Goshen 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 Litchfield 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 population was 3,150 at the 2020 census. The town is part of the Northwest Hills Planning Region.

Geography

Goshen is in central Litchfield County and is bordered to the east by the city of Torrington. 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 of Goshen has a total area of , of which are land and , or 3.44%, are water. A large portion of the

Mohawk State Forest Mohawk State Forest, also known as Mohawk State Forest/Mohawk Mountain State Park, encompasses over in the towns of Cornwall, Goshen, and Litchfield in the southern Berkshires of Litchfield County, Connecticut. As overseen by the Connecti ...

is located in the town. The

Appalachian Trail The Appalachian Trail, also called the A.T., is a hiking trail in the Eastern United States, extending almost between Springer Mountain in Georgia and Mount Katahdin in Maine, and passing through 14 states.Gailey, Chris (2006)"Appalachian Tra ...

formerly passed through the town until it was re-routed west of the

Housatonic River The Housatonic River ( ) is a river, approximately long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed April 1, 2011 in western Massachusetts and western Connecticut in the United ...

Principal communities

* Goshen Center * West Goshen Other minor communities and geographic areas in the town are Hall Meadow, North Goshen, Tyler Lake, West Side, and Woodridge Lake. Woodridge Lake is private. It is only available to residents (it is not a gated community). They have access to the clubhouse, and all of the lake's beaches.

History

The town was incorporated in 1739, one year after settlement of the town center began. The community was named after the

Land of Goshen The land of Goshen (, ''ʾEreṣ Gōšen'') is mentioned in the Hebrew Bible as the area in Egypt that was allotted to the Hebrews by the Pharaoh during the time of Joseph (Book of Genesis, ). They dwelt in Goshen up until the time of the Exo ...

, in Ancient Egypt. The

Congregational church Congregationalism (also Congregational Churches or Congregationalist Churches) is a Reformed Christian (Calvinist) tradition of Protestant Christianity in which churches practice congregational government. Each congregation independently a ...

was founded the following year."History of the Town of Goshen, Connecticut," Page 72, 1897
/ref> During the 18th century, Goshen was a farming, and later, prosperous business community. Gunmakers from the town such as the Medad Hills manufactured guns 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 ...

and Revolutionary War. The first school in Goshen was built in 1753. A seminary for young women was established in 1819. The Goshen Academy was established several years later and became a well-regarded preparatory school during the 19th century. Settlers from Goshen were the first to settle Hudson Township, Summit County, Ohio, in the

Connecticut Western Reserve The Connecticut Western Reserve was a portion of land claimed by the Colony of Connecticut and later by the state of Connecticut in what is now mostly the northeastern region of Ohio. Warren, Ohio was the Historic Capital in Trumbull County. T ...

Notable locations

Historic sites in the town include: * Hervey Brooks Pottery Shop and Kiln Site, an archeological site 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 ...

(NRHP) * Goshen Historic District (Goshen Center) – CT 63 and 4 and Gifford Rd., NRHP-listed * West Goshen Historic District – roughly bounded by CT 4, Beach, Mill and Milton Sts., and Thompson Rd., NRHP-listed

Transportation

Connecticut Route 4 is the principal east–west through route in the town, while

Connecticut Route 63 Route 63 is a secondary state highway in the U.S. state of Connecticut, from New Haven up to Canaan, running for . It connects the Greater New Haven area to Northwestern Connecticut via the western suburbs of Waterbury. Route description Rout ...

serves as the main north–south road. Route 4 leads east into Torrington and west into

Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...

, while Route 63 leads northwest to

South Canaan South Canaan is a second-class township in Wayne County, Pennsylvania, United States. The township's population was 1,768 at the time of the 2010 United States Census. South Canaan is home to Saint Tikhon's Orthodox Theological Seminary and t ...

and southeast to Litchfield.

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 2,697 people, 1,066 households, and 814 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 1,482 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 98.26%

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 ...

, 0.48%

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 ...

