Brookfield, Connecticut

Brookfield, Connecticut
—  Town  —
Seal
Location in Fairfield County, Connecticut
Coordinates: 41°28′07″N 73°23′31″W
Country	US
State	Connecticut
NECTA	Danbury
Region	Housatonic Valley
Incorporated	1788
Government
• Type	Selectman-town meeting
• First selectman	Bill Davidson
Area
• Total	20.4 sq mi (52.8 km2)
• Land	19.8 sq mi (51.3 km2)
• Water	0.6 sq mi (1.6 km2)
Elevation	459 ft (140 m)
Population (2010)
• Total	16,452
• Density	806.5/sq mi (311.4/km2)
Time zone	EST (UTC−5)
• Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC−4)
ZIP code	06804
Area code(s)	203
FIPS code	09-08980
GNIS feature ID	0213399
Website	http://www.brookfield.org/

Brookfield is a town located in northern Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 16,452 at the 2010 census. First settled in 1710 by John Muirwood and several other colonial founders who bartered for the land From the Wyantenuck Nation Under the Sachem Waramaugs who lived in a enormous Palisade along the Still river. eventually when the town was settledit was established as the Parish of Newbury, which incorporated parts of neighboring Newtown and Danbury, the town of Brookfield was established in 1788. It was named after the first minister of the parish's Congregational church, Reverend Thomas Brooks.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 20.4 square miles (53 km²), of which 19.8 square miles (51 km²) is land and 0.6 square miles (1.6 km²), or 2.94%, is water.

Principal communities

• Brookfield Four Corners (town center)
• Brookfield Center (original town center, now a historic district)

Other named minor communities and geographic locations in the town are Brookfield Junction, Candlewood Lake East, Candlewood Shores, East Iron Works, Huckleberry Hill, Iron Works, Long Meadow Hill, Obtuse, Pocono Ridge, Prospect Hill, West Iron Works, and Whisconier.

History

Main article: History of Brookfield, Connecticut

Before the English settled the area, it was inhabited by the Paugusset and Wyantenuck Native Americans, members of the Algonquin Federation. The Wyantenuck were an off shoot of the Paugusset Nation who lived in present day New Milford. The people that lived here were subsistence farmers, gatherers and hunters. The main food sources were corn, beans, squash and wild foods found in the rocky, heavily forested foot hills of the Berkshire Mountains of Brookfield and New Milford. Such wild foods that were harvested were White Oak acorns , American Chestnuts , Shag bark Hickory nuts , may apples, beach nuts and Solomon seal. The hunted foods that were taken from the forest and rivers were Deer, Passenger Pigeon , Turkey ,Bass , Trout, Cray Fish ,squirrel, rabbit and many more. h In the 18th century the community was called "Newbury", a name that came from the three towns from which its land was taken – New Milford, Newtown, and Danbury.

As traveling to surrounding churches was difficult in winter, in 1752 the General Assembly granted the community the right to worship in area homes from September through March. In 1754, the General Assembly granted permission for the Parish of Newbury to build its own meeting house and recruit its own minister. On September 28, 1757, the first Congregational Church building was dedicated. The Reverend Thomas Brooks was ordained as the first settled minister. Incorporated in 1778, the town's name was changed to Brookfield in honor of Brooks, who was still the minister.

Along the Still River, mills were in operation as early as 1732 in an area that became known as the Iron Works District. Brookfield was a thriving town with iron furnaces, grist mills, sawmills, comb shops, carding and cotton mills, a paper mill, a knife factory, hat factories, stage-coach shops, lime kilns, harness shops and other plants in operation. The grist mill still stands, as the Brookfield Craft Center. The Iron Works Aqueduct Company, formed in 1837 to supply water from mountain springs to the Iron Works District, still supplies water as the Brookfield Water Company.

Before 1912 the town had two train stations: one in the Iron Works District near the present Brookfield Market and a second, Junction Station, near the corner of Junction Road and Stony Hill Road.

