Ellington, Connecticut

Ellington, Connecticut
Town

The town green

Seal
Motto: "A Great Place To Grow"[1]

Location in Tolland County, Connecticut
Coordinates: 41°55′00″N 72°27′28″W / 41.91667°N 72.45778°W / 41.91667; -72.45778Coordinates: 41°55′00″N 72°27′28″W / 41.91667°N 72.45778°W / 41.91667; -72.45778
Country United States
State Connecticut
NECTA Hartford
Region Capitol Region
Incorporated 1786
Government
 • Type Selectman-town meeting
 • First Selectman Lori Speilman (R)
 • Selectmen John W. Turner (R)
Ronald F. Stomberg (R)
Lori L. Spielman (R)
James M. Prichard (R)
A. Leo Miller (D)
Melinda M. Ferry (D)
Area
 • Total 34.6 sq mi (89.6 km2)
 • Land 34.1 sq mi (88.2 km2)
 • Water 0.6 sq mi (1.4 km2)
Elevation 246 ft (75 m)
Population (2010)
 • Total 15,602
 • Density 379.4/sq mi (146.5/km2)
Time zone Eastern (UTC-5)
 • Summer (DST) Eastern (UTC-4)
ZIP code 06029
Area code(s) 860
FIPS code 09-25360
GNIS feature ID 0212330
Website www.ellington-ct.gov

Ellington is a town in Tolland County, Connecticut, United States. Ellington was incorporated in May, 1786, from East Windsor. As of the 2010 census, the town population was 15,602.

History

Originally part of the Equivalent Lands and the town of Windsor, Ellington was part of the town of East Windsor from that town's incorporation in 1768 until Ellington split off twenty years later and incorporated itself in May 1786. Mostly known as an agricultural community, the Crystal Lake section of town was for a while a popular summer resort location.[2] Ellington still has a significant amount of property dedicated to agriculture including cattle and corn farming.

Ellington's sole representative to the voting on the adoption of the United States Constitution by Connecticut was Ebenezer Nash. Nash was an anti-federalist and voted against the ratification, which passed 128-40.

Ellington is home to one of America’s oldest roadside memorials. A stone in the southwest corner of the town marks the site where Samuel Knight was killed "by a cartwheel rolling over his head in 10th year of his age, Nov 8, 1812".

During the late 19th century and early 20th century, Ellington became the center of a community of Jewish immigrant farmers who were settled there by the philanthropist Baron Maurice de Hirsch's Jewish Colonization Association. They built a synagogue, Congregation Knesseth Israel,[3] that is still standing and in use by an active Modern Orthodox congregation today and is on the National Register of Historic Places.[4]

The former Ellington Supermarket, May 2006.

On January 1, 1967, Ellington made national news when its residents assisted the city fire department in rescuing a pilot whose plane was having engine trouble and was unable to locate a runway in a fog that cut visibility to 200 feet. Under the direction of the Connecticut State Police, dozens of people assembled at the town's unlit airstrip, Hyde Field, and illuminated the runway with their headlights, allowing the pilot to land safely. [5]

In 1991, Ellington was proposed as a potential site for a low level nuclear waste dump. Strong dissent from area residents forced the state to abandon the plan.[6]

As it enters the 21st Century, Ellington has had the 6th fastest growth rate of all the towns in Connecticut,[7] and has been experiencing changes in growing from a rural farming town to a bedroom community. Exemplative of this change was the displacement of the locally owned Ellington Supermarket by competition from the regional Big Y supermarket chain when a new Big Y was built adjacent to the older supermarket.[8] An independent film entitled The Supermarket, was made about the incident.[9][10]

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 34.6 square miles (90 km2), of which, 34.0 square miles (88 km2) of it is land and 0.6 square miles (1.6 km2) of it (1.59%) is water.

Ellington is bordered by the towns of East Windsor, South Windsor, Vernon, Tolland, Willington, Stafford, Somers, and Enfield.

The town has a panhandle extending to the east that extends to the Willimantic River and encompasses Crystal Lake. A large portion of the town's eastern portion is occupied by the Shenipsit State Forest which is bounded on the south by Shenipsit Lake and on the north by Soapstone Mountain.[11]

Neighborhoods

Demographics

Historical population
Census Pop. %±
18201,196—
18501,399—
18601,5107.9%
18701,452−3.8%
18801,5698.1%
18901,539−1.9%
19001,82918.8%
19101,9999.3%
19202,1276.4%
19302,2535.9%
19402,47910.0%
19503,09925.0%
19605,58080.1%
19707,70738.1%
19809,71126.0%
199011,19715.3%
200012,92115.4%
201015,60220.7%
Est. 201415,795[12]1.2%
U.S. Decennial Census[13]

As of the census[14] of 2000, there were 12,921 people, 5,195 households, and 3,470 families residing in the town. Ellington's population increased 20.8% between 2000 and 2010, making one of just four municipalities in Connecticut to achieve a growth rate of at least 20% for that period.[15] The population density was 379.4 people per square mile (146.5/km²). There were 5,417 housing units at an average density of 159.1 per square mile (61.4/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 96.23% White, 0.99% African American, 0.16% Native American, 1.29% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.44% from other races, and 0.87% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.40% of the population.

