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 (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the ...
is divided into 169
towns
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 or ...
(including 21
cities
A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...
), which are grouped into
eight counties.
Towns traditionally have a
town meeting
Town meeting is a form of local government in which most or all of the members of a community are eligible to legislate policy and budgets for local government. It is a town- or city-level meeting in which decisions are made, in contrast with ...
form of government; under the
Home Rule Act, however, towns are free to choose their own government structure. Nineteen of the towns in Connecticut are consolidated city-towns, and one (
Naugatuck) is a consolidated borough-town.
City incorporation requires a Special Act by the
Connecticut General Assembly
The Connecticut General Assembly (CGA) is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is a bicameral body composed of the 151-member House of Representatives and the 36-member Senate. It meets in the state capital, Hartford. ...
. All cities in Connecticut are dependent municipalities, meaning they are located within and subordinate to a town. However, except for one, all currently existing cities in Connecticut are consolidated with their parent
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 o ...
. Former inner-cities are listed in a separate table below.
Towns in Connecticut are allowed to adopt a city form of government without the need to re-incorporate as an inner-city. Connecticut state law also makes no distinction between a consolidated town/city and a regular town. Bolded city names indicate the state's largest cities, with the most populated being
Bridgeport
Bridgeport is the most populous city and a major port in the U.S. state of Connecticut. With a population of 148,654 in 2020, it is also the fifth-most populous in New England. Located in eastern Fairfield County at the mouth of the Pequonn ...
. Currently,
Tolland County
Tolland County is a county in the northeastern part of the U.S. state of Connecticut. As of the 2020 census, its population was 149,788. It is incorporated into 13 towns and was originally formed on 13 October 1785 from portions of eastern ...
and
Windham County are the only counties in Connecticut without a single city in them.
List of municipalities in Connecticut
Cities
Former cities
Gallery
File:BridgeportCT Aerial.jpg, Bridgeport
Bridgeport is the most populous city and a major port in the U.S. state of Connecticut. With a population of 148,654 in 2020, it is also the fifth-most populous in New England. Located in eastern Fairfield County at the mouth of the Pequonn ...
File:New Haven from East Rock.jpg, New Haven
New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134,023 ...
File:Hartford Connecticut Skyline.JPG, 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 ...
File:Stamford_Connecticut_Skyline_Aug_2017.jpg, Stamford
File:Western approach to Waterbury CT.jpg, Waterbury
File:SouthNorwalkRRstaWestEntrance08112007.jpg, Norwalk
File:David Woosters Monument.JPG, Danbury
Danbury is a city in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States, located approximately northeast of New York City. Danbury's population as of 2022 was 87,642. It is the seventh largest city in Connecticut.
Danbury is nicknamed the "Hat City ...
File:City Hall, New Britain CT.jpg, New Britain
New Britain ( tpi, Niu Briten) is the largest island in the Bismarck Archipelago, part of the Islands Region of Papua New Guinea. It is separated from New Guinea by a northwest corner of the Solomon Sea (or with an island hop of Umboi the D ...
File:BristolCT MainStreetHD1.jpg, Bristol
Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, city, Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Glouces ...
File:West Main Street, Meriden CT.jpg, Meriden
File:Milford, CT Town Hall.jpg, Milford
File:WestHavenAerial1.jpg, West Haven
File:Middletown CT river skyline.JPG, Middletown
File:City Hall, Norwich CT.jpg, Norwich
Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. Norwich is by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. As the seat of the Episcopal see, See of ...
File:Shelton, CT - panoramio.jpg, Shelton
File:Torrington0062 YankeePedlar sm.JPG, Torrington
File:New London, Connecticut skyline.JPG, New London
File:MainStreetAnsoniaCT.jpg, Ansonia
File:Derby-Shelton Bridge.jpg, Derby
Derby ( ) is a city and unitary authority area in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the banks of the River Derwent in the south of Derbyshire, which is in the East Midlands Region. It was traditionally the county town of Derbyshire. Derby g ...
File:School Street, Groton, CT.JPG, Groton
File:1877, Harvey, Sarah E., Winsted, Connecticut.jpg, Winsted
Boroughs
See also
*
Borough (Connecticut)
In the U.S. state of Connecticut, a borough is an incorporated section of a town. Borough governments are not autonomous and are subordinate to the government of the town to which they belong. For example, Fenwick is a borough in Old Saybrook. ...
*
Administrative divisions of Connecticut
Connecticut shares with the five other New England states a governmental structure known as the New England town. From 1666 to 1960, Connecticut had a system of county governments, which each had limited powers given to it by the General Assembly. ...
*
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 (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the ...
*
List of counties in Connecticut
A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to:
People
* List (surname)
Organizations
* List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America
* SC Germania List, German rugby unio ...
Notes
References
Connecticut State Register and Manual Sec. VII
External links
National Association of Towns and TownshipsThe Connecticut Conference of MunicipalitiesThe Connecticut Council of Small Towns
{{Connecticut
Towns
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 or ...
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 (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to 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 (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the ...