Bridgeport, CT
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Bridgeport is the
most populous city The United Nations uses three definitions for what constitutes a city, as not all cities in all jurisdictions are classified using the same criteria. Cities may be defined as the city proper, cities proper, the extent of their urban area, or th ...
and a major
port A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Ham ...
in the U.S. state of
Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...
. With a population of 148,654 in 2020, it is also the fifth-most populous in
New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...
. Located in eastern
Fairfield County Fairfield County is the name of three counties in the United States: * Fairfield County, Connecticut * Fairfield County, Ohio Fairfield County is a county located in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 158,921. ...
at the mouth of the
Pequonnock River The Pequonnock River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed 2011-04-01. waterway in eastern Fairfield County, Connecticut. Its watershed is located in five communities, w ...
on
Long Island Sound Long Island Sound is a marine sound and tidal estuary of the Atlantic Ocean. It lies predominantly between the U.S. state of Connecticut to the north and Long Island in New York to the south. From west to east, the sound stretches from the Eas ...
, it is from
Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
and from
The Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...
. It is bordered by the towns of Trumbull to the north, Fairfield to the west, and Stratford to the east. Bridgeport and other towns in Fairfield County make up the Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk-Danbury metropolitan statistical area, the second largest
metropolitan area A metropolitan area or metro is a region that consists of a densely populated urban agglomeration and its surrounding territories sharing industries, commercial areas, transport network, infrastructures and housing. A metro area usually com ...
in Connecticut. The Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk-Danbury metropolis forms part of the
New York metropolitan area The New York metropolitan area, also commonly referred to as the Tri-State area, is the largest metropolitan area in the world by urban area, urban landmass, at , and one of the list of most populous metropolitan areas, most populous urban agg ...
. Inhabited by the Pauguseett Native American tribe until English settlement in the 1600s, Bridgeport was incorporated in 1821 as a town, and as a city in 1836. Showman
P. T. Barnum Phineas Taylor Barnum (; July 5, 1810 – April 7, 1891) was an American showman, businessman, and politician, remembered for promoting celebrated hoaxes and founding the Barnum & Bailey Circus (1871–2017) with James Anthony Bailey. He was ...
was a resident of the city and served as the town's mayor (1871). Barnum built four houses in Bridgeport and housed his
circus A circus is a company of performers who put on diverse entertainment shows that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, dancers, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, magicians, ventriloquists, and unicyclis ...
in town during winter. The city in the early 20th century saw an
economic An economy is an area of the production, distribution and trade, as well as consumption of goods and services. In general, it is defined as a social domain that emphasize the practices, discourses, and material expressions associated with the ...
and
population Population typically refers to the number of people in a single area, whether it be a city or town, region, country, continent, or the world. Governments typically quantify the size of the resident population within their jurisdiction using a ...
boom, becoming by all measures Connecticut's chief manufacturing city by 1905. Bridgeport was the site of the world's first mutual telephone exchange (1877), the first
dental hygiene Oral hygiene is the practice of keeping one's mouth clean and free of disease and other problems (e.g. bad breath) by regular brushing of the teeth (dental hygiene) and cleaning between the teeth. It is important that oral hygiene be carried out ...
school A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes compuls ...
(1949), and the first bank telephone bill service in the US (1981). Inventor
Harvey Hubbell Harvey Hubbell II (December 20, 1857 – December 17, 1927), was an American inventor, entrepreneur, and industrialist. His best-known inventions are the U.S. electrical plug and the pull-chain light socket. In 1888, at the age of thirty- ...
II invented the electric plug outlet in Bridgeport in 1912. The
Frisbie Pie Company The Frisbie Pie Company is an American pie company located in Bridgeport, Connecticut. It was founded in 1871 by William Russell Frisbie in Bridgeport, Connecticut, when he bought and renamed a branch of the Olds Baking Company. The company wa ...
was founded and operated in Bridgeport, and the city is credited as the birthplace of the Frisbee. The world's first Subway restaurant opened in the city's North End in 1965. After
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
,
industrial restructuring Economic restructuring is used to indicate changes in the constituent parts of an economy in a very general sense. In the western world, it is usually used to refer to the phenomenon of urban areas shifting from a manufacturing to a service secto ...
and
suburbanization Suburbanization is a population shift from central urban areas into suburbs, resulting in the formation of (sub)urban sprawl. As a consequence of the movement of households and businesses out of the city centers, low-density, peripheral urba ...
caused the loss of many large companies and affluent residents, leaving Bridgeport struggling with issues of poverty, violent crime, and a bad image. Since the beginning of the 21st century, Bridgeport has begun extensive
redevelopment Redevelopment is any new construction on a site that has pre-existing uses. It represents a process of land development uses to revitalize the physical, economic and social fabric of urban space. Description Variations on redevelopment include: ...
of its downtown and other neighborhoods. Bridgeport's crime rate started going down significantly around 2010, and by 2018 had been reduced by almost 50 percent.Bridgeport is home to 3 museums, the
University of Bridgeport The University of Bridgeport (UB) is a private university in Bridgeport, Connecticut. The university is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education. In 2021, the university was purchased by Goodwin University; it retain its own ...
, Housatonic Community Collage, Paier College, and part of
Sacred Heart University Sacred Heart University (SHU) is a private, Catholic university in Fairfield, Connecticut. It was founded in 1963 by the Most Reverend Walter W. Curtis, Bishop of the Diocese of Bridgeport, Connecticut. Sacred Heart was the first Catholic uni ...
as well as the state's only zoo. Bridgeport is officially nickednamed "Park City", due to its public parks, 35
public parks A park is an area of natural, semi-natural or planted space set aside for human enjoyment and recreation or for the protection of wildlife or natural habitats. Urban parks are green spaces set aside for recreation inside towns and cities. ...
taking up 1,300 acres, inclduing two large ones. Although none are headquarted within the city itself, more than a dozen Fortune 500 companies are based in its
metropolitan area A metropolitan area or metro is a region that consists of a densely populated urban agglomeration and its surrounding territories sharing industries, commercial areas, transport network, infrastructures and housing. A metro area usually com ...
, which it shares with Stamford. Bridgeport by various sites has been consistently ranked as among the 25 most ethnicly and culturaly diverse
American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...
cities.


History

Bridgeport was inhabited by the
Paugussett The Golden Hill Paugussett is a state-recognized Native American tribe in Connecticut. Granted reservations in a number of towns in the 17th century, their land base was whittled away until they were forced to reacquire a small amount of territory ...
native American
tribe The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant worldwide usage of the term in English language, English is in the discipline of anthropology. This definition is contested, in p ...
during the start of
European colonization The historical phenomenon of colonization is one that stretches around the globe and across time. Ancient and medieval colonialism was practiced by the Phoenicians, the Greeks, the Turks, and the Arabs. Colonialism in the modern sense began ...
. The earliest European communal settlement was in the historical Stratfield district, along US Route 1; known in colonial times as the King's Highway. Close by, Mount Grove Cemetery was laid out on what was a native village that extended past the 1650s. It is also an ancient
Paugusett The Golden Hill Paugussett is a state-recognized Native American tribe in Connecticut. Granted reservations in a number of towns in the 17th century, their land base was whittled away until they were forced to reacquire a small amount of territory ...
burial ground. The burgeoning farming community grew and became a center of trade, shipbuilding, and whaling. The town was incorporated to subsidize the
Housatonic Railroad The Housatonic Railroad ( ) is a Class III railroad operating in southwestern New England and eastern New York. It was chartered in 1983 to operate a short section of ex-New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad in northwestern Connecticut, an ...
and rapidly industrialized following the rail line's connection to the New York and New Haven railroad. The town was given its name because of the need for bridges over the
Pequonnock River The Pequonnock River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed 2011-04-01. waterway in eastern Fairfield County, Connecticut. Its watershed is located in five communities, w ...
that provided a navigable port at the mouth of the river. Manufacturing was the mainstay of the local economy until the 1970s.


Colonial history

The first documented
European European, or Europeans, or Europeneans, may refer to: In general * ''European'', an adjective referring to something of, from, or related to Europe ** Ethnic groups in Europe ** Demographics of Europe ** European cuisine, the cuisines of Europe ...
settlement within the present city limits of Bridgeport took place in 1644, centered at
Black Rock Harbor Black Rock Harbor is located in Bridgeport, Connecticut on Long Island Sound. The Black Rock Harbor Light on Fayerweather IslandQuiripi Quiripi (pronounced , also known as Mattabesic, Quiripi-Unquachog, Quiripi-Naugatuck, and Wampano) was an Algonquian languages, Algonquian language formerly spoken by the indigenous people of Gold Coast (Connecticut), southwestern Connecticut and ...
for "Cleared Land"), after a band of the
Paugussett The Golden Hill Paugussett is a state-recognized Native American tribe in Connecticut. Granted reservations in a number of towns in the 17th century, their land base was whittled away until they were forced to reacquire a small amount of territory ...
, an Algonquian-speaking Native American people who occupied this area. One of their sacred sites was Golden Hill, which overlooked the harbor and was the location of natural springs and their planting fields. (It has since been blasted through for construction of an
expressway Expressway may refer to: * Controlled-access highway, the highest-grade type of highway with access ramps, lane markings, etc., for high-speed traffic. * Limited-access road, a lower grade of highway or arterial road. *Expressway, the fictional s ...
.) The Golden Hill Indians were granted a reservation here by the
Colony In modern parlance, a colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule. Though dominated by the foreign colonizers, colonies remain separate from the administration of the original country of the colonizers, the ''metropole, metropolit ...
of
Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...
in 1639; it lasted until 1802. (One of the tribes acquired land for a small reservation in the late 19th century that was recognized by the state. It is retained in the Town of Trumbull.) In 1639,
Roger Ludlow Roger Ludlow (1590–1664) was an English lawyer, magistrate, military officer, and colonist. He was active in the founding of the Colony of Connecticut, and helped draft laws for it and the nearby Massachusetts Bay Colony. Under his and John Ma ...
, deputy governor of the
English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...
Connecticut Colony The ''Connecticut Colony'' or ''Colony of Connecticut'', originally known as the Connecticut River Colony or simply the River Colony, was an English colony in New England which later became Connecticut. It was organized on March 3, 1636 as a settl ...
was ordered by the colony's General Assembly in
Hartford Hartford is the capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It was the seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960. It is the core city in the Greater Hartford metropolitan area. Census estimates since t ...
to establish two plantations, one at Cupheg the mouth of the Housatonic River (today Stratford), and one at the harbor at the mouth of the
Pequonnock River The Pequonnock River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed 2011-04-01. waterway in eastern Fairfield County, Connecticut. Its watershed is located in five communities, w ...
, today's
Bridgeport Harbor Bridgeport Harbor is an inlet on the north side of Long Island Sound in Bridgeport, Connecticut. It was carved by the retreat of the glaciers during the last ice age approximately 13,000 years ago. Bridgeport Harbor is a federal shipping port and ...
. Ludlow disobeyed orders and instead established a settlement in Unconway (today's Fairfield), probably due to fears of the large
Paugussett The Golden Hill Paugussett is a state-recognized Native American tribe in Connecticut. Granted reservations in a number of towns in the 17th century, their land base was whittled away until they were forced to reacquire a small amount of territory ...
settlement at Golden Hill, which was a sacred site of theirs, so it is believed that they perhaps instead settled in sparsely populated land surrounding the village. In 1659, the general court in Hartford established the official borders of the Paugussett Reservation. Bridgeport's early years were marked by residents' reliance on
fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques inclu ...
and
farming Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled peopl ...
. This was similar to the economy of the Paugussett, who had cultivated corn, beans, and squash; and fished and gathered shellfish from both the river and sound. A village called Newfield began to develop around the corner of State and Water streets in the 1760s. The area officially became known as Stratfield in 1695 or 1701, due to its location between the already existing towns of ''Strat''ford and Fair''field''. During the
American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revolut ...
, Newfield Harbor was a center of
privateering A privateer is a private person or ship that engages in maritime warfare under a commission of war. Since robbery under arms was a common aspect of seaborne trade, until the early 19th century all merchant ships carried arms. A sovereign or deleg ...
.


