Ashford 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 ...

Windham County, Connecticut Windham County is a county located in the northeastern corner of the U.S. state of Connecticut. As of the 2020 census, the population was 116,418, making it the least populous county in Connecticut. It forms the core of the region known as the ...

, United States. It is part of the Connecticut

Quiet Corner Northeastern Connecticut, better known as the Quiet Corner, is a historic region of the state of Connecticut, located in the northeastern corner of the state. It is generally associated with Windham County, but also sometimes incorporates east ...

. The population was 4,191 at the 2020 census. It was founded in 1714. Eastford was a part of Ashford until 1847, when the former split off to organize its own town. For this reason North Ashford is located in northeast Eastford. Ashford is home to the largest boy scout camp in Connecticut, the

June Norcross Webster Scout Reservation The headquarters of the Connecticut Rivers Council of the Boy Scouts of America is located in East Hartford, Connecticut. The present council was formed as the result of the merger between the Indian Trails Council of Norwich, Connecticut and Lon ...

; to Paul Newman's

Hole in the Wall Gang Camp The Hole in the Wall Gang Camp, based in Ashford, Connecticut, is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization, residential summer camp, and year-round center serving children and their families coping with cancer and other serious illnesses and condition ...

for children with cancer and other serious illness; to the Salvation Army CONNRI Lodge and Conference Center; and to the Evangelical Christian Center, a retreat, camp and conference center.

History

President

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of ...

, returning from his tour of the country in the fall of 1789, was chagrined to be involuntarily abandoned in the village on a Sunday. It was contrary to law to hire a conveyance on that day, which was observed by villagers, to Washington's great annoyance. New Ashford in Massachusetts is named after Ashford, as it was settled in 1762 by people from Ashford. On July 17, 2018, an EF0

tornado A tornado is a violently rotating column of air that is in contact with both the surface of the Earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. It is often referred to as a twister, whirlwind or cyclone, altho ...

—the first tornado to touch down in Windham County since 1992—struck Ashford Lake and the surrounding neighborhoods, downing trees, damaging homes, and killing three household rabbits.

National Register of Historic Places listings

* Ashford Academy – Fitts Road (added 1988) * Church Farm – 396 Mansfield Road (added December 17, 1988) * Knowlton Memorial Hall – 25 Pompey Hollow Road (added April 17, 1994) * Mixer Tavern – 14 Westford Road (added April 17, 1994)

Geography

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 t ...

, the town has a total area of , of which, of it is land and of it (1.80%) is water. The Mount Hope River flows through the middle of the town, from north to south, while Bigelow Brook flows along the town's eastern border with Eastford. Ashford has several lakes and ponds, notably Ashford Lake,

Lake Chaffee Lake Chaffee is a small, shallow, man-made lake located approximately northwest of the hamlet of Westford in the town of Ashford in Windham County, northeastern Connecticut. The lake has an area of and a maximum depth of . Its average surfac ...

, Knowlton Pond, Rychlings Pond, Halls Pond, Poole Pond (Also known as Pearson Pond), and Morey Pond. The community of

surrounds the lake of the same name.

Boston Hollow Boston Hollow is a deep ravine in Ashford, Connecticut. It is a unique location in several ways. In geological terms it is an ancient fault in the Central Maine Terrane of the eastern highlands of Connecticut. More specifically, it lays within the ...

, a deep ravine, is located in Ashford, in the

Yale-Myers Forest The Yale-Myers Forest is a 7,800-acre (32 km2) forest in Northeastern Connecticut owned by Yale University and administered by the Yale School of the Environment. Located in the towns of Union, Ashford, Eastford, and Woodstock, the forest ...

. Parts of Natchaug State Forest and Nipmuck State Forest are also located in Ashford, and both the Natchaug Trail and the

Nipmuck Trail The Nipmuck Trail is a '' Blue-Blazed'' hiking trail system which meanders through of forests in northeast Connecticut. It is maintained by the Connecticut Forest and Park Association and is considered one of the Blue-Blazed hiking trails. There ...

runs through the town. Joshua's Tract Conservation and Historic Trust has several nature preserved in town. Snow Hill located in the northwest corner of the town, is the highest point in Windham County at 1,210 feet.

