss bridge in the United States was erected nearby over the Mill River in Whitneyville in 1823, but has since been replaced.

The Farmington Canal, which ship travel from New Haven northward, passed through Hamden between 1825 and 1848 until it was supplanted by railroad travel. The canal right-of-way has become, in recent years, a popular walking and bicycling trail, passing by some of the well-preserved locks of the canal, as well as some of Hamden's oldest sites. Before its use as a walking and bicycling trail, many local residents rode their motocross bikes on the Farmington Canal.

During the 19th and early 20th centuries, Hamden received a steady influx of immigrants, most notably from Italy and Ireland. To this day, a large part of Greater New Haven's Italian-American community resides in Hamden.

During the post-war period, Hamden underwent significant suburban development. Much of the southern section of town is urbanized and is difficult to distinguish from neighboring New Haven. The northern section of town, however, retains a more rural character, and has the distinct neighborhood of Mount Carmel. This area of town is the location of the unique Sleeping Giant hill formation that is the source of the town's nickname.

[edit] Notable features

The Town Hall at the center of Hamden has a distinctive appearance. Across the street is Freedom Park, which contains a fountain with concrete stepping stones leading to a sign that pleads for peace in several different languages.

Hamden was host to the Ghost Parking Lot, a notable roadside public art installation located in front of the Hamden Plaza shopping center in Hamden's commercial district on Dixwell Avenue. Erected in 1978, it consisted of 15 car hulks, specially treated and encased in asphalt. Although featured in over 100 art books, the attraction was torn down in 2003 due to the excessive cost of restoration and repair. ^[2]

In 2008, Fortune Magazine and CNN Money picked Hamden as #33 on their "Best Place to Live and Launch" list, citing Hamden's great blend of urban and suburban lifestyles. The article also pointed out Hamden's exceptional education system as well as its "New England Charm". ^[3]

[edit] Notable people, past and present

Ernest Borgnine, the actor, was born in town.
Scott Burrell, two-sport athlete and longtime professional basketball player, grew up in town and attended the high school where he was also the starting quarterback on the varsity team.
Joe Castiglione, former TV play-by-play man for the Cleveland Indians, currently radio play-by-play man for the Boston Red Sox
Thomas P. Colangelo (1949-2007), main designer of most famous high-end audio brand Mark Levinson. His designs put the American audio industry back on the map.
Paul Fusco, the voice, creator, and puppeteer of ALF, grew up in town.
Edward W. Gosselin (1917 – December 7, 1941), a U.S. Navy ensign who died in the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, was born in town.
Linda Greenhouse (born 1947), Pulitzer prize winning journalist, grew up in town.
Donald Hall, poet, named poet laureate of the United States in 2006, grew up in town.
Anttaj Hawthorne, Oakland Raiders defensive tackle, grew up in town and starred on the high school football team.
Jeff Natale, minor-league baseball in the Boston Red Sox organization, lives in town. Also taught at Hamden Middle School.
Jaroslav Pelikan (1923–2006) one of the world's leading scholars in the history of Christianity and medieval intellectual history, died in town, but not before saying the last of his many aphorisms: "If Christ is risen, nothing else matters. And if Christ is not risen -- nothing else matters."
Jonathan Quick, NHL goalie. Rookie in 2007. Played first game for the Los Angeles Kings on December 6, 2007.
The Rock (Dwayne Douglas Johnson, b. 1972), professional wrestler and actor, spent part of his childhood in town, attending Shepherd Glen Elementary and Hamden Middle School.
Thornton Wilder, the playwright, lived in town and is buried in Mount Carmel Cemetery. In tribute to him, the Miller library (the town's main library) has a stage/performing arts wing named the Thorton Wilder Hall.
C. Vann Woodward (1908–1999), pre-eminent historian focusing on the South and race relations, was a resident of the town at the time of his death.
Eli Whitney, inventor of the cotton gin.