19th century

By the time of the
State State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...
of
Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...
's ratification of the Articles of Confederation in 1781, many of the local farmers held shares in vessels trading at Newfield Harbor or had begun trading in their own name. Newfield initially expanded around the coasting trade with
Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
, New York, and
Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...
and the international trade with the
West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greater A ...
. The commercial activity of the village was clustered around the wharves on the west bank of the Pequonnock, while the churches were erected inland on Broad Street. In 1787, the Fairfield County Court ordered the laying out and widening of what is now State Street and Main Street in downtown Bridgeport, along the Pequannock River then Newfield. It was assumed before the Revolution that this land would grow into a city. In 1800, the village became the
Borough A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History In the Middle A ...
of Bridgeport, the first so incorporated in the state. It was named for the Newfield or Lottery Bridge across the Pequonnock, connecting the wharves on its east and west banks. Bridgeport Bank was established in 1806. In 1821, the
township A township is a kind of human settlement or administrative subdivision, with its meaning varying in different countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, that tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, Ca ...
of Bridgeport became independent of Stratford. In 1821, a small community of remaining Golden Hill Pauguasett Natives, along with free blacks and runaway slaves was established in the South End along Main Street known as Little Liberia, with its own churches, schools and hotels, and served as a stop in the underground railroad. Many remaining Paugusset Indians also lived there. The West India trade died down around 1840, but by that time the Bridgeport
Steamship A steamship, often referred to as a steamer, is a type of steam-powered vessel, typically ocean-faring and seaworthy, that is propelled by one or more steam engines that typically move (turn) propellers or paddlewheels. The first steamships ...
Company (1824) and Bridgeport
Whaling Whaling is the process of hunting of whales for their usable products such as meat and blubber, which can be turned into a type of oil that became increasingly important in the Industrial Revolution. It was practiced as an organized industr ...
Company (1833) had been incorporated and the
Housatonic Railroad The Housatonic Railroad ( ) is a Class III railroad operating in southwestern New England and eastern New York. It was chartered in 1983 to operate a short section of ex-New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad in northwestern Connecticut, an ...
chartered (1836). The HRRC ran upstate along the
Housatonic Valley The Housatonic River ( ) is a river, approximately long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed April 1, 2011 in western Massachusetts and western Connecticut in the United S ...
, connecting with
Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...
's
Berkshire Railroad The Housatonic Railroad ( ) is a Class III railroad operating in southwestern New England and eastern New York. It was chartered in 1983 to operate a short section of ex-New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad in northwestern Connecticut, and ...
at the state line. Bridgeport was chartered as Connecticut's fifth city in 1836 in order to enable the town council to secure funding (ultimately $150,000) to provide to the HRRC and ensure that it would terminate in Bridgeport. The
Naugatuck Railroad Founded in 1996, the Naugatuck Railroad is a common carrier railroad owned by the Railroad Museum of New England and operated by Naugatuck Railroad on tracks leased by Naugatuck Railroad from the Connecticut Department of Transportation. The origi ...
—connecting Bridgeport to
Waterbury Waterbury is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut on the Naugatuck River, southwest of Hartford and northeast of New York City. Waterbury is the second-largest city in New Haven County, Connecticut. According to the 2020 US Census, in 202 ...
and Winsted along the
Naugatuck Naugatuck is a consolidated borough and town in New Haven County, Connecticut, United States. The town spans both sides of the Naugatuck River just south of Waterbury and includes the communities of Union City on the east side of the river, wh ...
—was chartered in 1845 and began operation four years later. The same year, the
New York and New Haven Railroad The New York and New Haven Railroad (NY&NH) was a railroad connecting New York City to New Haven, Connecticut, along the shore of Long Island Sound. It opened in 1849, and in 1872 it merged with the Hartford & New Haven Railroad to form the New ...
began operation, connecting Bridgeport to New York and the other towns along the north shore of the
Long Island Sound Long Island Sound is a marine sound and tidal estuary of the Atlantic Ocean. It lies predominantly between the U.S. state of Connecticut to the north and Long Island in New York to the south. From west to east, the sound stretches from the Eas ...
. Now a major junction, the city began to industrialise. The city's first immigrants were Irish Catholics who settled in the Sterling Hill section of the
Hollow Hollow may refer to: Natural phenomena *Hollow, a low, wooded area, such as a copse * Hollow (landform), a small vee-shaped, riverine type of valley *Tree hollow, a void in a branch or trunk, which may provide habitat for animals Places * Sleepy ...
. Having come to the US to escape the
famine A famine is a widespread scarcity of food, caused by several factors including war, natural disasters, crop failure, population imbalance, widespread poverty, an economic catastrophe or government policies. This phenomenon is usually accompani ...
, they arrived in town during the 1830s to build the railroad. They mostly lived in wooden four to six family tenements, often subdivided homes. In 1842, showman P.T. Barnum spent a night in Bridgeport, and there met Charles Stratton, a local
dwarf Dwarf or dwarves may refer to: Common uses *Dwarf (folklore), a being from Germanic mythology and folklore * Dwarf, a person or animal with dwarfism Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional entities * Dwarf (''Dungeons & Dragons''), a humanoid ...
. He soon became part of Barnum's act and a star under the name "
General Tom Thumb Charles Sherwood Stratton (January 4, 1838 – July 15, 1883), better known by his stage name "General Tom Thumb", was an American dwarf who achieved great fame as a performer under circus pioneer P. T. Barnum. Childhood and early life Bo ...
". Barnum moved to Bridgeport and built four houses in the city over the course of his life, the first being
Iranistan Iranistan was a Moorish Revival mansion in Bridgeport, Connecticut commissioned by P. T. Barnum in 1848. It was designed by Bohemian-American architect Leopold Eidlitz. At this "beautiful country seat"
. In 1852, Barnum began an endeavor with William Noble to develop the land (inherited by Noble) on the other side of the
Pequonnock River The Pequonnock River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed 2011-04-01. waterway in eastern Fairfield County, Connecticut. Its watershed is located in five communities, w ...
, across the river from Bridgeport to be known as " East Bridgeport" with Washington Park at the center. The new neighborhood had homes, commerce, and factories, centered around
East Main Street The Main Street Tunnel, located in Welland, Ontario, Canada, is an underwater tunnel, carrying Niagara Road 27 and the unsigned designation of Highway 7146 under the Welland Canal. It is named as a part of East Main Street. The structure was bui ...
. The neighborhood eventually became the East Side of Bridgeport (occasionally spelled "Eastside"). In 1863, during the
Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
, the ''Bridgeport Standard'' ran a series of articles encouraging the creation of a public park in the city. This led wealthy residents
P.T. Barnum Phineas Taylor Barnum (; July 5, 1810 – April 7, 1891) was an American showman, businessman, and politician, remembered for promoting celebrated hoaxes and founding the Barnum & Bailey Circus (1871–2017) with James Anthony Bailey. He was ...
, William Noble and
Nathaniel Wheeler Nathaniel Wheeler (b. Watertown, Litchfield county., Connecticut, September 7, 1820; d. Bridgeport, December 31. 1893) was an American manufacturer and legislator. The photographs of the Wheeler Mansion on this page are actually photographs of ...
to purchase the land on
Long Island Sound Long Island Sound is a marine sound and tidal estuary of the Atlantic Ocean. It lies predominantly between the U.S. state of Connecticut to the north and Long Island in New York to the south. From west to east, the sound stretches from the Eas ...
and donating the land to the city in 1864. The land on the shore became Seaside Park. A second park was built near East Main Street, when in 1878, James Beardsley donated more than to the city along the Pequonnock River under the condition that the land be "kept the same forever as a public park". Both parks were designed by
Frederick Law Olmsted Frederick Law Olmsted (April 26, 1822August 28, 1903) was an American landscape architect, journalist, social critic, and public administrator. He is considered to be the father of landscape architecture in the USA. Olmsted was famous for co ...
, known for creating
Central Park Central Park is an urban park in New York City located between the Upper West and Upper East Sides of Manhattan. It is the fifth-largest park in the city, covering . It is the most visited urban park in the United States, with an estimated ...
. These two large public parks gave Bridgeport the nickname "The Park City". The county's
Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
seat, St. Augustine Cathedral was finished in 1869, built by the
Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...
who had arrived 30 year earlier. Saint James Church, predating the archdiocese of Hartford, was the first Roman Catholic congregation in Fairfield County, starting with 250 members in 1842. The congregation gave rise to St Augustine's in Sterling Hill, the seat of the Diocese of Bridgeport. Following the
Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
, the town held several iron foundries and factories manufacturing firearms,
metallic cartridge A cartridge or a round is a type of pre-assembled firearm ammunition packaging a projectile (bullet, shot, or slug), a propellant substance (usually either smokeless powder or black powder) and an ignition device (primer) within a metallic, p ...
s,
horse harness Horse harness is a device that connects a horse to a vehicle or another type of load. There are two main categories of horse harness: (1) the "breaststrap" or "breastcollar" design, and (2) the collar and hames design. For light work, such as ho ...
es,
locks Lock(s) may refer to: Common meanings *Lock and key, a mechanical device used to secure items of importance *Lock (water navigation), a device for boats to transit between different levels of water, as in a canal Arts and entertainment * ''Lock ...
, and blinds. Wheeler & Wilson's sewing machines were exported throughout the world. Bridgeport annexed the West End and the village of Black Rock (Bridgeport), Black Rock and its busy Black Rock Harbor, harbor in 1870. In 1875,
P. T. Barnum Phineas Taylor Barnum (; July 5, 1810 – April 7, 1891) was an American showman, businessman, and politician, remembered for promoting celebrated hoaxes and founding the Barnum & Bailey Circus (1871–2017) with James Anthony Bailey. He was ...
was elected mayor of the town, which afterwards served as the winter headquarters of Barnum and Bailey's Circus and Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show. Barnum also helped establish Bridgeport Hospital, Fairfield County's first hospital (Conn.'s 3rd) and the Bridgeport & Port Jefferson Ferry, Bridgeport-Port Jefferson ferry, connecting the town to Long Island.
Harvey Hubbell Harvey Hubbell II (December 20, 1857 – December 17, 1927), was an American inventor, entrepreneur, and industrialist. His best-known inventions are the U.S. electrical plug and the pull-chain light socket. In 1888, at the age of thirty- ...
founded Hubbell Incorporated in Bridgeport in 1888. The Holmes & Edwards Silver Co. was founded in 1882, its wares sold nationally, and the company became part of the International Silver Company in 1898. (The H&E brand continued well into the 1950s and was advertised in national magazines such as ''LIFE'' and ''Ladies' Home Journal''.) Hungarian Americans, Hungarian immigrants began to arrive, which led to the Ráckόczi Hungarian Aid Association in Bridgeport in 1887 and the American Hungarian Immigrant Aid Society 1892. They established themselves in the West End. In 1894, Bridgeport's Slavic Americans, Slavic immigrants played a major role in the development of the Orthodox Church in America, Orthodox Christian faith in America when they met with Fr Alexis Toth (now Saint Alexis) and founded Holy Ghost Russian Orthodox Church in the city's Eastside. This parish became the mother church of all Eastern Orthodox Church, Orthodox Churches in New England.


