New Milford, Connecticut should not be confused with Milford, Connecticut.
| New Milford, Connecticut | |
| Native Name: | Weantinock |
| Native Name Lang: | Algonquian language |
| Motto: | "Gateway to Litchfield County"[1] |
| Settlement Type: | Town |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | United States |
| Subdivision Type1: | U.S. state |
| Subdivision Name1: | Connecticut |
| Subdivision Type2: | County |
| Subdivision Name2: | Litchfield |
| Subdivision Type3: | Region |
| Subdivision Name3: | Western CT |
| Established Title: | Settled |
| Established Date: | 1707 |
| Established Title2: | Incorporated |
| Established Date2: | 1712[2] |
| Government Type: | Mayor-council |
| Leader Title: | Mayor |
| Leader Name: | Pete Bass[3] |
| Leader Title1: | Town Council |
| Area Total Km2: | 165.0 |
| Area Land Km2: | 159.5 |
| Area Water Km2: | 5.5 |
| Unit Pref: | Imperial |
| Population As Of: | 2020 |
| Population Total: | 28115[4] |
| Population Density Km2: | 176.3 |
| Timezone: | Eastern |
| Utc Offset: | -5 |
| Timezone Dst: | Eastern |
| Utc Offset Dst: | -4 |
| Elevation Ft: | 236 |
| Coordinates: | 41.5769°N -73.4083°W |
| Postal Code Type: | ZIP Codes |
| Postal Code: | 06755, 06776 |
| Area Code: | 860/959 |
| Blank Name: | FIPS code |
| Blank Info: | 09-52630 |
| Blank1 Name: | GNIS feature ID |
| Blank1 Info: | 209242 |
New Milford is a town in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. The town, part of Greater Danbury, as well as the New York Metropolitan Area, has a population of 28,115 as of the 2020 census.[5] New Milford lies north of Danbury on the banks of the Housatonic River, and shares its border with the northeastern shore of Candlewood Lake. It is the largest town in the state of Connecticut in terms of land area at nearly 63.7 mi2 (164.9822 km). The town center is listed as a census-designated place (CDP).
New Milford is located roughly west of Hartford, northeast of New York City proper, and 80 miles from Midtown Manhattan.
New Milford consists of a number of town sub-divisions (i.e. boroughs, districts, communities, or neighborhoods), including Gaylordsville, Merryall, and Northville. The town's infrastructure largely branches off of either side of the highway routes U.S. 7 and U.S. 202, which intersect and split within the town and together form its main thoroughfare.
The area constituting contemporary New Milford was originally inhabited by the indigenous Wawyachtonoc people, while the town of New Milford itself was formally established by English colonists in the early 18th century.
The indigenous Wawyachtonoc people were a sub-group of the Paugussett Nation, and later a Mahican-affiliated Native American tribe, that lived in the area of contemporary New Milford both before and during the colonial era. They had a farming and fishing culture, cultivating corn—mainly by the Housatonic and Still rivers[6] —squash, beans and tobacco, and fished in freshwater areas.[7] They spoke an Algonquian language. The Wawyachtonoc's primary village, "Weantinock", was located near present-day New Milford, along the Housatonic River.
In 1707, John Noble Sr., previously of Westfield, Massachusetts, and his eight-year-old daughter Sarah Noble were the first Anglo-American settlers. (A public school was later named after Sarah Noble.) They were soon joined by others who had bought land there.[8]
On October 17, 1711, twelve families (including a total about 70 people) petitioned the Connecticut General Assembly to create the town, together with the associated privilege of levying a tax to support a minister. With the legislature's approval, the town was organized the next year. The residents soon secured Daniel Boardman to preach, and he was ordained as the minister of the Congregational Church on November 21, 1716.[8] [9]
In 1722, most of northwestern Connecticut (except for the town of Litchfield) was placed under the jurisdiction of New Haven County. In 1730, the eastern half of northwestern Connecticut was transferred to the jurisdiction of Hartford County. But New Milford, Salisbury and Sharon continued in New Haven County until the formation of Litchfield County in 1751.
Roger Sherman lived in New Milford before moving to New Haven in 1761.[8] He later became a member of the Continental Congress and signed both the Declaration of Independence and U.S. Constitution. The lot of his former house is the site of the present Town Hall.
During the American Revolution, the 7th Connecticut Regiment (also known as the 19th Continental Regiment) was raised in town on September 16, 1776. The regiment, and the New Milford men in it, would see action in the Battle of Brandywine, Battle of Germantown and the Battle of Monmouth. In total, the town "sent 285 men to fight in the War out of a total population of 2,776."[8]
During the early- to mid-19th century, New Milford was home to several locations that were part of the Underground Railroad network.
In the second half of the 19th century, many new industries came to town. The Water Witch Hose Company No. 2, local telephone and electricity companies, and newspapers were all founded. Factories in town made buttons, paint and varnish, hats, furniture, pottery, lime, dairy products and pasteboard, among other goods. Tobacco became the major crop in the area, and tobacco warehouses sprang up to handle its storage and processing before sales.
In 1942 Buck's Rock Camp was founded off Bucks Rock Road, and has remained in operation ever since.
The house that inspired the 1946 novel and 1948 film, Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House, still stands in the Merryall section of town.
The town has constructed a 1,000,000-gallon sewer plant expansion on West Street, a sewer pump station on Boardman Road, reconstruction of the Rte. 67/ Grove Street Intersection, and ambulance facility on Scovill Street.