, 0.15% Native American, 0.74% Asian, and 0.37% 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 1.22% of the population. There were 1,066 households, out of which 29.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 67.5% 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, 5.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.6% were non-families. 20.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.53 and the average family size was 2.91. In the town, the population was spread out, with 22.7% under the age of 18, 5.3% from 18 to 24, 25.1% from 25 to 44, 31.7% from 45 to 64, and 15.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females, there were 97.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.5 males. The median income for a household in the town was $64,432, and the median income for a family was $72,452. Males had a median income of $48,125 versus $30,464 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 $33,925. About 2.9% of families and 3.3% 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 4.1% of those under age 18 and 3.9% of those age 65 or over.

Arts and culture

Multiple events are hosted at the Goshen Fairgrounds each year, located on Route 63 south just outside the center of town. One such event is the Goshen Stampede, a festival held annually on

Father's Day Father's Day is a day set aside for honoring one's father, as well as fatherhood, paternal bonds, and the influence of fathers in society. "Father's Day" complements similar celebrations honoring family members, such as Mother's Day and, in som ...

weekend that hosts a

rodeo Rodeo () is a competitive equestrian sport that arose out of the working practices of cattle herding in Spain and Mexico, expanding throughout the Americas and to other nations. It was originally based on the skills required of the working vaqu ...

demolition derby Demolition derby is a type of motorsport, usually presented at county fairs and national events. While rules vary from event to event, the typical demolition derby event consists of five or more drivers competing by deliberately ramming their v ...

, music festival, and truck pull. Later in the summer on

Labor Day Labor Day is a Federal holidays in the United States, federal holiday in the United States celebrated on the first Monday of September to honor and recognize the Labor history of the United States, American labor movement and the works and con ...

weekend is the annual Goshen Fair. As the county's largest agricultural fair, it features farm animal judgement shows, competition and contest in log chopping, log sawing, hay-bale throwing and the like. There are food, art, photography, baked goods, and craft contests, as well as rides for children, carnival games, and craft and food vendors. Attendance over the three days can range up to 50,000 people. Traditionally at the beginning of August, and usually the first Saturday, the Church of Christ presents an Annual Blueberry Festival where they sell blueberry pies, blueberries and host a blueberry breakfast. It is very well known and people from all around the area come to enjoy the festival and the pies. The blueberry pies are available for sale all year long, as well as other flavors made by hand by the congregation (apple, peach, and blueberry-peach). Mini pies are also sold by the church at the Goshen Fair. The town is also home to the Goshen Players.

Notable people

* William R. Brewster, American Civil War general * David Darling, cellist and composer * Daniel S. Dickinson, U.S. senator * Ezra Foot, Wisconsin state senator * Eunice Newton Foote, scientist, inventor and woman's rights campaigner *

Asaph Hall Asaph Hall III (October 15, 1829 – November 22, 1907) was an American astronomer who is best known for having discovered the two moons of Mars, Deimos and Phobos, in 1877. He determined the orbits of satellites of other planets and of doubl ...

, astronomer credited with discovering the moons of

Mars Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun. It is also known as the "Red Planet", because of its orange-red appearance. Mars is a desert-like rocky planet with a tenuous carbon dioxide () atmosphere. At the average surface level the atmosph ...

Madeleine L'Engle Madeleine L'Engle (; November 29, 1918 – September 6, 2007) was an American writer of fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and young adult fiction, including ''A Wrinkle in Time'' and its sequels: '' A Wind in the Door'', '' A Swiftly Tilting Planet'' ...

, author * Frederick Miles,

congressman A member of congress (MOC), also known as a congressman or congresswoman, is a person who has been appointed or elected and inducted into an official body called a congress, typically to represent a particular constituency in a legislature. The t ...

* Ebenezer F. Norton, congressman * Mary Pope Osborne, author * Kevin Phillips, author and political analyst * Isaac Williams, Jr., congressman

References

External links

Town of Goshen official websiteGoshen Garden ClubChurch of Christ Congregational
{{authority control Towns in Litchfield County, Connecticut Federal architecture in Connecticut Historic districts in Litchfield County, Connecticut Towns in the New York metropolitan area Towns in Connecticut Towns in Northwest Hills Planning Region, Connecticut