20th century

From 1870 to 1910, Bridgeport became the largest industrial center in Connecticut; its population rose from around 25,000 to over 100,000, including thousands of Irish Americans, Irish, Slovak Americans, Slovaks, Hungarian Americans, Hungarians, German Americans, Germans, English Americans, English, and Italian Americans, Italian immigrants. American Jews, Jewish migration to the city began in the 1881, with an influx of History of the Jews in Poland, Polish, History of the Jews in Russia, Russian, and especially History of the Jews in Hungary, Hungarian Jews calling Bridgeport home. Bridgeport Jew Edwin H. Land, Edwin Land grew up to invent the Polaroid Corporation, Polaroid. In 1905, Bridgeport was already "the largest industrial center in the state, $49,381,348 was invested in manufacturing and the products being valued at $44,586,519." The city was a port of entry with its imports being valued at around $656,271 in 1908. The Singer Manufacturing Company, Singer factory joined Wheeler & Wilson in producing sewing machines and the Locomobile Company of America was a prominent early automobile manufacturer, producing a prototype of the Stanley Steamer and various luxury cars. The town was also the center of America's corset production, responsible for 19.9% of the national total, and became the headquarters of Remington Arms following its 1912 merger with the Union Metallic Cartridge Co. Around the time of the First World War, Bridgeport was also producing steam-fitting and heating apparatuses, brass goods, phonographs, typewriters, milling machines, brassieres, and saddles. Brideport's Italian immigrants settled in the "Little Italy (Bridgeport), Central End", today's Little Italy, and the city was the 3rd most Italian in the state by 1910. Their newspapers were the weekly ''La Tribuna de Connecticut'' (1906-1908) and later ''La Sentinella'' (1920-1948) The West End along Wordin Avenue, known as "Hunktown", grew into one of the largest Hungarian Americans, Hungarian communities in the US. It was visited by Hungarian republicans trying to take down the Austria-Hungary, Austro-Hungarian monarchy, in order to garner support. The West Side nearby was home to Slovene Americans, Slovenians, French-Canadian Americans, French-Canadians and Swedish Americans, Swedish immigrants. By 1910 Bridgeport had grown into second largest city in Connecticut at 102,052, behind New Haven, Connecticut, New Haven. Between 1910 and 1920, during World War I, the city's population exploded from 102,054 to 143,555, due to the city's role in the First World War. Bridgeport had the largest factory in the world at the time, the new Remington Arms plant on Boston Avenue (on the East Side). Built in 1915, it had 13 separate buildings, each of them 5 stories, connected by a long corridor half a mile long. The purpose of the building was to fulfil a company order from the Nicholas II of Russia, Russian tzar for a million rifles and 100 million round of ammunition. The construction site was protected by the National Guard (United States), National Guard to prevent Bolsheviks, Bolshevik arson. The factory by 1916 employed 16,000 people and led to the construction of "Remington City Historic District, Remington City" in the Mill Hill neighborhood, and "Remington Village Historic District, Remington Village" in the East End, by Remington Arms. In the summer of 1915, a series of labor strike, strikes imposed the eight-hour day on the town's factories; rather than moving business elsewhere, the success spread the eight-hour day throughout the Northeast United States, Northeast. Due to housing shortages in many US cities during World War I, the federal government created the United States Housing Corporation, US Housing Corporation. This resulted in 7 USHC housing developments being built in Bridgeport, notably Seaside Village Historic District, Seaside Village in the South End and Black Rock Gardens Historic District, Black Rock Gardens in Black Rock, Bridgeport, Black Rock. By this point, Remington Arms was producing 50% of America's cartrages during the war, with 17,000 employees, and homes for new workers were needed. The factory became a General Electric plant after the war. The First World War had continued the city's expansion so that, on the eve of the Great Depression, there were more than 500 factories in Bridgeport, including Columbia Records' primary Record press, pressing plant, a Singer Sewing Machine factory, etc . The 1920s saw the city's population stabilize at 143,555, after the war. The Roaring Twenties, decade saw the city grow with more leasure and entertainment. In 1919, the city of Bridgeport bought Pleasure Beach, Pleaseure Beach (also known as Steepchase Island) for $220,000. Pleasure beach was an Amusement park, amusement park and beach on an island in the East End next to Stratford. In 1920, the city parks commissioner began the process of creating a Beardsley Zoo, zoo in Beardsley Park. Bridgeport a stop became for performances with around 20 theatures. 1922 was the year the elegantly designed Palace and Majestic Theaters, Majestic and Poli Palace theatures, were built downtown, along with the Savory Hotel. The Poli Palace theatre (built by Sylvester Z. Poli, Sylvester Poli) was the largest theater in the state of Connecticut, with guided hand carved moldings and vaulted cealings. The Ritz Ballroom, Bridgeport, Ritz Ballroom was opened in 1923. In 1928, the city bought an racetrack and landing field in Lordship, Connecticut, Lordship to construct Sikorsky Memorial Airport, Bridgeport Airport. Spanish immigration in 1920 and 1921 brought hundreds of migrants from Spain, particularly from Pedreguer, Valencia, where "practiclly the entire town migrated" to Bridgeport. During the Great Depression the city elected Socialist Party of America, Socialist party candidate Jasper McLevy as mayor in 1933. McLevy's election made headlines as a
New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...
city had a socialist mayor. Known for cutting costs, he would serve as mayor for 12 terms, finally losing in 1957. The Great Migration (African American), Great Migration led southern African Americans, African-Americans to Bridgeport around the 1930s (thanks to railroads) along with black foreigners (such as Cape Verdean Americans, Cape Verdean), By 1930, Bridgeport had the third largest percentage of African Americans in
New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...
. The Italian Americans, Italían population by 1930 had more than doubled, more than 13,000 Birthright citizenship in the United States, American-born children would be born to Italians in Bridgeport. The build-up to
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
helped the city's recovery in the late 1930s. Sikorsky Aircraft, Sikorsky moved into the South Avenue plant in the 1940s. Suburban development made its expansion into the undeveloped North End. On Park Avenue in 1962 the Discovery Museum and Planetarium, Museam of Art, Science and Industry (MASI) was opened to the public, today's Discovery Museum and Planetarium, Discovery Museam and Planetarium. Known for the newly developed approach of hands on-exhibits, the Museam became science oriented later on. Continued development of new Suburbanization, suburban housing just outside of Bridgeport attracted middle and upper-class residents, leaving the city with a higher proportion of poor. By the 1960s, Puerto Ricans had begun to immigrate to Bridgeport in large numbers, and by about 1970 had made up 10% of the city's population, the largest Puerto Rican population in Connecticut. Groups such as the local Young Lords branch organized themselves on
East Main Street The Main Street Tunnel, located in Welland, Ontario, Canada, is an underwater tunnel, carrying Niagara Road 27 and the unsigned designation of Highway 7146 under the Welland Canal. It is named as a part of East Main Street. The structure was bui ...
. As cities across the country were renovating their central business district after the war, Bridgeport attempted its own urban renewal projects in its old Bridgeport Downtown South Historic District, downtown in the early 1960s during the construction of the highways. Hunktown, with a population of 15,000 and the Irish neighborhood in the South End were demolished and replaced with highways and an industrial park. The Westfield Trumbull, Trumbull Shopping Park was built just outside Bridgeport city limits in Trumbull in 1965, Connecticut's first fully enclosed shopping mall. Bridgeport under Samuel J. Tedesco, Mayor Tedesco went under the State Street redevelopment project, demolishing 52 acres of State Street, clearing the land for development. Replaced with modern high-rise office buildings, parking, the Route 8/25 expressway towards
Waterbury Waterbury is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut on the Naugatuck River, southwest of Hartford and northeast of New York City. Waterbury is the second-largest city in New Haven County, Connecticut. According to the 2020 US Census, in 202 ...
and Newtown, Connecticut, Newtown, and a shopping mall at its core. Large parts of Main Street were demolished in what was called the Congress Street Renewal project, nothing was built on the land. Constructed with federal funding, on Lafayette Boulevard and Broad Street, the 450,000 acre, 2 story (with basement) Lafayette Shopping Plaza was erected, a downtown shopping mall with a Sears and a Gimbels, Gimbels department store as anchors connected to it. Other examples of urban development include two city landmarks, the 12-story 855 Main Street (People's Savings Bank building), the 18-floor Park City Plaza, (State National Bank building) built 1972. The plan for three identical towers never materialized, due to the 1973 oil crisis, Oil Crisis. Bridgeport was largely bypassed by the New York City companies fleeing the city for suburban Fairfield County. Much of Bridgeport Downtown North Historic District, north downtown Bridgeport would end up abandoned, neglected and boarded up as Department store, department and Discount store, discount stores closed, leaving only federal and municipal buildings along now empty lots. Military contracts during the 1950s and 1960s enabled the Bridgeport-Lycoming division of AVCO, founded 1951, to employ at times more than 12,000 people, building tanks, helicopters, and other military hardware. Decreased demand led to layoffs, and then closure in 1984. l Restructuring of heavy industry starting after the mid-20th century caused the loss of thousands of jobs and residents. Like other urban centers in Connecticut, Bridgeport suffered during the deindustrialization of the United States in the 1970s and 1980s. Pleasure Beach was sold 5 years after a rollercoaster caught fire. A year later the park closed for good. The old Bridgeport station caught fire in 1978. In September 1978, Bridgeport teachers went on a 19-day strike due to deadlocked contract negotiations. A court order, as well as a state law that made strikes by public workers illegal in Connecticut, resulted in 274 teachers being arrested and jailed. In November 1978, a wave of arson passed through the city's East Bridgeport Historic District, East side, with the fire chief calling it as a microcosm of "the Bronx". The city suffered from overall mismanagement, for which several city officials were convicted, contributing to the economic and social decline. The once busy Lafayette Shopping Plaza began to lose customers after Gimbels, Gimbel's closed in 1984. Replaced with a Read's Department Stores, Read's store, the mall was later bought by Hi-Ho Industries and renamed "Hi-Ho Mall", until it closed in 1993 and became Housatonic Community College in 1997. Bridgeport remained the state's second city and as Hartford, Connecticut, Hartford's population continued to shrink, Bridgeport became the largest city in Connecticut in 1974, with a population of 142,546. A 1981 ''Times'' article read; "Bridgeport... for years has suffered an image problem when compared with Hartford because of that city's role as state capital and as the site of a number of large corporations." Mayor John C. Mandanici, Mandanici's response was "Hartford reported state sales taxes of $712.7 million, but Bridgeport yielded state sales taxes of $890.4 million. That's economic power, right?" In 1985, Bridgeport was still Connecticut's chief manufacturing center, its major industries including General Electric, Remington Shaver, Bryant Electric Company, Bryant Electric, and Raybestos plants. A The New York Times, ''New York Times'' in 1985 stated Bridgeport was the fifth largest banking center in New England, with five of the banks based Bridgeport having assets of more than $6 billion. Between 1984 and 1989 the construction of the new $75 million headquarters for People's United Financial, People's United Bank, the second largest bank in
New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...
. The 10-story Connecticut National Bank building was demolished and replaced with the new 18-story Bridgeport Center overlooking McLevy Square, and was designed by famous architect Richard Meier. The bank establishing the first phone bank service in the US. The largest scissors, shear and surgical materials manufacturer in the world by 1946, Bridgeport-based Acme United Corporation, ACME Shear closed its Bridgeport plant in 1996 due to mergers and acquisitions. The industrial operations relocated to Fremont, North Carolina. Bridgeport in 1989 had more homicides per capita than any Northeastern US city over 100,000 people. Bridgeport had a smaller police force than smaller cities like Hartford or New Haven, yet hiring due to city financial issues, having not recovered from the exodus of manufacturing companies, would result in even higher taxes for residents. In 1991, the city filed for bankruptcy protection but was declared solvent by a federal court. Later that same year, List of mayors of Bridgeport, Connecticut, Mayor Mary C. Moran lost the election to Joe Ganim, Joseph Ganim, at 33 years old, the youngest person to hold that office. and under him the city was able to begin redevelopment with the construction of the Total Mortgage Arena, Arena at Harbor Yard and the The Ballpark at Harbor Yard, Ballpark at Harbor Yard. Bridgeport made numerous efforts at revitalization. In a proposal in 1995, Las Vegas developer Steve Wynn was to build a large casino, but that project failed due to traffic concerns. The project was opposed as rival Donald Trump feared a Bridgeport casino would harm his Atlantic City, New Jersey, Atlantic City properties and proposed to build a theme park and potencial casino on the same site. Bridgeport in 1995 saw a serious reduction in violent crime, notably in it's East Side, where crime rate fell by nearly half, homicidas dropped, burglaries by 3/4s and stolen car thefts by more than half, among other stats, as the Phoenix Project led to barricading city streets, confusing out of town drug buyers, and preventing sellers to escape. New waves of migrants, from places such as Brazilian Americans, Brazil, Vietnamese Americans, Vietnam, Laotian Americans, Laos, Mexican Americans, Mexico, etc. settled in Bridgeport. Immigrants from Brazil, after the nation's inflation crisis, established themselves in the city due to the large Portuguese Americans, Portuguese population already present, easing the language barrier. Bridgeport was a common second US destination for Vietnamese refugees "There's already an established community here, so that's why they come," from the New York Times in 1996. Along with them, Thai, Koreans, Taiwanese, Laotians, Chinese, Cambodians are the Asian American groups are groups mentioned in the city. Laotians refugees settled in the West End opening buisnesees Mexicans grew from 402 people in 1990 to 2,687 by the 2000 census, becoming the second largest Latino group in the city behind Puerto Ricans. Cuban population continued to shrink, and the population from Central and South America increased. In 1999, city-owned Sikorsky Memorial Airport ceased Regional airline, its commercial regional flight offerings.


