Durham ( ) 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 Middlesex 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. Durham is a former farming village on the Coginchaug River in central Connecticut. The town is part of the Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region. The population was 7,152 at the 2020 census. Every autumn, the town hosts the Durham Fair, the largest volunteer agricultural fair in New England. The Durham town center is listed by the U.S. Census Bureau as a

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...

. The core of the town center has also been listed as a

historic district A historic district or heritage district is a section of a city which contains historic building, older buildings considered valuable for historical or architectural reasons. In some countries or jurisdictions, historic districts receive legal p ...

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 ...

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 , of which is land and 0.2 square mile (40 ha or 0.67%) is water. The town center CDP has a total area of , of which is land and 0.16% is water. The west side of Durham is flanked by the Metacomet Ridge, a mountainous trap rock ridgeline that stretches from

Long Island Sound Long Island Sound is a sound (geography), 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 (state), New York to the south. From west to east, ...

to nearly the

Vermont Vermont () is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provinces and territories of Ca ...

border. Notable features of the Metacomet ridge in Durham include Trimountain, Fowler Mountain, Pistapaug Mountain, and the northern tip of Totoket Mountain. The 50-mile (80-kilometer) Mattabesett Trail traverses the ridge. Miller's Pond State Park is located within the town.

History

Moses Austin Birthplace Historical Marker

Durham was incorporated in 1708. The settlement was named after Durham, England. It took land from Guilford, and Haddam. Durham has one of the first

public libraries ''Public Libraries'' is the official publication of the Public Library Association (PLA), a division of the American Library Association (ALA). It is devoted exclusively to public libraries. The print edition is published six times a year and i ...

in the United States. It was founded in 1733, two years after

Benjamin Franklin Benjamin Franklin (April 17, 1790) was an American polymath: a writer, scientist, inventor, statesman, diplomat, printer, publisher and Political philosophy, political philosopher.#britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Wood, 2021 Among the m ...

started the

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

library. p. 235 Moses Austin who, along with his son Stephen F. Austin, began the settlement of Spanish and

Mexican Texas Mexican Texas is the historiographical name used to refer to the era of Texan history between 1821 and 1836, when it was part of Mexico. Mexico gained independence in 1821 after winning its Mexican War of Independence, war against Spain, whi ...

Anglo-Americans Anglo-Americans are a demographic group in Anglo-America. It typically refers to the predominantly European-descent nations and ethnic groups in the Americas that speak English as a native language, making up the majority of people in the world ...

, was born in Durham in 1761. In the 1830s Durham came to prominence as the birthplace of Richard P. Robinson, who was tried for and acquitted of the infamous murder of Helen Jewett.

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 6,627 people, 2,277 households, and 1,871 families living in the town. The population density was . There were 2,349 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 96.68%

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 ...

, 1.15%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

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 ...

, 0.18% Native American, 0.85% Asian, 0.30% from other races, and 0.85% 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 people of any race were 1.54% of the population. There were 2,277 households, out of which 41.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 72.3% 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, 7.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 17.8% were non-families. 14.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 5.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.85 and the average family size was 3.17. The age distribution was 29.0% under the age of 18, 4.8% from 18 to 24, 29.3% from 25 to 44, 27.4% from 45 to 64, and 9.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 100.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.4 males. The median income for a household in the town was $77,639, and the median income for a family was $82,864. Males had a median income of $51,250 versus $38,833 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 $29,306. About 1.3% of families and 1.7% 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 0.4% of those under age 18 and 3.1% of those age 65 or over.

Town center

As of the

of 2000, there were 2,773 people, 1,040 households, and 809 families living in the Durham census-designated place, corresponding to the town center. The population density was . There were 1,078 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the CDP was 97.91%

, 0.47%

, 0.07% Native American, 0.87% Asian, 0.25% from other races, and 0.43% from two or more races.

or Latino people of any race were 1.01% of the population. There were 1,040 households, out of which 36.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 66.5% were

living together, 8.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 22.2% were non-families. 18.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.66 and the average family size was 3.06. In the town center CDP, the age distribution was 26.1% under the age of 18, 4.4% from 18 to 24, 28.9% from 25 to 44, 27.5% from 45 to 64, and 13.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.4 males. The median income for a household in the CDP was $66,505, and the median income for a family was $72,465. Males had a median income of $47,179 versus $37,500 for females. The

for the CDP was $26,972. About 2.1% of families and 3.0% of the population were below the

, including 1.0% of those under age 18 and 4.3% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Durham has a selectman-town meeting form of government. The current first selectman is Republican Brendan Rea, who has served since 2023. The other selectmen are Republican Robert Chadd, and Democrat Thomas Hennick

State

Federal

Durham has voted consistently voted Republican in gubernatorial elections. In the 2018 election, Republican Bob Stefanowski beat Democrat Ned Lamont 57%–37%.

Presidential elections

Durham is a swing town in presidential elections, having voted for the Democratic and Republican candidate five times each in the last ten election cycles.

Historic locations in Durham

* Elias Austin House * Thomas Lyman House * Main Street Historic District (the town center), noted for the architecture of the houses

Durham Meadows superfund site

The Durham Meadows superfund site encompasses an area of town around the abandoned Merriam Manufacturing, and the operational Durham Manufacturing company. Both companies disposed of organic solvents, paint wastes, and degreasers in open lagoons and buried drums. The waste leached into the town's water supply, contaminating several private wells with methylene chloride, 1,4-dioxane, and other

volatile organic compound Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are organic compounds that have a high vapor pressure at room temperature. They are common and exist in a variety of settings and products, not limited to Indoor mold, house mold, Upholstery, upholstered furnitur ...

s (VOCs). The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection are coordinating cleanup and monitoring efforts, including the delivery of free bottled water to affected residents.

Notable people

* Moses Austin (1761–1821), born in Durham; businessman involved in the

lead Lead () is a chemical element; it has Chemical symbol, symbol Pb (from Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a Heavy metal (elements), heavy metal that is density, denser than most common materials. Lead is Mohs scale, soft and Ductility, malleabl ...

industry * Stephen F. Austin, founder of Texas; son of Moses Austin * Vin Baker (born 1971), professional basketball player in the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

* Dwight Baldwin (1798–1886), Missionary to Hawaii * Julia Cox Bryant (1893–1967), educator, musician * Chauncey Goodrich (1759–1815), lawyer and politician * Elizur Goodrich (1761–1849), lawyer and politician * Vernon "Lefty" Gomez, New York Yankee Hall of Fame; 6 and 0 in World Series play * Phineas Lyman (1716–1774), major general in the Connecticut militia during the

French and Indian War The French and Indian War, 1754 to 1763, was a colonial conflict in North America between Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of France, France, along with their respective Native Americans in the United States, Native American ...

* Charles D. Madsen, Wisconsin State Senator * James C. Scott (born 1936), political scientist and anthropologist * James Wadsworth (1730–1816), lawyer; delegate to the

Continental Congress The Continental Congress was a series of legislature, legislative bodies, with some executive function, for the Thirteen Colonies of British America, Great Britain in North America, and the newly declared United States before, during, and after ...

in 1784

References

External links

Durham town government website
{{authority control Durham, Connecticut, Towns in Middlesex County, Connecticut Towns in Connecticut Greater Hartford Towns in Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region, Connecticut