Colebrook is a
town
A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world.
Origin and use
The word "town" shares an ori ...
in
Litchfield County
Litchfield County is in northwestern Connecticut. As of the 2020 census, the population was 185,186. The county was named after Lichfield, in England. Litchfield County has the lowest population density of any county in Connecticut and is the ...
,
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 ...
,
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
. The population was 1,361 at the
2020 census.
Colebrook was named after
Colebrooke in the English county of
Devon
Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devo ...
; the reason is now unknown.
Geography
Colebrook is in northeastern Litchfield County and is bounded to the east by
Hartford County, Connecticut
Hartford County is a county located in the north central part of the U.S. state of Connecticut. According to the 2020 census, the population was 899,498, making it the second-most populous county in Connecticut. Hartford County contains the ...
, and to the north by
Berkshire and
Hampden County in
. According to the
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...
, the town has a total area of , of which are land and , or 4.23%, are water. Colebrook River Lake and West Branch Reservoir, both on the West Branch of the
Farmington River
The Farmington River is a river, U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed April 1, 2011 in length along its main stem, located in northwest Connecticut with major tributaries ex ...
, are in the northeast part of the town.
Algonquin State Forest is in the central part of the town.
Colebrook is north of
Torrington and northwest 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 ...
, the state capitol.
Principal communities
*Colebrook center
*North Colebrook
*Robertsville
Demographics
As of the
census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...
of 2000, there were 1,471 people, 566 households, and 419 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 656 housing units at an average density of 20.8 per square mile (8.0/km
2). The racial makeup of the town was 97.01%
White
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White o ...
, 0.68%
African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
, 0.61%
Asian
Asian may refer to:
* Items from or related to the continent of Asia:
** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia
** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia
** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...
, 0.88% from
other races
Other often refers to:
* Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy
Other or The Other may also refer to:
Film and television
* ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack
* ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...
, and 0.82% from two or more races.
Hispanic
The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad.
The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...
or
Latino
Latino or Latinos most often refers to:
* Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America
* Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States
* The people or cultures of Latin America;
** Latin A ...
of any race were 2.45% of the population.
There were 566 households, out of which 32.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 65.2% were
married couples living together, 5.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.8% were non-families. 19.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.60 and the average family size was 3.01.
In the town, the population was spread out, with 24.5% under the age of 18, 4.2% from 18 to 24, 29.6% from 25 to 44, 27.5% from 45 to 64, and 14.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females, there were 102.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 101.5 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $58,684, and the median income for a family was $64,286. Males had a median income of $42,647 versus $35,987 for females. The
per capita income
Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population.
Per capita i ...
for the town was $29,789. About 1.4% of families and 2.6% of the population were below the
poverty line
The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...
, including none of those under age 18 and 9.0% of those age 65 or over.
Transportation
The town is served by Connecticut Routes
8,
182, and
183. Route 8 leads south to
Winsted and north to
New Boston, Massachusetts. Route 182 leads west to
U.S. Route 44
U.S. Route 44 (US 44) is an east–west United States Numbered Highway that runs for through four states in the Northeastern United States. The western terminus is at US 209 and New York State Route 55 (NY 55) in Kerhonkson, ...
in
Norfolk
Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...
, while Route 183 leads south to Winsted and northwest to
New Marlborough, Massachusetts
New Marlborough is a town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,528 at the 2020 census. New Marlborough consists of five villages: Clayton ...
.
Education
It is in the zone for
Northwestern Regional School District No. 7: Northwestern Regional Middle School and
Northwestern Regional High School
Northwestern Regional High School is a public regional high school located in Winsted, Connecticut, serving the towns of Barkhamsted, Colebrook, New Hartford and Norfolk
Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia ...
.
Notable locations
*
Rock Hall, a building designed by architect
Addison Mizner
Addison Cairns Mizner (December 12, 1872 – February 5, 1933) was an American architect whose Mediterranean Revival and Spanish Colonial Revival style interpretations left an indelible stamp on South Florida, where it continues to inspire archi ...
, listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Wind farm siting
Wind Colebrook was a proposal to build the state's first utility scale
wind turbine
A wind turbine is a device that converts the kinetic energy of wind into electrical energy. Hundreds of thousands of large turbines, in installations known as wind farms, now generate over 650 gigawatts of power, with 60 GW added each yea ...
project, for which permitting was ultimately denied.