21st century

In 2003, Mayor Ganim was involved in a corruption scandal after being investigated by the FBI as he received gifts from developers in exchange for being allowed to build in Bridgeport. He was sentenced to federal prison, and was replaced by John John M. Fabrizi, Fabrizi. In the early 21st century, Bridgeport has taken steps toward redevelopment of its downtown and other neighborhoods. In 2004, artists' lofts were developed in the former Read's Department Store on Broad Street. Several other rental conversions have been completed, including the 117-unit Citytrust bank building on Main Street. The 2008 recession, recession halted, at least temporarily, two major mixed-use projects including a $1-billion waterfront development at Steel Point, but other redevelopment projects have proceeded, such as the condominium conversion project in Bijou Square. In 2009, the City Council under Bill Finch (politician), Mayor Finch approved a new master plan for development, designed both to promote redevelopment in selected areas and to protect existing residential neighborhoods. The plan was updated in April 2019. In 2010, the Bridgeport Housing Authority and a local health center announced plans to build a $20 million medical and housing complex at Albion Street, making use of federal stimulus funds and designed to replace some of the housing lost with the demolition of Father Panik Village. The Steel Point (or Steelpointe) project of Bridgeport's on the lower portion of the East Side finally led to the construction of a Bass Pro Shop in 2013, along with a Chipotle Mexican Grill, Chipotle, Starbucks and T-Mobile US, T-Mobile, and a lighthouse with a marina and oyster bar). The plan for high-end mixed use apartments is in place, although concerns about gentrification have been raised. A hotel is also in the works. A Barnum station, new proposed train station in East Bridgeport, meant to be completed in 2021, was postponed in 2019. By 2013 the city and local business owners agreed that work needed to be done in the downtown area north of Fairfield Avenue, nicknamed Bridgeport Downtown North Historic District, Downtown North, above. Made up of old empty brick buildings which were neglected for years, the city and developers began their rehabilitation starting in 2015, most of which are now converted apartments or retail. Bridgeport's downtown renovation has resulted in various restaurants, the renovation of the Sterling Block-Bishop Arcade, Bishop Arcade Mall, a The Stress Factory, comedy club, and theatres. A 2022 plan to renovate McLevy Hall is in place. In 2017, MGM Resorts International, MGM had announced plans to build a waterfront casino and shopping center in the city, awaiting approval by the state government. If built, the development would have created 2,000 permanent jobs and about 5,779 temporary jobs. After a legal battle with the Mohegan and Pequots, Pequot tribes on the right to build a casino in Connecticut, the project "appears to be dead", and tenents such as Bridgeport Boatworks now occupy the proposed space. The construction of Honey Locust Square began on the East End, which when complete will house a supermarket (something the neighborhood lacks), a public library, a health center, and a retail building.


Notable speeches

On March 10, 1860, Abraham Lincoln spoke in the city's Washington Hall, an auditorium at the old Bridgeport City Hall (now McLevy Hall), at the corner of State and Broad Streets. The largest room in the city was packed, and a crowd formed outside, as well. Lincoln received a standing ovation before taking the 9:07 pm train that night back to Manhattan.Burr, Raymond F., ''Abraham Lincoln: Western Star Over Connecticut,'' Lithographics Inc., Canton, Connecticut (no year given), pages 1 and 15; book contents reprinted by permission of the ''Lincoln Herald,'' (Harrogate, Tennessee) Summer, Fall and Winter, 1983 and Spring and Summer, 1984 A plaque marks the site where Lincoln spoke; later that year, he was elected president. The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. spoke three times at the Klein Auditorium during the 1960s, as well as at the
University of Bridgeport The University of Bridgeport (UB) is a private university in Bridgeport, Connecticut. The university is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education. In 2021, the university was purchased by Goodwin University; it retain its own ...
and the original Central High School (today Bridgeport City Central High School (Connecticut), Hall)., as well as in Bridgeport City Hall. Additionally, President George W. Bush spoke before a small group of Connecticut business people and officials at the Playhouse on the Green in 2006. President Barack Obama also spoke at the Harbor Yard arena in 2010 to gain support for the campaign of Democratic Governor Dan Malloy.


