Sprague is a

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

in New London County,

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

, United States. The town is part of the Southeastern Connecticut Planning Region. The town was named after William Sprague III, who laid out the industrial section. The population was 2,967 at the 2020 census. Sprague includes three villages: Baltic,

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, and Versailles.

History

The town of Sprague was incorporated in 1861, formed from portions of the towns of

Lisbon Lisbon ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 567,131, as of 2023, within its administrative limits and 3,028,000 within the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, metropolis, as of 2025. Lisbon is mainlan ...

and Franklin. A few years earlier, in 1856, former Rhode Island Governor and U.S. Senator William Sprague III of Rhode Island had laid out plans to build "the largest mill on the Western Continent" in eastern Connecticut, only to die later that year. His nephews

William William is a masculine given name of Germanic languages, Germanic origin. It became popular in England after the Norman Conquest, Norman conquest in 1066,All Things William"Meaning & Origin of the Name"/ref> and remained so throughout the Middle ...

and Amasa Sprague constructed the Baltic Cotton Mill in what was to become the village of Baltic. The mill village of Baltic sat on the Shetucket River in the southwest corner of the town. The original mill burned down in 1877, but the Baltic Power Company continued to operate a mill on the site until 1967.

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the town has a total area of 13.8 square miles (35.8 km), of which 13.2 square miles (34.2 km) is land and 0.6 square miles (1.6 km), or 4.41%, is water.

Principal communities

* Baltic (town center) *

*Versailles The town hall is located in Baltic and was constructed in the 1950s.

Demographics

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 2,971 people, 1,111 households, and 797 families living in the town. The population density was . There were 1,164 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 95.42%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 0.71%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.64% Native American, 1.35% Asian, 0.07%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 0.37% from other races, and 1.45% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 1.11% of the population. There were 1,111 households, out of which 36.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.2% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 12.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.2% were non-families. 21.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.63 and the average family size was 3.04. In the town, the population was spread out, with 26.0% under the age of 18, 6.6% from 18 to 24, 32.3% from 25 to 44, 23.4% from 45 to 64, and 11.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 93.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.2 males. The median income for a household in the town was $43,125, and the median income for a family was $57,500. Males had a median income of $40,808 versus $28,616 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the town was $20,796. About 2.2% of families and 6.4% 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 ...

, including 5.1% of those under age 18 and 17.8% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

The previous industry in town was the Baltic Textile Mill, which burned down in 1999.

Ecotourism and events

Sprague is quickly becoming a destination for eco-tourism, having held their first RiverFest, a celebration of the local Shetucket River. The river and festival attract kayakers, canoe enthusiasts, tubers, and nature lovers. A companion festival, the Three Villages Festival, is held each year in October in Baltic, on the public ball field and surrounding area.

Notable people

* Leo Connellan (1928–2001), poet laureate of Connecticut (1996-2001), lived his later years here and died in town * Charles S. Whitman (1868–1947), judge and the 41st Governor of New York, born in town * Chase Going Woodhouse (1890–1984), feminist leader, suffragist, educator, U.S. Representative

On the National Register of Historic Places

A historic district and two individual buildings in Sprague are listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

: * Ashlawn – 1 Potash Hill Road (added July 4, 1979) * Baltic Historic District – Roughly bounded by Fifth Avenue, River, High, Main, West Main, and the Shetucket River (added September 3, 1987) * William Park House – 330 Main Street (added March 7, 2007)

References

External links

Town of Sprague official website
{{authority control Towns in New London County, Connecticut Towns in Connecticut Towns in Southeastern Connecticut Planning Region, Connecticut