The town has added a skate park at Young's Field (2006), reconstructed the tennis and basketball courts at Young's Field (2010), reconstructed the basketball court at Williamson Park in Gaylordsville (2010), and improved Lynn Deming Park (2017), and is working on the New Milford River Trail,[10] which will eventually join the existing 1.5-mile Sega Meadows Park trail (2012), 3.5 miles of River Road, and the 0.25-mile Young's Field River Trail (2017) and link them to the greenways in the neighboring towns of Brookfield and Kent.[11] Several streetscape projects were completed by the Department of Public Works (DPW) with grant money on Church Street, Whittlesey Avenue, and the west side of East Street (2009/2010). Candlewoof Dog Park is completed on Pickett District Road. A bocce ball court was constructed at the Senior Center by Boy Scout Troop 66 (2012).
New Milford is frequented on weekends between the months of April and December, when visitors attend the Elephant's Trunk Flea Market, a large outdoor flea market located near the southern end of the town which WRKI has claimed is the largest weekly flea market in New England.[12]
The trend of town population growth has continued but slowed since the beginning of the 21st century.
New Milford is located on the northeastern shore of Candlewood Lake. The East Aspetuck River, Still River and Housatonic River flow through the town. Downtown New Milford is home to a large town green, commonly cited as the longest town green in the state of Connecticut.[13]
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 165.1km2, making it the largest town in Connecticut. Behind New Milford is Greenwich with 47.62 square miles . 159.5km2 of New Milford is land, and 5.6km2 of New Milford (3.40%) is water.[14] The CDP corresponding to the town center has a total area of 3.4sqmi, of which 3.4sqmi is land and 0.04sqmi (0.88%) is water.
The Greater New Milford Area, also known as Southern Litchfield County, encompasses a cluster of charming towns nestled in the scenic landscapes of Connecticut. This region includes Bridgewater, Kent, New Milford, Roxbury, Sherman, Warren, and Washington. With a combined urban and town proper population of 43,732, the area is celebrated for its rich history, rural charm, and picturesque surroundings. Residents and visitors alike are drawn to the area's historic architecture, vibrant community life, and a harmonious blend of urban and rural living.[15]
New Milford has a humid continental climate, with mild to warm humid summers and cold to very cold winters and precipitation being relatively uniformly distributed throughout the year. The highest recorded temperature was 103 °F (39 °C) in July 1966, while the lowest recorded temperature was −18 °F (−28 °C) in January 1968.[16] Snowfall is generally frequent in winter.
See also: List of Connecticut locations by per capita income.
As of the census[17] of 2010, there were 28,142 people, 10,618 households, and 7,503 families residing in the town. The population density was 456.9sp=usNaNsp=us. There were 11,731 housing units at an average density of 190.4sp=usNaNsp=us. The racial makeup of the town was 91.71% White, 1.72% Black or African American, 0.24% Native American, 2.77% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 1.65% from other races, and 1.87% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race was 6.02% of the population.
Of the 10,618 households, 33.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.0% were married couples living together, 8.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.3% were non-families. 23.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.62 and the average family size was 3.13.
In the town, the population had 24.30% under the age of 18, 6.87% from 18 to 24, 24.90% from 25 to 44, 31.75% from 45 to 64, and 12.18% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41.4 years. For every 100 females, there were 97.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.6 males.
As of the 2000 Census the median income for a household in the town was $65,354, and the median income for a family was $75,775. Males had a median income of $50,523 versus $34,089 for females. The per capita income for the town was $29,630. About 2.1% of families and 3.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.7% of those under age 18 and 5.5% of those age 65 or over.
| Voter registration and party enrollment as of November 1, 2022[18] | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Active voters | Inactive voters | Total voters | Percentage | ||||||
| Democratic | align = center | 4,918 | align = center | 313 | align = center | 5,231 | align = center | 27.58% | ||
| Republican | align = center | 4,959 | align = center | 290 | align = center | 5,249 | align = center | 27.67% | ||
| Unaffiliated | align = center | 7,555 | align = center | 586 | align = center | 8,141 | align = center | 42.92% | ||
| Minor parties | align = center | 321 | align = center | 25 | align = center | 346 | align = center | 1.83% | ||
| Total | align = center | 17,753 | align = center | 1,214 | align = center | 18,967 | align = center | 100% | ||
New Milford is known for its large church and religious school, the nondenominational Faith Church. It is also home to two Catholic churches; a Lutheran church; a Christian Science community; a longstanding Quaker community; a house of worship belonging to the United Church of Christ; a United Methodist church; and an Assemblies of God (Pentecostal) church; as well the Episcopalian (Anglican) St. John's Episcopal Church, located next to the town green. A Jewish Reform synagogue, Temple Sholom, is located near the town's border with Sherman.[19]
The Canterbury School, a well-known Catholic boarding school, is located near downtown New Milford.
New Milford is home to the GMS Rowing Center.[20] Founded in 2003, it manages a US Rowing Training Center Program. It has a highly successful Middle and High School (Junior) Program which competes at Youth National Championships, Junior National Team Trials, The "Royal Canadian Henley" and has sent rowers to the Junior World Rowing Championships.[21] In 2011 GMS also had rowers representing the US at the Under 23 World Championships in Amsterdam, the Netherlands and at the World Rowing Championships at Bled, Slovenia.[22]
New Milford is served by fixed-bus routes of the Housatonic Area Regional Transit. The main highways of the town are U.S. Route 7 and U.S. Route 202.
There has been continued talk about a proposal to electrify and restore the Danbury Branch of the Metro-North Railroad north of Danbury to New Milford. These efforts have included a Rail Study in 2008,[23] proposed state legislation in 2017,[24] and stimulus money in 2021.[25] The Danbury Branch provides commuter rail service between Danbury, to South Norwalk, Stamford, and Grand Central Terminal in New York City. The tracks north of Danbury are currently used by the Housatonic Railroad for freight service.
The following movies with their actual or expected year of release have been filmed in New Milford:[31]