Timeline of notable first and inventions

* 1896 - The Pull switch, chain socket was invented in Bridgeport * 1904 - The AC power plugs and sockets, AC plug outlet was also invented in Bridgeport by
Harvey Hubbell Harvey Hubbell II (December 20, 1857 – December 17, 1927), was an American inventor, entrepreneur, and industrialist. His best-known inventions are the U.S. electrical plug and the pull-chain light socket. In 1888, at the age of thirty- ...
* 1877 - The world's first telephone exchange was established in Bridgeport by the Frontier Communications of Connecticut, District Telephone Company. The first commercial phone exchange was opened in nearby New Haven, Connecticut, New Haven two years later. * 1903 - German immagrant Gustave Whitehead claimed to have flown the first airplane in Bridgeport two years before the Wright Brothers, confirmed in the Connecticut Post, Bridgeport Post. *1914 - Caresse Crosby, the woman who is credited with inventing the modern bra, sold her patent to Bridgeport-based Warnaco Group, Warnaco which mass produced it for the first time. The alphabet Bra size, bra sizing system was invented, which we still use today, in 1937 by the Bridgeport comapny. * 1949 - The first dental school was founded in the
University of Bridgeport The University of Bridgeport (UB) is a private university in Bridgeport, Connecticut. The university is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education. In 2021, the university was purchased by Goodwin University; it retain its own ...
* 1920 - The
Frisbie Pie Company The Frisbie Pie Company is an American pie company located in Bridgeport, Connecticut. It was founded in 1871 by William Russell Frisbie in Bridgeport, Connecticut, when he bought and renamed a branch of the Olds Baking Company. The company wa ...
was founded in Bridgeport in 1871. * 1949 - The first daily UHF television broadcasting, UHF television station, KC2XAK aired in Bridgeport. It was a test conducted by NBC and was known as "KC2XAK, Operation Bridgeport". * 1965 - The first Subway restaurant was founded in Bridgeport. Student Fred DeLuca needed money to attend college, and with the help of Peter Buck (restaurateur), Peter Buck started "Pete's Subs". Renamed Subway, the franchise grew into one of the largest fast food chains in the world. * 1981 - the first telephone banking service in the United States was provided by People's United Financial, People's Bank to its clients.


Geography

Bridgeport lies along
Long Island Sound Long Island Sound is a marine sound and tidal estuary of the Atlantic Ocean. It lies predominantly between the U.S. state of Connecticut to the north and Long Island in New York to the south. From west to east, the sound stretches from the Eas ...
at the mouth of the
Pequonnock River The Pequonnock River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed 2011-04-01. waterway in eastern Fairfield County, Connecticut. Its watershed is located in five communities, w ...
.


Neighborhoods

Bridgeport has many distinct neighborhoods, divided into five geographic areas: Downtown, the East Side, the North End, the South End, and the West Side. * Downtown ** McLevy Hall, McLevy Green ** Bridgeport Downtown South Historic District, Downtown South ** Bridgeport Downtown North Historic District, Downtown North * The Hollow ** The Hollow, Bridgeport, The Hollow ** Enterprise Zone * East Side ** Steel Point ** Lower East Side/East Side ** Upper East Side/ North Bridgeport East End ** Boston Avenue/Mill Hill ** East End ** Newfield ** Pleasure Beach * North End ** Lake Forest ** Lake Success ** Reservoir/Whiskey Hill ** Old Town Road *Brooklawn/St. Vincent ** Central End/Little Italy (Bridgeport), Little Italy **Brooklawn * South End ** Seaside Park ** Soundgate * West Side ** Black Rock, Bridgeport, Black Rock ** West Side ** West End *Black Rock ** St. Mary's by the Sea


Climate

Under the Köppen climate classification, Bridgeport straddles the humid subtropical climate (''Cfa'') and humid continental climate (''Dfa'') zones with long, hot summers, and cool to cold winters, with precipitation spread fairly evenly throughout the year. Bridgeport, like the rest of coastal Connecticut, lies in the broad transition zone between the colder continental climates of the northern United States and southern Canada to the north, and the warmer temperate and subtropical climates of the middle and south Atlantic states to the south. The warm/hot season in Bridgeport is from mid-April through early November. Late day thundershowers are common in the hottest months (June, July, August, September), despite the mostly sunny skies. The cool/cold season is from late November though mid March. Winter weather is far more variable than summer weather along the Connecticut coast, ranging from sunny days with higher temperatures to cold and blustery conditions with occasional snow. Like much of the Connecticut coast and nearby Long Island, NY, most of the winter precipitation is rain or a mix and rain and wet snow in Bridgeport. Bridgeport averages about of snow annually, compared to inland areas like
Hartford Hartford is the capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It was the seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960. It is the core city in the Greater Hartford metropolitan area. Census estimates since t ...
and Albany, New York, Albany which average of snow annually. Although infrequent, tropical cyclones (hurricanes/tropical storms) have struck Connecticut and the Bridgeport metropolitan area. Hurricane landfalls have occurred along the Connecticut coast in 1903, 1938, 1944, 1954 (Carol), 1960 (Donna), Hurricane Gloria in 1985, and Hurricane Sandy in 2012. Bridgeport lies in USDA garden zone 7a, averaging about 92 days annually with freeze. Coastal Connecticut is the broad transition zone where so-called "subtropical indicator" plants and other broadleaf evergreens can successfully be cultivated. As such, Southern Magnolias, Needle Palms, Windmill palm, Loblolly Pines, and Crape Myrtles are grown in private and public gardens. Like much of coastal Connecticut, Long Island, NY, and coastal New Jersey, the growing season is rather long in Bridgeport—averaging 210 days from April8 to November5 according to the National Weather Service in Bridgeport. The average monthly temperature ranges from in January to in July. The record low is , set on January 22, 1984, while the record high is , set on July 22 in 1957 and 2011. Precipitation averages annually, and is somewhat evenly distributed throughout the year, with March and April the wettest months. Annual snowfall averages , falling almost entirely from December to March. As is typical of coastal Connecticut, snow cover does not usually last long, with an average of 33 days per winter with snow cover of at least .


Demographics

As of the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census, there were 144,229 people living in the city. The racial makeup of the city residents was 39.6% White American, White; 34.6% African American, Black or African American; 3.4% Asian American, Asian; and 4.3% from two or more races. A total of 38.2% of the population were Hispanic and Latino Americans, Hispanic or Latino of any race. There were 50,307 households, out of which 34.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 35.0% were Marriage, married couples living together, 24.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.9% were non-families. 29.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.70 and the average family size was 3.34. In the city, the population was spread out, with 28.4% under the age of 18, 11.2% from 18 to 24, 30.5% from 25 to 44, 18.4% from 45 to 64, and 11.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.3 males. The median income for a household in the city was $34,658, and the median income for a family was $39,571. Males had a median income of $32,430 versus $26,966 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,306. About 16.2% of families and 18.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 24.8% of those under age 18 and 13.2% of those age 65 or over. Accoreing to the 2020 5-year community survey, 48.2% of Bridgeport's population speaks a different primary language at home other than English. 33.8% percent of the city's total population speaks Spanish at home. 22.5% percent speak English less than very well. Bridgeport is known for having one of the largest communities of Puerto Ricans in the United States, it has List of Stateside Puerto Rican communities, the 7th largest population in the United States, with 30,250 people claiming Puerto Rican heritage in 1990, that number has grown to about 31,900 (22.10% of the population) in 2013. The city also has the 12th largest Cape Verdean Americans, Cape Verdean population in the country. They settled in The Hollow, Bridgeport, the Hollow and established a social club in the 1940s. The Cape Verdean Association of Bridgeport is located in the Hollow today. Bridgeport in 2013 was 10.2% West Indian Americans, West Indian. A small population of people from various majority-muslim nations exists along with Kurds, at least 4,000 in 2008 according to a local mosque. Bridgeport Public Schools observes Eid al-Fitr starting 2024, thanks to a campaign by city 8th graders from Park City Magnet School, which found 10% of the school body was Muslim in a school project. Bengali language, Bengali in 2022 was the 5th most common primary language for Bridgeport Public School students (behind English language, English, Spanish, Portuguese, and Haitian Creole, followed by Arabic at 6th. The Portuguese community in the city, is the largest in the state and primarily hail from the Trás-os-Montes, Tras Os Montes region of Portugal according to a 2018 research study. There is also a sizeable Kurdish population, Kurdish population in Bridgeport, primarily from Iraq. 45,270 people (31%) of Bridgeport's population is foreign born in 2010. Other than Puerto Ricans, 5.4% of Bridgeport's population is noted under Mexican Americans, Mexican, a number that has grown to 5.8% (8,479 people) in the 2020 5 year American Community Survey, giving it the largest Mexican population in
New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...
. Dominicans are 5,248 (3.53%). Hispanic and Latino Americans, Latino Central America, Central Americans (Guatemalan Americans, Guatemalans, Salvadorans, Salvadorians, Nicaraguans, Hondurans, Costa Ricans, Panamanians) are 6,701 people total (4.507%). 8,454 South Americans (5.697%), 4,020 Ecuadorian Americans, Equadorians, 2,326 Colombian Americans, Colombians, then Peruvians, and then populations from every Latin American nation except Bolivia. The smallest group was Paraguayan Americans, Paraguayans at 16 people accoridng to the census. The large Brazilian population in Bridgeport and Danbury led to the opening of a Brazilian consulate in the state capital of
Hartford Hartford is the capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It was the seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960. It is the core city in the Greater Hartford metropolitan area. Census estimates since t ...
. Migration to Connecticut began in the 90s, social networks brought immigrants from Governador Valadares, Minas Gerais in Brazil to Bridgeport, CT and Framingham, Massachusetts, Framingham, MA. Bridgeport also has the largest Cuban Americans, Cuban population in the state, with more than 1,000 of the state's 10,600 Cubans living in Bridgeport, although down from the at least 5,000 Cubans in Bridgeport and even more before that time in the 1950s according to the CTPost. Jamaican Americans, Jamaicans, the state's largest foreign-born group, have a significant presence in Bridgeport, with 6.3% being Jamaican in 2013. Bridgeport and Danbury, Connecticut, Danbury were considered as a List of diplomatic missions in the United States, potential locations for an Ecuadorian Americans, Ecuadorian consulate, due to the large number of migrants, but instead opened in New Haven, due to its immigrant welcoming mayor, in 2008. Bridgeport had 6,650 Asians according to the 2021 5 year American Community Survey, up from the previous year, 5,553 Asians. At least 92 languages are spoken as primary languages by Bridgeport Public School students according to district data. 3,145 students are missing data in primary language. The Greater Bridgeport, Bridgeport-Stamford metropolitan area (ie: Fairfield County) is home to the 7th largest percentage of Italian acenstry in the country (the population is 16.5% Italian). Italian Americans in 1984 were the largest ethnic group in Bridgeport itself. According to 2010 census data, the Bridgeport MSA, containing all of Fairfield County, is the most economically unequal region in America, with 57% of the wealth going to the top income quintile. As of the census of 2000, there were 139,529 people, 50,307 households, and 32,749 families living in the city. The population density was . There were 54,367 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 45.0% White (U.S. Census), White, 30.8% African American (U.S. Census), African American, 0.5% Native American (U.S. Census), Native American, 3.3% Asian (U.S. Census), Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander (U.S. Census), Pacific Islander. Hispanic (U.S. Census), Hispanic or Latino (U.S. Census), Latino of any race were 31.9% of the population. European Americans, European (White Americans, white) ancestry groups include: Italian American, Italian (8.6%), Irish American, Irish (5.1%), Portuguese American, Portuguese (2.9%), Polish American, Polish (2.8%), and German American, German (2.4%).


