Enfield, Connecticut: Difference between revisions

Enfield, Connecticut
Town
Thompsonville Village of Enfield, Connecticut
FIPS code		09-25990
GNIS feature ID	0212332
Website	www.enfield-ct.gov

Enfield is a

Jonathan Edwards preached his famous sermon, "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God", in Enfield. It was part of the Great Awakening revival that struck New England in the mid-18th century and spread throughout Western North American civilization.

The modern town of Enfield was formed through the merging of Enfield, Thompsonville, and Hazardville, named for Colonel Augustus George Hazard (1802–1868), whose company manufactured gunpowder in the Powder Hollow area of the town from the 1830s to the 1910s. In the 1989 film Glory, boxes of gunpowder can be seen with the words Enfield, CT printed on the sides. In an episode in the 1970s police drama Hawaii Five-O, Jack Lord's character Steve McGarrett traces explosives back to "The Hazard Gunpowder Company- Enfield, CT". The capacity of the mill at the time of the Civil War was 1,200 pounds (540 kg) per day.^[3] Over 60 people died in explosions in Powder Hollow during the years when gunpowder was manufactured there. The mill blew up several times, but was set up so that if one building blew up, the rest would not follow in a chain reaction. The ruins of these buildings and the dams are open to the public. Powder Hollow is now home to baseball fields and hiking trails.

King's Island in the Connecticut River, previously known as Terry Island (or Terry's Island, or Great Island),^[4] was the location of pivotal meetings of Adventist Christians in 1872 and 1873.^[5][5]

There are five sections of the town of Enfield. Enfield Village, Thompsonville, Hazardville, Scitico, and Sherwood Village.

Enfield Shaker village

In 1793, a historic

Demographics

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 34.2 square miles (88.6 km²), of which 33.3 square miles (86.2 km²) is land and 0.93 square miles (2.4 km²), or 2.76%, is water.^[1]

As of the

There were 16,418 households out of which 31.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.7% were married couples living together, 10.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.6% were non-families. 25.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.53 and the average family size was 3.04.

In the town, the population was spread out with 22.6% under the age of 18, 7.6% from 18 to 24, 34.2% from 25 to 44, 21.9% from 45 to 64, and 13.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 110.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 112.7 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $67,402, and the median income for a family was $77,554. Males had a median income of $42,335 versus $31,082 for females. The

Industry

Enfield is home to the U.S. headquarters of Danish plastic building toy manufacturer Lego, which was also the town's largest employer. Hallmark Cards was the town's second-largest employer. It is now closed, having sent all distribution to Kansas City in 2016.

Enfield was once the home to the headquarters of the Casual Corner clothing company.

Formerly and most notably, Enfield had booming carpet and gunpowder industries. Orrin Thompson set up shop for the Bigelow-Sanford Carpet Co. in the Thompsonville section of town, employing many Scottish immigrants and building housing for them, which still stand today.

The gunpowder industry was founded by Colonel Augustus Hazard. Hazard was instrumental in implementing water power and other technologies to allow his business to prosper. Hazard's company was among the biggest gunpowder suppliers for the American Civil War.

Enfield was the headquarters of Pilch Meat Breeders, which was once the second-largest broiler breeder in the world. The company was founded by Chester Pilch in 1936, and sold in 1969 to DeKalb Agricultural Research Corp. At its peak, Pilch owned 230 acres in Enfield, had farms in four countries, and produced about 24 million chickens a year. DeKalb moved the operation to North Carolina, taking 365 jobs from Enfield.^[10]

Enfield is currently the headquarters of Precision Camera and Video Repair.

The town contains several shopping centers, including the

Top employers

According to Enfield's 2011 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report,^[11] the top employers in the city are:

Neighborhoods

The neighborhoods of Enfield are:

"Crescent Lake"-Borders scenic farmland. It is in close proximity to both the minimum and maximum correctional facilities. This small friendly neighborhood holds an annual July 4 parade.