Flora and fauna

Ashford_Oak,_Ashford,_CT_-_August_5,_2011

Ashford is located in the

northeastern coastal forests The Northeastern coastal forests are a temperate broadleaf and mixed forests ecoregion of the northeast and middle Atlantic region of the United States. The ecoregion covers an area of 34,630 sq miles (89,691 km2) encompassing the Piedmont a ...

, which is a

temperate broadleaf and mixed forest Temperate broadleaf and mixed forest is a temperate climate terrestrial habitat type defined by the World Wide Fund for Nature, with broadleaf tree ecoregions, and with conifer and broadleaf tree mixed coniferous forest ecoregions. These ...

ecoregion. Ashford is home to the

, which is used by the

Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies Yale School of the Environment (YSE) is a professional school of Yale University. It was founded to train foresters, and now trains environmental leaders through four 2-year degree programs ( Master of Environmental Management, Master of Environm ...

for scientific research and education. The most famous tree in town is the Ashford Oak, a very large and old Northern Red Oak with a trunk that is 8 meters in circumference. The last recorded sighting of periodic cicadas belonging to Brood XI of the 17-year variety occurred in Ashford in 1954 along the Fenton River.

Demographics

As of 2010 Ashford had a population of 4,317. The racial and ethnic composition of the population was 94.1% white, 1.0% black or African American, 0.4% Native American, 1.3% Asian, 1.1% from some other race, 2.1% from two or more races and 3.5% Hispanic or Latino of any race. 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 in ...

of 2000, there were 4,098 people, 1,578 households, and 1,084 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 1,699 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 95.71%

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 ...

, 1.00%

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 ...

, 0.27% Native American, 1.02% Asian, 0.44% 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 1.56% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, 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 viceroyalties forme ...

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 2.00% of the population. There were 1,578 households, out of which 34.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.5% were married couples living together, 8.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.3% were non-families. 20.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.59 and the average family size was 3.05. In the town, the population was spread out, with 25.6% under the age of 18, 8.5% from 18 to 24, 32.0% from 25 to 44, 25.6% from 45 to 64, and 8.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.1 males. The median income for a household in the town was $55,000, and the median income for a family was $61,693. Males had a median income of $42,117 versus $31,942 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 $26,104. About 3.4% of families and 5.9% 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 6.1% of those under age 18 and 8.7% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

The town of Ashford is heavily Democratic and has been since the 1930s. Ashford was one of only 8 towns in Connecticut that voted for George McGovern over

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...

in the

1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using mean solar tim ...

election.

Religion

Several churches exist in Ashford. They include the St Philip-Apostle Church (

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

), Living Proof Church (formerly United Baptist Church of Ashford),

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a nontrinitarian Christian church that considers itself to be the restoration of the original church founded by Jesus Christ. The ch ...

, and Westford Congregational Church.

Education

Elementary and middle school-aged residents attend Ashford School, the town's only school, built in 1951 to replace the old Ashford Academy schoolhouse. This school educates students from Pre-K through grade eight. In February 1979, the town's board of education considered closing the school in response to a budget crisis. High school-aged residents may attend E. O. Smith High School in Mansfield, CT, part of Regional School District 19. They also can go to

Windham Technical High School Windham Technical High School, or Windham Tech, is a technical high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools pr ...

, ACT. and Ellis Technical High School.

Notable people

* Francis Bugbee (1794–1877), lawyer, judge and politician *

Walter Eli Clark Walter Eli Clark (January 7, 1869 – February 4, 1950) was an American journalist and newspaper publisher. In addition to his journalistic activities, he was the last Governor of the District of Alaska from 1909 to 1912, and the first Govern ...