Economy

Since the decline of its industrial sector beginning in the middle of the 20th century, Bridgeport has gradually adjusted to a service-based economy. As late as 1985, the city was still home to company plants such as General Electric, with 1,900 employees, and Remington Products, with 900, both of which are now closed. Bryant Electric Company, Bryant Electric didn't close its plant until 1988. The last major factory to close was the Sikorsky Aircraft, Sikorsky Helicopter, helicopter plant in 2015. Various famous industrial companies, that were founded and based in Bridgeport, such as Acme United Corporation, ACME Sheer, Fortune 1000 Hubbell Incorporated, etc are now based in suburban Shelton, Connecticut, Shelton, two towns away. Subway, which started out in Bridgeport in 1965, is now based in Milford, Connecticut, Milford. Though a level of industrial activity continues, healthcare, finance, and education have become the centerpieces of Bridgeport's economy. The two largest employers in the city are Bridgeport's primary hospitals, Bridgeport Hospital and St. Vincent's Medical Center (Bridgeport), St. Vincent's Medical Center. Park City Hospital in the South End closed in 1993 and was reopened in 2010 as elderly and homeless housing units. In April 2022, M&T Bank of Buffalo, New York, merged with Bridgeport-based People's United Financial. The combined company is now the 11th largest bank in the United States, and gave M&T a foothold in the
New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...
market, in total serving 12 states. Although M&T laid off Bridgeport employees (which made national headlines), the company as part of this effort made Bridgeport Center the regional M&T headquarters of New England.


Top employers

Top employers in Bridgeport according to the cities 2020 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report


Arts and culture


Performing arts


Theater and music

Venues for live theater and music events include: * Downtown Cabaret Theatre – cabaret, children's theater, concerts * The Stress Factory – (300 seats) comedy club with national and local acts * Klein Memorial Auditorium – (1,400 seats) home to the Greater Bridgeport Symphony, touring shows and concerts * Total Mortgage Arena – Sporting events venue, but also hosts large concerts * Hartford HealthCare Amphitheater - Outdoor concert venue


Music festivals and concert series

Bridgeport was the annual home to Gathering of the Vibes, a weekend-long arts, music and camping festival, until it ended in 2015. The Greater Bridgeport Symphony, established in 1945, performs at Bridgeport's 1,400-seat Klein Memorial Auditorium. Gustav Meier directed the orchestra from 1972 to 2013.


Museums and zoos

* The Discovery Museum and Planetarium, Discovery Science Center and Planetarium emphasizes exhibits on science, with the state's only Challenger Center, affiliated with the national space program. Opened in 1962 and run by Sacred Heart University, SHU as of 2020. * The Housatonic Museum of Art at Housatonic Community College has the largest collection of art of any two-year college in the nation. Founded in 1967 by collage art director Bob Chernow. Shows both western and non-western art from different eras, including sculptures. * The Barnum Museum celebrates the showman, circuses and Bridgeport history. Currently under renovation, a room is open to visitors every Thursday. * The Beardsley Zoo, opened 1922, is the only such center in Connecticut, and is the state's largest zoo. The Greater Bridgeport metropolitan area is home to the Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk, Maritime Aquarium in Norwalk, Connecticut, Norwalk, 30 minutes from downtown Bridgeport. One of the two aquariums in Connecticut, the aquarium focuses on
Long Island Sound Long Island Sound is a marine sound and tidal estuary of the Atlantic Ocean. It lies predominantly between the U.S. state of Connecticut to the north and Long Island in New York to the south. From west to east, the sound stretches from the Eas ...
as well as creatures and convervation efforts from around the world.


Historic districts

Bridgeport has five local historic districts, where exterior changes to structures are under the control of two Historic District Commissions: * Black Rock Historic District, Black Rock Harbor Historic District * East Bridgeport Historic District, Pembroke City Historic District * Stratfield Historic District, Stratfield Historic District * Barnum–Palliser Historic District, Barnum-Palliser Development Historic District * Marina Park Historic District * Bridgeport Downtown North Historic District, Downtown North Historic District * Bridgeport Downtown South Historic District, Downtown South Historic District * Remington City Historic District, Remington City Historic District * Black Rock Gardens Historic District, Black Rock Gardens Historic District * Seaside Village Historic District * AMFAB Art Building Bridgeport was once home to a Ethnic enclave, Little Asia along Wood Avenue in the West Side, established in 2012 by local business owners with a sign and a festival every year. By 2016 the name had fallen out of use, and the committee no longer exists. The more or less 4 or 3 block area is still home to Asian restaurants, an insurance and tax agency with Vietnamese, Mandarin, Laotian, Cantonese as well as Spanish language services, and a Vietnamese grocery store.


Cuisine

NerdWallet ranked Bridgeport the 100th most foodie city in the United States, 2nd in Connecticut behind New Haven, Connecticut, New Haven (which was ranked #97). Nerdwallet in 2022 ranked Bridgeport as the 17th most ethnicly diverse city in the United States, making it the most diverse in New England, and the third most diverse in the New York Metropolitan Area in an annual ranking. It ranked 23rd in 2021, and #22 in 2015. It is #28 on Niche (company), Niche.com "2022 Most Diverse Cities in America" list. Bridgeport's Little Italy (Bridgeport), Madison Avenue, and
Hollow Hollow may refer to: Natural phenomena *Hollow, a low, wooded area, such as a copse * Hollow (landform), a small vee-shaped, riverine type of valley *Tree hollow, a void in a branch or trunk, which may provide habitat for animals Places * Sleepy ...
Brazilian restaurants, located alongside various Portuguese ones, have been mentioned by publications such as the The New York Times, New York Times. Examples include Churrascaria, churascaria restaurants. It is "among the top cities in the state to emerse yourslef in Brazilian traditions" according to CTBites. Azteca was ranked among the best Mexican restaurants in Connecticut in 2020 according to Connecticut Magazine, along with Pho Hong Thom and Pho Saigon in Bridgeport's Little Asia on the West Side for best Vietnamese cuisine, Vietnamese places in the state.


Sports

Total Mortgage Arena serves as the city's sports and hospitality center. Seating 10,000, the Arena serves as the home rink of the Bridgeport Islanders American Hockey League, AHL hockey team, the farm team of the New York Islanders team of the National Hockey League. The arena is also the home of the Westchester Knicks of the NBA G League (the farm team for the National Basketball Association, NBA New York Knicks) for the 2021–22 season. Their home stadium, Westchester County Center in White Plains, New York, White Plains, NY is currently being used as a vaccination clinic. For college teams, Total Mortgage serves as the home venue for Sacred Heart Pioneers men's ice hockey, Sacred Heart University's men's hockey team and as the home court of Fairfield University's basketball team. The Ballpark at Harbor Yard served as a minor-league baseball stadium from 1998 to 2017. It was built in 1998 to serve as the homefield of the Bridgeport Bluefish. From 2001 to 2003 it was the homefield for the Bridgeport Barrage, a Major League Lacrosse team. It is downtown on a former brownfield site. It is visually prominent to commuters on Interstate 95 in Connecticut, I-95 or on passing trains. On August 8, 2017, Mayor Joe Ganim announced that the Bluefish would be ending their 20-year stint at the ballpark at the end of the 2017 season. The ballpark was converted into an amphitheatre. The Bluefish played their final home game at the park on September 17, 2017, losing by a score of 9–2 to the Somerset Patriots. John F. Kennedy Stadium (Bridgeport), Kennedy Stadium serves as a community sports facility. In the late 1960s and early 1970s, it was the home of an Atlantic Coast Football League minor league football team, the Bridgeport Jets, a New York Jets farm team also known locally as the Hi-Ho Jets due to their sponsorship by the (Hi-Ho) D'Addario construction company. Fairfield University is in the neighboring town of Fairfield, and many of the athletic teams play on campus. Only the men's and women's basketball teams play in Bridgeport. Nutmeg Curling Club, one of two curling clubs in Connecticut, is in Bridgeport. It is the home club of the 2013 USA Mixed National Champions, led by club members Derek Surka and Charissa Lin. The club is a member of the Grand National Curling Club Region. Bridgeport native Jim O'Rourke (baseball), Jim O'Rourke was the first baseball player to earn a hit in National League history in 1876. The founder and original owner of the Brooklyn Dodgers, Charles Ebbets, married his second wife in Bridgeport in 1922, five years before his death.


Parks and recreation

The city has 1,300 acers of public space, with a pocket park in nearly every neighborhood. Bridgeport's public park system led to its official nickname, "the Park City". The city's first public park was the westerly portion of McLevy Green, first set aside as a public square in 1806; the Clinton Park Militia Grounds (1666) and Old Mill Green (1717) were set aside earlier as public commons by the towns of Fairfield and Stratford, respectively. Washington Park in 1850 was located in the center of East Bridgeport. As the city rapidly grew in population, residents recognized the need for more public parks and by 1864, Barnum and other residents had donated approximately to create Seaside Park (Bridgeport, Connecticut), Seaside Park, now increased by acquisition and landfill to . In 1878, over of land bordering the
Pequonnock River The Pequonnock River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed 2011-04-01. waterway in eastern Fairfield County, Connecticut. Its watershed is located in five communities, w ...
was added as Beardsley Park.
Frederick Law Olmsted Frederick Law Olmsted (April 26, 1822August 28, 1903) was an American landscape architect, journalist, social critic, and public administrator. He is considered to be the father of landscape architecture in the USA. Olmsted was famous for co ...
, who designed New York City's
Central Park Central Park is an urban park in New York City located between the Upper West and Upper East Sides of Manhattan. It is the fifth-largest park in the city, covering . It is the most visited urban park in the United States, with an estimated ...
, designed both Seaside and Beardsley Parks. Over time, more parks were added including Beechwood Park and Pleasure Beach, home to an amusement park for many years. Went Field on the West End, between Wordin Avenue and Norman Street, used to be the winter headquarters of Barnum's circus.