Enfield Historical District- Listed in the

Hazardville – Named after Colonel Augustus Hazard, this neighborhood encompasses a few smaller burbs, including Powder Hollow, and more recently, the center of Enfield began to encroach on this historical area. The center of Hazardville is located between the streets of Park Street and North Street on Hazard Avenue. Notable small shops include The Connecticut Valley Tobacconist, Gayle's Thyme Herbal Apothecary, The Cranberry Scoop Gift Shop, Smoke n' Leather, and numerous pizzerias. The Powder Hollow Park is located in the Hazardville neighborhood district.

North Thompsonville – Contains mostly residential and partially commercial areas of Enfield with many parks and schools.

Presidential Section – This entirely residential area contain streets that are all named after former presidents of the United States. Houses are mid-sized to large in this area.

Scitico – located in the eastern end of town. Green Manor is considered part of Scitico. This is a suburb in the purest sense, with winding roads, sidewalks, a park, and cul-de-sacs. Green Manor is approximately 4.5 miles (7.2 km) from the main highway Interstate 91 and borders the town of Somers. Across from Nathan Hale Elementary School is a residential park with tennis court, skate boarding ramps, and a playground for younger kids. Green Manor Park contained a pool at one time but was removed due to the lack of maintenance by the town.

Shaker Pines – This neighborhood consists mostly of quaint lakeside houses with tall pine trees towering overhead. Shaker Pines was originally part of the Shaker settlement in Enfield. The lake was built by the Shakers to power a mill. The mill stood vacant by the dam at the end of the lake, until it was dismantled in the 1980s. This mill provided shelter for Frederick Merrill in 1987 after he escaped from the local high security prison. He was dubbed "The Peanut Butter Bandit" after his mother sneaked him supplies for his first prison escape in 1968 in a jar of peanut butter.

Sherwood Manor

commuter bus services for easy access to and from Hartford.

Parks and recreation

• Brainerd Park: on Brainard Road, features softball fields, children's swing sets.
• Connecticut River
• Green Manor Recreational Area: off Taylor Road, features playscape, skate park
• Hazardville Park: off Hazard Avenue, features playscapes, basketball courts, covered picnic area
• Mark Twain Recreational Area: off South Road, features tennis courts, ball fields
• Scantic River State Park: near South Maple Street Bridge, rapids for canoeing and kayaking, fishing

Enfield is home to the New England Lightning girls AAU basketball program.

Government and infrastructure

Connecticut Department of Correction prisons are located in Enfield.^[13] Enfield Correctional Institution,^[14] Robinson Correctional Institution,^[15] and Willard-Cybulski Correctional Institution are in Enfield.^[16]

In January 2013, the town began running the Magic Carpet public bus service. The in-town bus provides service to Thompsonville, Hazard Avenue, and Elm Street.

Education

Asnuntuck Community College is a two-year college in Enfield.^[17]

Enfield Public Schools operates the town's public schools.

intermediate schools educate students from grade 3 through grade 5, the middle school grades 6 through grade 8, and the high school

runs from grade 9 through grade 12.

Thomas G. Alcorn School was originally a high school until it was converted to an elementary school when the current high school (Enfield High School) was built in the 1960s. It was later extensively renovated in 1993. Enrico Fermi High School was one of two high schools in town, which opened in 1972, but closed in 2016 as a result of the town's high school consolidation into Enfield High School.

As of 2016, Enfield Public Schools educates approximately 5,000 students.

Capitol Region Education Council has its own magnet school in Enfield. The Public Safety Academy ranges from grade 6 through 12

Three Catholic parochial schools (Kindergarten through grade 8) serve the Enfield community. Typically, these schools operate on the same academic calendar as the public schools.

