Fenwick is a

borough A borough is an administrative division in various English language, English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History ...

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, in the town of

Old Saybrook Old Saybrook is a town in Middlesex County, Connecticut, United States. The town is part of the Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region. The population was 10,481 at the 2020 census. It contains the incorporated borough of Fenwick, an ...

. The borough is part of the Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region. The population was 53 at the 2020 census, making it the least populous borough in Connecticut. Most of the borough is included in the Fenwick Historic District, 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 ...

. . Fenwick is set off from the town center of Old Saybrook by a large cove crossed by a causeway. It is located exactly where the

Connecticut River The Connecticut River is the longest river in the New England region of the United States, flowing roughly southward for through four states. It rises 300 yards (270 m) south of the U.S. border with Quebec, Canada, and discharges into Long Isl ...

flows into

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, ...

, and sits on the river's west side. The town has two lighthouses, the Inner and the Outer. The Inner is at the tip of Lynde Point, Fenwick's peninsula, and the Outer is a quarter mile off shore, connected by a rough jetty. The Outer Light is the lighthouse shown on many Connecticut license plates.Lighthouse Friends - Lynde Point Light
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Fenwick Historic District

The Fenwick Historic District covers an area of approximately and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1995. It includes 60 buildings in the center of Fenwick, as well as the Fenwick Golf Course. Architecturally, the Fenwick Historic District is composed largely of Shingle-style residences from early in the century. The Historic District comprises the bulk of the community, however some residences were built in the 1950s in a more modern style. Of the district's 60 main buildings, 17 represent examples of the Shingle style, with some others in Queen Anne or Victorian styles. Frequent features include gable-on-hip roofs that encompass side porches with minimalist wood bracing, creating a sense of heaviness characteristic of the Shingle style. Other frequently observed common architectural features include flares at the eaves of roofs, upper stories that overhang lower stories, and pent roofs over windows and doors. and All of the three are typified in St. Mary's-By-the-Sea, a 1 and 1/2 story church building at 30 Agawam Avenue, designed by Francis Goodwin and built in 1883. In the late 1800s The Fenwick Golf Course was created from several empty lots in the center of the district and is the site of the

Stephen Potter Stephen Meredith Potter (1 February 1900 – 2 December 1969) was a British writer best known for his parodies of self-help books, and their film and television derivatives. After leaving school in the last months of the First World War he wa ...

Cup. The 9-hole golf course has changed layouts on several occasions, with the most recent re-design in the 1930s following acquisition of the course by the British manufacturer

Armitage Shanks Armitage Shanks is a British manufacturer of bathroom fixtures and plumbing supplies, now part of the group Ideal Standard. In 2004, Armitage Shanks had eight factories in the United Kingdom, the largest in Armitage, Staffordshire. Armitage ...

Geography

Fenwick is in the southeastern corner of Middlesex County and is bordered to the east by the

and the south by

. The main road is CT 154, which goes over the bay on the north side of the borough and leads to Old Saybrook Center. 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 borough has a total area of , all land.

Demographics

As of the 2000

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 ...

, there were 52 people, 26 households, and 17 families residing in the borough. The population density was . There were 83 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the borough was 100.00%

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 ...

. There were 26 households, of which 11.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.7% 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, 3.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.6% were non-families. 26.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.00 and the average family size was 2.41. In the borough the population was spread out, with 11.5% under the age of 18, 1.9% from 18 to 24, 25.0% from 25 to 44, 23.1% from 45 to 64, and 38.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 58 years. For every 100 females, there were 100.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.7 males. The median income for a household in the borough was $57,500, and the median income for a family was $60,625. Males had a median income of $50,625 versus $16,250 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 borough was $38,135. None of the population and none of the families 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 ...

Notable people

Katharine Hepburn Katharine Houghton Hepburn (May 12, 1907 – June 29, 2003) was an American actress whose Katharine Hepburn on screen and stage, career as a Golden Age of Hollywood, Hollywood leading lady spanned six decades. She was known for her headstrong ...

, actress; lifelong resident, died in Fenwick on June 29, 2003, at the age of 96 *

John Lindsay John Vliet Lindsay (; November 24, 1921 – December 19, 2000) was an American politician and lawyer. During his political career, Lindsay was a U.S. congressman, the mayor of New York City, and a candidate for U.S. president. He was also a regu ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

mayor *

Rosemary Murphy Rosemary Murphy (January 13, 1925 – July 5, 2014) was an American actress of stage, film, and television. She was nominated for three Tony Awards for her stage work, as well as two Emmy Awards for television work, winning once, for her perfo ...

, actress

Gallery

File:Fenwick, Connecticut 2016 167.jpg, File:Fenwick, Connecticut 2016 170.jpg, Katharine Hepburn House (on the right) File:Fenwick, Connecticut 2016 173 (2).jpg,

References

External links

* * {{authority control Historic districts in Middlesex County, Connecticut Old Saybrook, Connecticut Boroughs in Connecticut Boroughs in Middlesex County, Connecticut