Architecture

Bridgeport was largely bypassed by Fortune 500 companies moving to
Fairfield County Fairfield County is the name of three counties in the United States: * Fairfield County, Connecticut * Fairfield County, Ohio Fairfield County is a county located in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 158,921. ...
in the second half of the 20th century, due to the city's growing reputation for having a rough industrial character. Thus was also largely bypassed by the skyscraper construction boom of the 70s and 80s, resulting in fewer modern skyscrapers than otheir cities The tallest building in Bridgeport is currently Richard Meier-designed the 16-story, Bridgeport Center, which was completed in 1989 and surpassed the 18-story Park City Plaza, which was completed in 1973. Bridgeport in the early 20th century banned further construction of the Three-decker (house), Triple Decker, very common in the
Hollow Hollow may refer to: Natural phenomena *Hollow, a low, wooded area, such as a copse * Hollow (landform), a small vee-shaped, riverine type of valley *Tree hollow, a void in a branch or trunk, which may provide habitat for animals Places * Sleepy ...
, Little Italy (Bridgeport), Madison Avenue, in the East Bridgeport Historic District, East Side with other working class housing styles and Victorian architecture, Victorian mansions, the West Side with Queen Anne style architecture, Queen Ann multifamiliy homes, parts of Black Rock, Bridgeport, Black Rock, and the East End neighbrohood.


Government

The city is governed by the mayor-council system. Twenty members of the city council are elected from districts. Each district elects two members. The mayor is elected at-large by the entire city Bridgeport is notable for having had a Socialist Party of America, socialist mayor for 24 years, Jasper McLevy, who served from 1933 to 1957. Mayor Joseph P. Ganim was involved in a corruption scandal, as was Mayor Eddie Perez (politician), Eddie Perez of
Hartford Hartford is the capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It was the seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960. It is the core city in the Greater Hartford metropolitan area. Census estimates since t ...
in 2010. In June 2006, Mayor John M. Fabrizi admitted that he had used cocaine while in office. Bridgeport is recognized for its polarizing political culture. The city's current mayor, Joseph P. Ganim, has served the city seven terms since first taking office in 1991. After being indicted on charges of corruption in 2003, Ganim served nine years in federal prison. After his release in 2015, Ganim announced his mayoral campaign to serve a sixth term in office. His campaign ran on a theme of providing him with a "second-chance," as he was renowned for his work of escaping the city from bankruptcy and build its economy from a post-industrial standpoint. In a divisive primary election between him, the city's mayor at the time, Bill Finch, and University of Bridgeport professor and real estate developer, Mary-Jane Foster, Ganim was able to receive the endorsement of the politically volatile democratic town committee, paving the way to his victory for being reelected mayor at the end of year. Bridgeport votes Democratic at the presidential level. In 1972 Richard Nixon, Richard M. Nixon was the last Republican to win the city; since then Democrats have prevailed, often by comfortable margins, the lone exception being 1984 when Walter Mondale carried the city by just 76 votes (0.16 percent) over Ronald Reagan. Bridgeport's Democratic Town Committee has the authority to nominate and endorse Democratic candidates running for local office, and they have the resources to outperform challenger slates that may compete with them. The chairman is former state representative and local restaurateur, Mario Testa.


Education


Higher education

Bridgeport is home to the
University of Bridgeport The University of Bridgeport (UB) is a private university in Bridgeport, Connecticut. The university is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education. In 2021, the university was purchased by Goodwin University; it retain its own ...
, Housatonic Community College, Paier College, St. Vincent's Medical Center (Bridgeport)#St. Vincent's College, St. Vincent's College, and the Yeshiva Gedola of Bridgeport. The Yeshiva Gedola is the home of the Bridgeport Community Kollel, a rabbinic fellowship program. The University of Bridgeport's Ernest C. Trefz School of Business offers undergraduate and graduate programs.
Sacred Heart University Sacred Heart University (SHU) is a private, Catholic university in Fairfield, Connecticut. It was founded in 1963 by the Most Reverend Walter W. Curtis, Bishop of the Diocese of Bridgeport, Connecticut. Sacred Heart was the first Catholic uni ...
is located in the neighboring suburb of Fairfield on the town line, with its campus extending into the North End of Bridgeport on Park Avenue. Many of its students live in the city's North End. It is the second largest Catholic University in New England (behind Boston College, Boston Collage). Sacred Heart has campuses in nearby Stamford, as well as Griswold, Connecticut, Griswold, CT and Dingle, Dingle, Ireland, as well as St. Vincent's Medical Center (Bridgeport), St. Vincent's College in Bridgeport. The University of Bridgeport has secondary campuses in Waterbury and Stamford. Paier College near the University of Bridgeport is the only Private Arts college in Connecticut. Founded in 1946 in West Haven, Connecticut, West Haven and previously located in Hamden, the college recently relocated to Seaside Park in Bridgeport. The Greater Bridgeport, Greater Bridgeport Area (made up of the surrounding towns) is home to Fairfield University in neighboring Fairfield, and Western Connecticut State University in Danbury.


Public education

The city's public school system has 30 elementary schools, three comprehensive high schools, two alternative programs and an interdistrict vocational aquaculture school. The system has about 20,800 students, making the Bridgeport Public Schools the second largest school system in Connecticut after Hartford. It is ranked #158 out of the 164 Connecticut school districts. The school system employs a professional staff of more than 1,700. The city has started a large school renovation and construction program, with plans for new schools and modernization of existing buildings. Public high schools * Bassick High School established in 1929. School zone, Serves students residing south of Route 1, in the Black Rock, the Hollow, Downtown, West End and South End neighborhoods. 1181 Fairfield Ave, Bridgeport, CT. 06605 * Central High School (Connecticut), Central High School (CHS) established in 1876. Current building built in 1964. Houses the Central Magnet school, Magnet program. Serves students from north of Route 1, including the North End, part of Brooklawn and St. Vincent neighborhoods. 1 Lincoln Blvd, Bridgeport, CT. 06606 * Warren Harding High School Home to the International Baccalaureate Program (IBO) and the Health Magnet Program in association with Bridgeport Hospital, St. Vincent's Medical Center, and Bridgeport Manor; also the alma mater of Walt Kelly, creator of ''Pogo''. Serves East End, East Side, Mill Hill and North Bridgeport students. 379 Bond St, Bridgeport, CT. 06610 * Bridgeport Regional Vocational Aquaculture School (BRVAS), a half-day school specializing in marine and aquaculture curricula near Captain's Cove and open to students from surrounding towns. Serves all Bridgeport applicants and applicants from neighboring towns' ( Trumbull, Stratford, Fairfield, Milford, Connecticut, Milford, Shelton, Connecticut, Shelton, Monroe, Connecticut, Monroe, and Easton, Connecticut, Region 9) school districts. 60 St. Stephens Rd, Bridgeport, CT Public magnet high schools * Fairchild Wheeler Interdistrict Multi-Magnet High School, three specialIzard Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, STEM high schools in one building. Those school being 3: Information technology, IT and softwere technology school, Aerospace engineering, Aerospace/Hydrospace school, and Biotechnology school. Serves all Bridgeport applicants and applicants from neighboring towns (Trumbull, Stratford, Fairfield, Milford, Shelton, Monroe, Region 9). Acceptance by public lottery. 840 Old Town Road, Bridgeport, CT. 06606 * Central Magnet (part of Central High School (Connecticut), Central High School) is a public preparatory magnet school. Serves all Bridgeport applicants, must meet grade requirements to enter lottery. 1 Lincoln Blvd, Bridgeport, CT. 06606 Public military/trade high schools * Bridgeport Military Academy (BMA), a school for students looking for a career in public safety. Partnerships with local Bridgeport Fire Department, fire, Bridgeport Police Department, police, United States Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security and other departments. Open to all Bridgeport applicants. 160 Iranistan Ave, Bridgeport, CT. 06604 * Bullard-Havens Technical High School, a Vocational education, vocational high school. (State School, not part of Bridgeport Public Schools).


Charter schools

* The Bridge Academy: Bridgeport Charter High School * Achievement First Bridgeport Charter High School * Great Oaks Charter School * Park City Prep Charter School


Private education

Bridgeport is also home to private schools, including Bridgeport Hope School (K–8), Bridgeport International Academy (grades 9–12), Catholic Academies of Bridgeport (Pre-K–8), Kolbe Cathedral High School (9–12), St. Andrew Academy (Pre-K–8), and St. Ann Academy (Pre-K–8).


Media


Radio

* WCUM AM 1450; 1,000 watts (formerly WJBX-AM, and before that, WNAB-AM) Spanish Format station better known as Radio Cumbre. * WICC (AM), WICC-AM 600; 1,000 watts (daytime), 500 watts (nighttime) – WICC began broadcasting on November 21, 1926, when a previous radio station, WCWS, was given a new name, WICC. The last three letters standing for Industrial Capitol of Connecticut. The Bridgeport Broadcasting Company Inc. was the new station's owner. Back then, the station was powered at 500 watts. From 1951 to 1956 one of the station's radio hosts was Bob Crane, who later went on to play Col. Robert Hogan on the ''Hogan's Heroes'' television comedy series. WICC's transmitter is on Pleasure Beach in Bridgeport on a peninsula extending into
Long Island Sound Long Island Sound is a marine sound and tidal estuary of the Atlantic Ocean. It lies predominantly between the U.S. state of Connecticut to the north and Long Island in New York to the south. From west to east, the sound stretches from the Eas ...
. * WEBE-FM 107.9; 50,000 watts. WEBE108 is Connecticut's Best Music Variety! The station is owned by Connoisseur Media. Licensed to Westport, CT with studios in Milford and WEBE's transmitter is located in Shelton. Besides a standard analog transmission, WEBE broadcasts over one HD Radio channel, and is available online. * WEZN-FM 99.9; 27,500 watts (formerly WJZZ-FM). Star 99.9 is Today's Best Mix! The station is owned by Connoisseur Media. Lincensed to Bridgeport, CT with studios in Milford and WEZN's transmitter is located in Trumbull. * WPKN-FM 89.5; 10,000 watts


Newspapers

* Elsolnews.com, a community Spanish-language weekly newspaper covering news and events, based in Stamford. * HaitianVoice.com, a Bridgeport-based newspaper covering local news in English, Haitian Creole and French. * Brazil News covers stories from Bridgeport in Portuguese. * ''Connecticut Post'' – Formerly the ''Bridgeport Post and Bridgeport Telegram'', which covers Bridgeport and the surrounding area. The newspaper is printed daily. It is owned by Hearst Communications, Hearst Connecticut Media.