Notable people

• Johnny April
  , bassist for the alternative metal/hard rock band Staind
• John Ashton, actor, attended Enfield High School
• Elijah Churchill, soldier in the American Revolutionary War and recipient of the medal later known as the Purple Heart
• Kevin Foxe, film producer, writer, executive producer of The Blair Witch Project; born and raised in Enfield, graduated Enfield High School
• Obed Hale, Wisconsin farmer and politician, born in Enfield
• Craig Janney, Olympian and professional ice hockey center (former resident)
• Peter King, football columnist for Sports Illustrated and author
• The Larry Mondello Band, way deep underground noise rock artists, all members attended Enrico Fermi High School
• Elisha M. Pease, politician and two-term governor of Texas (elected in 1853 and 1855). Renamed 15th Street in Austin, Texas, Enfield Road after the town where he was born.^[18]
• Paul Robeson, singer and actor (former resident)
• Karen Scavotto, Olympic archer
• Bill Spanswick, pitcher for the Boston Red Sox^[19]
• NHL player with the Hartford Whalers
  .
• Nathaniel Terry, Congressman from Connecticut (served 1817-1819)
• The Last Goodnight, band originally from Enfield and formerly called Renata; attended Enfield High School

Notable historical sites

• The Strand Theatre (Enfield Cinema), most prominently active in the 1940s and '50s. In the '70s the Strand had to resort to X-rated films to remain afloat until finally closing doors in the 1980s. Locals have many ideas for the future of the theater, but it is in great disrepair.
• Bigelow-Sanford Carpet Co., now Bigelow Commons, a renovated apartment complex. These buildings were the site of a large carpet company that employed many in the town. Listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
• The Enfield Town Meetinghouse was built in 1773 and was entered into the National Register of Historic Places in 1974

Sister cities

Enfield has two official

sister cities as designated by Sister Cities International:^[20]

• Republic of China
  )
• Ronneby, Sweden

See also

References

1. ^ ^{a b} "Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Demographic Profile Data (G001): Enfield town, Hartford County, Connecticut". U.S. Census Bureau, American Factfinder. Retrieved November 26, 2012.
2. ISBN 978-0-9755362-5-4
   . Retrieved 22 September 2010.
3. ISBN 978-0-9755362-5-4
   . Retrieved 22 September 2010.
4. ^ "Public Act No. 09-203", State of Connecticut, July 7, 2009, As Retrieved 2010-03-12
5. ^ ^{a b} "The Adventists at Terry Island", The New York Times, November 28, 1873, As Retrieved 2010-03-12
6. ^ "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Incorporated Places: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2014". Retrieved June 4, 2015.
7. ^ "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Archived from the original on May 12, 2015. Retrieved June 4, 2015. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
8. ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on 2013-09-11. Retrieved 2008-01-31. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
9. ^ "Registration and Party Enrollment Statistics as of October 25, 2005" (PDF). Connecticut Secretary of State. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2006-09-23. Retrieved 2006-10-02.
10. ^ Navarro Alejandra (December 13, 1997). "Chester Pilch Dies". Hartford Courant. Retrieved 31 December 2013.
11. ^ "Town of Enfield CAFR" (PDF).^{[permanent dead link]}
12. ^ Lightman, David and Larry Smith (2007-04-14). "Constituents Make A Pitch". The Hartford Courant. Retrieved 2007-04-21.^{[permanent dead link]}
13. ^ "Zoning Map Archived 2010-07-25 at the Wayback Machine." Enfield, Connecticut. Retrieved on August 16, 2010.
14. ^ "Enfield Correctional Institution." Connecticut Department of Correction. Retrieved on August 16, 2010.
15. ^ "Robinson Correctional Institution." Connecticut Department of Correction. Retrieved on August 16, 2010.
16. ^ "Willard-Cybulski Correctional Institution." Connecticut Department of Correction. Retrieved on August 16, 2010.
17. ^ "Welcome." Asnuntuck Community College. Retrieved on August 16, 2010.
18. ^ "Austin Streets: Street Name Origins." Retrieved on May 10, 2011.
19. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2006-09-13. Retrieved 2006-09-17. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
20. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2006-10-02. Retrieved 2007-03-21. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)

External links

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Enfield (Connecticut).

• Media related to Enfield, Connecticut at Wikimedia Commons
• Official website
• Enfield Historical Society
• Enfield School District
• Enfield Shakers Historic District, Shaker Historic Trail
• Hartford Courant: Enfield iTowns Blog
• Journal Inquirer: Enfield news