(1869–1950), journalist, last governor of the

District of Alaska The District of Alaska was the federal government’s designation for Alaska from May 17, 1884 to August 24, 1912, when it became Alaska Territory. Previously (1867–1884) it had been known as the Department of Alaska, a military designation ...

and the first governor of the

Alaska Territory The Territory of Alaska or Alaska Territory was an organized incorporated territory of the United States from August 24, 1912, until Alaska was granted statehood on January 3, 1959. The territory was previously Russian America, 1784–1867; the ...

Emeline Horton Cleveland Emeline Horton Cleveland (September 22, 1829December 8, 1878) was an American physician and one of the first women to perform major abdominal or gynecological surgery in the United States. She became one of the first woman physicians associated wi ...

(1829–1878), physician and college professor, the first woman on record to perform major surgery * Galusha A. Grow (1822–1907), speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1861 to 1863 * John Keyes (1744–1824), first

adjutant general An adjutant general is a military chief administrative officer. France In Revolutionary France, the was a senior staff officer, effectively an assistant to a general officer. It was a special position for lieutenant-colonels and colonels in staf ...

of the State of Connecticut *

Elias Keyes Elias Keyes (April 14, 1758July 9, 1844) was an American politician and judge. He served as a U.S. Representative from Vermont. Biography Keyes was born in Ashford in the Connecticut Colony. He attended the common schools and later read law. ...

, (1758–1844), United States Congressman from

Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...

Thomas Knowlton Thomas W. Knowlton (November 22, 1740 – September 16, 1776) was an American patriot who served in the French and Indian War and was a colonel during the American Revolution. Knowlton is considered America's first Intelligence professional, ...

(1740–1776), military officer in 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 Revoluti ...

, who led the Knowlton's Rangers, America's first Army intelligence unit *

Nathaniel Lyon Nathaniel Lyon (July 14, 1818 – August 10, 1861) was the first Union general to be killed in the American Civil War. He is noted for his actions in Missouri in 1861, at the beginning of the conflict, to forestall secret secessionist plans of th ...

(1818–1861), the first Union general to be killed in the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...

* Paul Newman (1925–2008), award-winning actor, film director and philanthropist. A seasonal resident of Ashford from the opening of the

in 1988 *

Eliphalet Nott Eliphalet Nott (June 25, 1773January 25, 1866), was a famed Presbyterian minister, inventor, educational pioneer, and long-term president of Union College, Schenectady, New York. Early life Nott was born at Ashford, Connecticut, on June 25, 1 ...

(1773–1866), president of

Union College Union College is a private liberal arts college in Schenectady, New York. Founded in 1795, it was the first institution of higher learning chartered by the New York State Board of Regents, and second in the state of New York, after Columbia Co ...

, and from 1829 to 1845 simultaneously was president of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Inventor of the first stove for anthracite coal *

Caroline Lathrop Post Caroline Lathrop Post (November 27, 1824 – May 3, 1915) was an American poet. Born Caroline Lathrop in Ashford, Connecticut, her youth included residencies in Hartford and Pittsfield, Massachusetts. She married businessman Charles Rollin Post o ...

(1824–1915), poet * James Hamilton Shegogue (1806–1872), painter * Solomon Spalding (1761–1816), writer * John H. Trumbull (1873–1961), the 70th governor 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 capita ...

Valerie Wilson Wesley Valerie Wilson Wesley (born November 22, 1947) is an American author of Mystery fiction, mysteries, adult-theme novels, and children's books, and a former executive editor of ''Essence (magazine), Essence'' magazine. She is the author of the Tamar ...

(born 1947), mystery writerStaff
"Mystery Plot: Whodunit in Newark?"
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'', August 26, 1994. Accessed February 6, 2012. "Ms. Wilson Wesley grew up in Ashford, Conn., and now lives in Montclair, N.J., with her husband and two daughters. But she lived in nearby East Orange in the early 1970s, and Tamara's yellow-and-green Cape Cod is modeled on her old house." * Edward W. Whitaker (1841–1922), Brevet Brigadier General; soldier and

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valo ...

recipient

References

External links

* {{authority control Towns in Windham County, Connecticut Populated places established in 1714 Towns in Connecticut 1714 establishments in Connecticut