BNE Energywas cleared to build three wind turbines in Colebrook and two 2.85MW, 100m-diameter turbines were installed in 2015. A third (3.8MW, 130m rotor diameter) turbine is planned for installation by 2021. According to BNE Energy's quarterly generation reports to PURA, the Colebrook wind farm has slightly exceeded the planned level of energy generation, with 12,742MWh generated in 2016 and 12,706MWh generated in 2017. The wind farm, according to these figures, is operating at about 30 percent of its rated capacity.
Notable people
*
Rufus Babcock
Rufus T. Babcock (September 18, 1798 – May 4, 1875) was an American clergyman and the second president of Colby College in Waterville, Maine.
Life
Babcock was born at North Colebrook, Connecticut. His father, Rufus Babcock, who had been a ...
, second president of
Colby College
Colby College is a private liberal arts college in Waterville, Maine. It was founded in 1813 as the Maine Literary and Theological Institution, then renamed Waterville College after the city where it resides. The donations of Christian philant ...
; born in North Colebrook
*
Donald Barr
Donald is a masculine given name derived from the Gaelic name ''Dòmhnall''.. This comes from the Proto-Celtic *''Dumno-ualos'' ("world-ruler" or "world-wielder"). The final -''d'' in ''Donald'' is partly derived from a misinterpretation of the ...
(1921–2004), novelist, educator, and book reviewer for ''The New York Times''; retired to Colebrook in the 1980s
*
Abiram Chamberlain
Abiram Chamberlain (December 7, 1837 – May 15, 1911) was an American politician, and the 60th governor of Connecticut from 1903 to 1905.
Biography
Chamberlain was born in Colebrook, Connecticut on December 7, 1837, son of Abiram Chamberlain a ...
(1837–1911), the 60th
governor of Connecticut
The governor of Connecticut is the head of government of Connecticut, and the commander-in-chief of the U.S. state, state's Connecticut Military Department, military forces. The Governor (United States), governor has a duty to enforce state laws, ...
; born in Colebrook
*
Jonathan Edwards (the younger)
Jonathan Edwards (May 26, 1745 – August 1, 1801) was an American theologian and linguist.
Life and career
Born in Northampton, Massachusetts Bay, he was the ninth child and second son of Jonathan Edwards and Sarah (Pierpont) Edwards. In 17 ...
(1745–1801), theologian; lived and preached in Colebrook for four years
*
Eric Foner
Eric Foner (; born February 7, 1943) is an American historian. He writes extensively on American political history, the history of freedom, the early history of the Republican Party, African-American biography, the American Civil War, Reconstruc ...
(born 1943), Columbia University professor, author, and noted Civil War historian; part-time resident of the town
*
Harris Merton Lyon, short story writer; lived in North Colebrook
[Max J. Puzel, ''The Man in the Mirror: William Marion Reedy and His Magazine'', ]University of Missouri Press
The University of Missouri Press is a university press operated by the University of Missouri in Columbia, Missouri and London, England; it was founded in 1958 primarily through the efforts of English professor William Peden. Many publications a ...
, 1998, pp. 256-25
/ref>
* Christine Negroni (1956- ), noted aviation and travel writer; part-time resident of the town
* James Phelps (1822–1900), judge, Connecticut state legislator and US congressman; born in Colebrook
* Lancelot Phelps
Lancelot Phelps (November 9, 1784 – September 1, 1866) was a United States representative from Connecticut. He was the father of James Phelps who was also a United States Representative from Connecticut. He was born in Windsor, Connecticut, b ...
(1784–1866), congressman and father to James Phelps
* Ammi Phillips (1788–1865), artist; born in Colebrook
* Thomas Robbins (1777–1856), Congregational minister, bibliophile, and antiquarian; died in Colebrook
* Julius Rockwell
Julius Rockwell (April 26, 1805May 19, 1888) was a United States politician from Massachusetts, and the father of Francis Williams Rockwell.
Rockwell was born in Colebrook, Connecticut and educated at private schools and then Yale, where he st ...
(1805–1888), judge and congressman from Massachusetts; born in Colebrook
References
External links
Official website
{{authority control
Towns in Litchfield County, Connecticut
Towns in the New York metropolitan area
Towns in Connecticut