[edit] Education

[edit] Public

[edit] Elementary schools

West Woods Elementary School
Church Street Elementary School
Spring Glen Elementary School
Shepherd Glen Elementary School
Ridge Hill Elementary School
Dunbar Hill Elementary School
Bear Path Elementary School
Helen Street Elementary School
Alice Peck Elementary School

[edit] Middle school

Hamden Middle School (grades 7 and 8, with an enrollment of about 1,200 students)

[edit] Magnet schools

Wintergreen Interdistrict Magnet School (grades: Kindergarten through 8)
Highville Mustard Seed Charter School (High school)

[edit] High schools

Eli Whitney Technical High School
Hamden High School (grades 9–12, with an enrollment of about 2,200 students)

[edit] Private

Hamden is home to several private and religious schools, including:

Hamden Hall Country Day School
Laurel Oaks Adventist School (grades 1–8)
Sacred Heart Academy
St. Stephen School (Roman Catholic, grades pre-K to 8)
St. Rita School[1] (Roman Catholic, grades pre-K to 8)
West Woods Christian Academy (evangelical Christian, grades K-12)

[edit] Colleges and universities

Quinnipiac University, which has an enrollment of about 8,000 students
Paier College of Art
Mount Sacred Heart College, a Catholic women's college associated with Sacred Heart Academy, closed in 1997.

[edit] Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 33.3 square miles (86.3 km²), of which, 32.8 square miles (84.9 km²) of it is land and 0.5 square miles (1.4 km²) of it (1.62%) is water. The town features the Mill River, which runs from the northern part of town, is dammed to form Lake Whitney, and flows from there to the Long Island Sound. The town also has the Quinnipiac River and Lake Wintergreen, as well as numerous small streams.

[edit] Principal communities

Hamden center
Augerville
Centerville
Highwood
Mount Carmel
Spring Glen
Whitneyville
West Woods

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^[4] of 2000, there were 56,913 people, 22,408 households, and 14,027 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,736.1 people per square mile (670.4/km²). There were 23,464 housing units at an average density of 715.7/sq mi (276.4/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 77.30% White, 15.53% African American, 0.13% Native American, 3.53% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 1.61% from other races, and 1.87% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.26% of the population.

There were 22,408 households out of which 26.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.2% were married couples living together, 11.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.4% were non-families. 31.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 2.98.

In the town the population was spread out with 20.8% under the age of 18, 12.1% from 18 to 24, 27.9% from 25 to 44, 21.5% from 45 to 64, and 17.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 84.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 80.3 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $52,351, and the median income for a family was $65,301. Males had a median income of $45,909 versus $35,941 for females. The per capita income for the town was $26,039. About 4.5% of families and 7.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.4% of those under age 18 and 7.8% of those age 65 or over.

Voter Registration and Party Enrollment as of October 25, 2005^[5]
Party		Active Voters	Inactive Voters	Total Voters	Percentage
	Democratic	13,161	701	13,862	37.98%
	Republican	4,782	369	5,151	14.11%
	Unaffiliated	15,593	1,828	17,421	47.74%
	Minor Parties	57	4	61	0.17%
Total		33,593	2,902	36,495	100%

[edit] See also

Northeastern United States tornado outbreak of 1989

[edit] References

^ U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates
^ See http://www.planetizen.com/node/10828
^ See 100 best places to live and launch, CNN Money, and Striving To Be The Best of the Best by Mayor Craig B. Henrici, Hamden website, March 31, 2008
^ American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
^ Registration and Party Enrollment Statistics as of October 25, 2005 (PDF). Connecticut Secretary of State. Retrieved on 2006-10-02.

[edit] External links

Hamden, Connecticut is at coordinates 41°23′45″N 72°53′49″W / 41.3959, -72.8968 (Hamden, Connecticut)Coordinates: 41°23′45″N 72°53′49″W / 41.3959, -72.8968 (Hamden, Connecticut)

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v • d • e Municipalities and communities of New Haven County, Connecticut

Cities	Ansonia \| Derby \| Meriden \| Milford \| New Haven \| Waterbury \| West Haven

Towns	Beacon Falls \| Bethany \| Branford \| Cheshire \| East Haven \| Guilford \| Hamden \| Madison \| Middlebury \| Naugatuck* \| North Branford \| North Haven \| Orange \| Oxford \| Prospect \| Seymour \| Southbury \| Wallingford \| Wolcott \| Woodbridge *Consolidated borough and town

Borough	Woodmont

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Hamden, Connecticut

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[edit] History