Television

Bridgeport was National Broadcasting Company, NBC's pioneer Ultra high frequency, UHF TV test site from December 29, 1949, to August 23, 1952; the equipment from the KC2XAK, "Operation Bridgeport" tests was later deployed commercially at KPTV in Portland, Oregon (1952–1957). While Bridgeport is primarily served by New York City or List of United States television markets, New Haven-Hartford stations, some local UHF broadcasters operate today: * Connecticut Public Television, WEDW channel 49; one of the Connecticut Public Television stations, broadcasts from Bridgeport and can be seen in Hartford. * In 2011, WTNH-TV opened a satellite studio in the offices of the Connecticut Post Downtown on State Street. * WZME channel 43; a ShopHQ affiliate, currently channel sharing with WEDW and licensed to Bridgeport. Cable: * News 12 Networks, News 12 Connecticut, an Altice USA, Altice-only cable news channel for local news and weather in Greater Bridgeport.


Movies filmed in Bridgeport

A list of films shot or partially filmed in the city: * ''Officer Down'' (2012) * ''A Dance for Grace'' (2010) * ''Ironmen'' (2010) * ''3 Weeks to Daytona'' (2009) * ''Accidental Mayor'' (2009) * ''All Good Things (film), All Good Things'' (2009) * ''Confessions of a Shopaholic (film), Confessions of a Shopaholic'' (2009) * ''Dear Beautiful'' (2009) * ''The Godfather Musical Part III: Luca Brasi Sleeps with the Fishes'' (2009) * ''House of Satisfaction'' (2009) * ''Made for Each Other (2009 film), Made for Each Other'' (2009) * ''The Music of Erich Zann'' (2009/II) * ''Old Dogs (film), Old Dogs'' (2009/I) * ''College Road Trip'' (2008) * ''Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull'' (2008) * ''Pistol Whipped'' (2008) * ''Righteous Kill'' (2008) * ''The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2'' (2008) * ''What Just Happened (2008 film), What Just Happened'' (2008) * ''Bobby Dogs'' (2007) * ''Dear Beautiful'' (2007) * ''Praying to Hendrix'' (2007) * ''Die Hard with a Vengeance'' (1995) * ''A Walk with Death'' (1993) * ''Route One USA'' (1989) * ''There's a Nightmare in My Closet'' (1987) * ''Without a Trace (1983 film), Without a Trace'' (1983) * ''The Case of the Cosmic Comic'' (1976) * ''The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds'' (1972) * ''The Light that Failed'' (1916)


Television shows filmed in Bridgeport

* ''Kitchen Nightmares'' (Season 4, Episode 7, "Tavolini Restaurant", 2011) * ''Brian Boitano Skating Spectacular'' (2010) (TV) * ''Ghost Adventures'':"Remington Arms Factory" (Episode 21, November 2009) * ''WWE Raw'' (November 18, 2002; March 8, 2004; December 26, 2005; August 21, 2006; April 9, 2007; April 27, 2009; June 21, 2010, April 11, 2011, and September 17, 2012) * ''WWE Smackdown'', ECW (WWE), ECW, and WWE NXT (TV series), NXT (May 7, 2002; March 4, 2003; August 2, 2005; December 9, 2008; November 24, 2009; November 2, 2010; and November 15, 2011) * ''Oprah Winfrey Presents: Mitch Albom's For One More Day'' (2007) * WWE Raw's 15th Anniversary Special (2007) * ''Flip This House'': "Burning Down the House" (2005) * ''Extreme Makeover: Home Edition'' (2003 & 2007) * ''Made in America (TV program), Made in America'' (2003) * ''U.S. Bounty Hunter'' (2003) * ''Muggsy (TV series), Muggsy'' (1976) * ''Twentieth Century (TV series), The Twentieth Century'' (1957, The Class of '58 episode) * ''Johnny, We Hardly Knew Ye'' (TV Movie, 1977), bar scene of JFK campaigning with local workers filmed in the Ideal Bar on Barnum Avenue across from the former Singer Building * ''Live PD'' (2016–2017) * ''Family Guy'' 2010 * ''Sneaky Pete'' (2015–) Although shot in the state of New York, much of the show takes place in Bridgeport


Infrastructure


Transportation


Airports

Sikorsky Memorial Airport in neighboring Stratford was previously owned by the City of Bridgeport before closing a deal in 2016 that sold the land to Stratford. It once provided regional flights to major cities, but commercial operations at the airport were terminated in November 1999.


Roads

Bridgeport has several major roadways. Interstate 95 in Connecticut, Interstate 95 and the Route 8 (Connecticut), Route 8/Route 25 (Connecticut), Route 25 Connector meet in Downtown Bridgeport. I-95 runs east–west near the coast heading towards New York City to the southwest and Providence, Rhode Island, Providence to the northeast. Routes 8 and 25 run north–south across the city, with the two routes splitting just north of the city. Route 8 continues towards
Waterbury Waterbury is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut on the Naugatuck River, southwest of Hartford and northeast of New York City. Waterbury is the second-largest city in New Haven County, Connecticut. According to the 2020 US Census, in 202 ...
and Torrington, Connecticut, Torrington and Route 25 continues towards the Danbury, Connecticut, Danbury area. Both Routes 8 and 25 connect to the Merritt Parkway in the adjacent town of Trumbull. Other major surface arteries are U.S. Route 1 in Connecticut, U.S. 1 (the Boston Post Road), which runs east–west north of Downtown, and Main Street, which runs north–south towards Trumbull center. The city also has several secondary state highways, namely, Route 127 (Connecticut), Route 127 (East Main Street), Route 130 (Connecticut), Route 130 (Connecticut Avenue, Stratford Avenue, Fairfield Avenue and Water Street), and the Huntington Turnpike.


Railroad and ferries

The Bridgeport Traction Company provided streetcar service in the region until 1937. The Housatonic Railroad carried passengers North through the Pequonnock and Housatonic Valleys prior to 1933. The city is connected to nearby New York City by both Amtrak and Metro-North Railroad, Metro-North commuter trains, which serve Bridgeport (Metro-North station), Bridgeport's Metro-North station. Many residents commute to New York jobs on these trains, and the city to some extent is developing as an outpost of New York–based workers seeking cheaper rents and larger living spaces. Connecting service is also available to
Waterbury Waterbury is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut on the Naugatuck River, southwest of Hartford and northeast of New York City. Waterbury is the second-largest city in New Haven County, Connecticut. According to the 2020 US Census, in 202 ...
via Metro-North, and New Haven, Connecticut, New Haven via Amtrak and Metro-North. Shoreline East service links Old Saybrook and New London, Connecticut, New London with New Haven, which extends to Bridgeport and Stamford during weekday rush hours only. The Bridgeport & Port Jefferson Ferry service runs from Bridgeport across
Long Island Sound Long Island Sound is a marine sound and tidal estuary of the Atlantic Ocean. It lies predominantly between the U.S. state of Connecticut to the north and Long Island in New York to the south. From west to east, the sound stretches from the Eas ...
to Port Jefferson, New York, Port Jefferson, New York; the three vessels ''Grand Republic'', ''P.T. Barnum'', and ''Park City'' transport both automobiles and passengers.


Buses

The Greater Bridgeport Transit Authority (GBTA) provides bus service to Bridgeport and its immediate suburbs. Route 2 the Coastal Link goes west to Norwalk and east to the Connecticut Post Mall in Milford, Connecticut, Milford, from where Connecticut Transit can bring passengers to the New Haven Green. Greyhound Lines, Greyhound and Peter Pan Bus Lines both offer intercity bus service to points throughout the Northeast and points beyond.


Emergency services


Fire department

The Bridgeport Fire Department provides fire protection and emergency medical services at the Basic life support level to the city of Bridgeport.


Police department

The Bridgeport Police Department is the primary law enforcement agency in Bridgeport, Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. It is responsible for most law enforcement within the geographical boundaries of City of Bridgeport.


Emergency medical services

Emergency medical services are provided by American Medical Response at the paramedic level.


In popular culture

Novels set in Bridgeport include: * A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, written 1889, a classic novel by Mark Twain which contains the line "Bridgeport?" Said I." "Camolot", said he." when a man from
Hartford Hartford is the capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It was the seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960. It is the core city in the Greater Hartford metropolitan area. Census estimates since t ...
, who does not yet know his has been transported to early medival times, arrives with his escort to Camelot, confusing it for Bridgeport. * Bridgeport is the setting of Maureen Howard's novel ''Natural History'', which includes scenes from the city's history and depicts historical figures such as
P. T. Barnum Phineas Taylor Barnum (; July 5, 1810 – April 7, 1891) was an American showman, businessman, and politician, remembered for promoting celebrated hoaxes and founding the Barnum & Bailey Circus (1871–2017) with James Anthony Bailey. He was ...
. * David Foster Wallace mentions Bridgeport in his novel Infinite Jest, calling it the "true lower intestine of North America".


Taxes

Bridgeport has one of the highest property tax rates in Connecticut. A 2017 Lincoln Institute of Land Policy and Minnesota Center of Fiscal Excellence study determined that Bridgeport had the second-highest property tax burden of any U.S. city (after Detroit), and the fourth-highest for commercial properties valued at more than $1 million (after Detroit, New York City, and Chicago).Alexander Soule
Study: Bridgeport has second 2nd worst property taxes
''The Hour'' (May 19, 2017).
In 2016, Bridgeport enacted a 29% increase in the property tax rate, among the highest one-year property tax rate increases in recent U.S. history, in an effort to reduce the municipal deficit.Kristin Hussey & Lisa W. Foderaro

''New York Times'' (October 11, 2016).
A citywide reassessment in 2015 determined that the value of taxable property in the city was $6 billion, a decline of $1 billion; the property tax increases, combined with property value decreases, have been a consistent political issue in the city.


See also

* List of people from Bridgeport, Connecticut * National Register of Historic Places listings in Bridgeport, Connecticut * Seaside Village Historic District * St. Andrew Church (Bridgeport, Connecticut)


References


Further reading

* * * * * * *


External links


City of Bridgeport official website
{{Authority control Bridgeport, Connecticut, 1821 establishments in Connecticut Cities in Connecticut Cities in Fairfield County, Connecticut Cities in the New York metropolitan area Hispanic and Latino American culture in Connecticut Populated coastal places in Connecticut Populated places established in 1821