There were 5,195 households out of which 32.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.4% were married couples living together, 6.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.2% were non-families. 26.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 3.06.

In the town the population was spread out with 25.2% under the age of 18, 6.5% from 18 to 24, 35.0% from 25 to 44, 23.6% from 45 to 64, and 9.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 98.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.3 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $62,405, and the median income for a family was $77,813. Males had a median income of $47,334 versus $32,460 for females. The per capita income for the town was $27,766. About 2.7% of families and 3.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.1% of those under age 18 and 3.9% of those age 65 or over.

Voter Registration and Party Enrollment as of October 25, 2005[16]
Party Active Voters Inactive Voters Total Voters Percentage
Republican 1,926 67 1,993 22.61%
Democratic 1,905 55 1,960 22.23%
Unaffiliated 4,679 177 4,856 55.09%
Minor Parties 5 1 6 0.07%
Total 8,515 300 8,815 100%

Economy

Ellington is a rapidly growing community, and is going through the process of suburbanization,[7][17] which is related to the phenomenon of urban sprawl.

Education

Ellington Public Schools belong to the Ellington Public Schools school district.[18][19] The district has five public schools:

Elementary schools

Middle school

High school

Infrastructure

Roads

Though no Interstate Highways run through it, Ellington is approximately equidistant to both Interstate 84 and Interstate 91, each being about a ten- to fifteen-minute drive from most parts of town.

Several Connecticut State Roads run through town:

Rail

Ellington was formerly served by a seven-mile-long rail line built in 1876 running from Vernon to Melrose, that roughly paralleled Pinney St. and Sadds Mill Rd. The rail line became defunct in the middle part of the 20th Century.[20]

Ellington's town beach, Sandy Beach, located on Crystal Lake

Airports

Water

Crystal Lake, in the Eastern section of town, is used by many for Recreational boating.

Notable people

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Town of Ellington Connecticut". Town of Ellington Connecticut. Retrieved September 22, 2012.
  2. ↑ Staff; "Ellington Town Information"; The Hartford Courant; August 16, 2006
  3. ↑ Raider, Mark; Jewish Immigrant Farmers in the Connecticut Valley: The Rockville Settlement
  4. ↑ The National Register of Historic Places listings for Tolland County, Connecticut
  5. ↑ "Town Guides Lost Plane to Safe Landing— Light Small Airstrip with Cars, Trucks", Chicago Tribune, January 2, 1964, p1A-2
  6. ↑ "NUCLEAR WASTE Connecticut’s First Site Selection Process for a Disposal Facility";Report to Congressional Requesters U.S. General Accounting Office; April 1993
  7. 1 2 Coming to Terms with Growth; Town of Ellington Newsletter; September 2004; p2
  8. ↑ "Customers Bemoan The Imminent Closing Of Ellington Supermarket"; Journal Inquirer; July 8 2006
  9. ↑ "Former Employee Turns Ellington Supermarket Into Film Icon"; Journal Inquirer; November 10 2006
  10. ↑ "Former Supermarket Worker Makes Film At Old Store"; Progressive Grocer; November 15 2006
  11. ↑ Map of Shenipsit State Forest; Connecticut DEP
  12. ↑ "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Incorporated Places: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2014". Retrieved June 4, 2015.
  13. ↑ "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
  14. ↑ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  15. ↑ http://www.census.gov/prod/cen2010/cph-2-8.pdf "Connecticut: 2010 Population and Housing Unit Counts," U.S. Census Bureau, June 2012, page 32. Retrieved May 18, 2014.
  16. ↑ "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.
  17. ↑ Sacks, Michael P. (September 2004). "Suburban Sprawl, Urban Decline and Racial/Ethnic Segregation: Shifting Dimensions of Inequality in a U.S. Metro Area" (PDF). The Office of Population Research at Princeton University. Retrieved 2007-01-30.
  18. ↑ "Ellington Public Schools". Ellington Public Schools. Retrieved September 22, 2012.
  19. ↑ "Ellington School Districtn School District". Great Schools, Inc. Retrieved September 19, 2012.
  20. ↑ Vernon Depot/The Hartford, Providence & Fishkill Railroad/Vernon, Connecticut
  21. ↑ Airnav.com summary for Ellington Airport (7B9)
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