The Danbury & Bethel Gas and Electric Company brought electricity to Brookfield in 1915. The .475 Wildey Magnum gun, later made famous in the 1985 Charles Bronson movie Death Wish 3, was developed by Wildey J. Moore in Brookfield in the early 1970s (the factory has since moved to Warren, Connecticut).

In the early 1970s, the town was home to LEGO USA headquarters.

The White Turkey Inn was razed in 1972. A historic, rambling, and quintessentially New England building, the White Turkey Inn was situated on several bucolic acres with towering trees and ponds at the intersection of U.S. Route 7/Federal Road and what is now referred to as Candlewood Lake Road.

Some controversy regarding large-scale commercial and residential development is part of ongoing local conversation. Going back to the early 1980s, Brookfield has been radically transformed from a colonial New England town to a major shopping and consumer goods destination. The area surrounding Candlewood Lake has also seen increased residential growth and volume of summer traffic.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 15,664 people, 5,572 households, and 4,368 families residing in the town. The population density was 791.1 people per square mile (305.4/km²). There were 5,781 housing units at an average density of 292.0 per square mile (112.7/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 95.29% White, 0.76% Black or African American, 0.07% Native American, 2.48% Asian, 0.61% from other races, and 0.79% from two or more races. 2.37% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 5,573 households out of which 39.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 68.1% were married couples living together, 7.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 21.6% were non-families. 17.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.80 and the average family size was 3.18.

In the town the population was spread out with 27.4% under the age of 18, 4.9% from 18 to 24, 29.2% from 25 to 44, 27.8% from 45 to 64, and 10.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 94.7 males, slightly under the US average. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.0 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $82,706, and the median income for a family was $91,296. Males had a median income of $63,396 versus $36,318 for females. The per capita income for the town was $37,063. About 1.2% of families and 2.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.4% of those under age 18 and 2.3% of those age 65 or over.

Voter Registration and Party Enrollment as of October 25, 2005
Party		Active Voters	Inactive Voters	Total Voters	Percentage
	Republican	3,607	382	3,989	37.07%
	Democratic	1,801	250	2,051	19.06%
	Unaffiliated	3,968	699	4,667	43.37%
	Minor Parties	49	6	55	0.51%
Total		9,425	1,337	10,762	100%

Education

Brookfield's public schools are Brookfield High School, Center School, Whisconier Middle School, and Huckleberry Hill School. The town parochial school is St. Joseph School.

The Brookfield Craft Center is a specialized, non-degree school which teaches the skills of craftsmanship and offers courses and workshops to the general public.

Points of interest

• Brookfield Center Historic District — Long Meadow Hill Rd. (added September 15, 1991)
• Candlewood Lake — the largest lake in Connecticut, Candlewood spans five towns and forms the western border of Brookfield.

Notable residents

• Lester Beall, modern graphic design pioneer.
• Julia DeMato, contestant on American Idol
• Will Denton, actor on the NBC series Kidnapped.
• M. Jodi Rell, governor of Connecticut (in office from 2004–2011, resident since 1969)
• Gene Sarazen, golfer, won the United States Open, British Open, PGA Championship, and The Masters. He built Sunset Hill Golf Course in Brookfield.
• Kari Wührer (born 1967), actress and singer of Cherokee and German descent.

Media

• WINE-AM 940; 1,000 watts
• WRKI-FM 95.1; 50,000 watts; the station has a "mainstream rock" format and covers Fairfield, Litchfield, New Haven counties in Connecticut and Putnam, Dutchess, Westchester counties in New York

External links

• Town of Brookfield official website
• Brookfield Public Schools
• Brookfield Library
• Brookfield Chamber of Commerce
• Brookfield Craft Center
• Brookfield Museum and Historical Society
• Brookfield Theatre for the Arts
• Candlewood Lake Authority