Hartland, Connecticut
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Hartland is a town in Hartford 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 1,901 at the 2020 census. The rural town is part of the Northwest Hills Planning Region and forms the northwestern border of Hartford County. Currently, the town consists of two unincorporated areas, East and West Hartland, entirely separated by the northern portion of the Barkhamsted Reservoir. A third area, Hartland Hollow (also referred to as Hartland Center), was flooded when the reservoir was completed in 1940.


History

Originally referenced as the "Western Lands," the unsettled area was the subject of a 37-year controversy over competing claims by the
Connecticut Colony The Connecticut Colony, originally known as the Connecticut River Colony, was an English colony in New England which later became the state of Connecticut. It was organized on March 3, 1636, as a settlement for a Puritans, Puritan congregation o ...
and the towns of
Hartford Hartford is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The city, located in Hartford County, Connecticut, Hartford County, had a population of 121,054 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ce ...
and Windsor. After the Colony's General Court was petitioned in 1724 to settle the dispute, it divided the lands among the three parties, which was followed by a confirming patent issued by Governor Joseph Talcott in 1729. After another division agreement, Hartford's proprietors were granted a patent in 1732 for four parcels encompassing the lands now known as Hartland,
Winchester Winchester (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in Hampshire, England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government Districts of England, district, at the western end of the South Downs N ...
, and New Hartford. Land in Hartland was proportionally granted on the basis of Hartford's 1720 Grand List. In 1733, the 67 landowners organized the Proprietors of Hartland association, and received a decree from the General Court for "Hartford land," then shortened to Hartland. In 1754, Captain/Deacon Thomas Giddings Jr II (1723 -1790) and his wife Mary Coult became the town's first permanent settlers. In 1761, the 44 families of Hartland petitioned the General Court, and Hartland was incorporated as an independent town that same year.


Geography

The town is bisected by the Farmington River's east branch which became the northern section of Barkhamsted Reservoir after construction of the Saville Dam in 1940. The reservoir and surrounding land, owned by the Metropolitan District Commission (MDC) water authority, fills the hollow between East and West mountains. 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 , or 4.39%, is water. Bounded on the north by the
Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...
border, Hartland is drained by the Farmington River, a
tributary A tributary, or an ''affluent'', is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream (''main stem'' or ''"parent"''), river, or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries, and the main stem river into which they ...
of 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 ...
. The
42nd parallel north The 42nd parallel north is a circle of latitude that is 42 degree (angle), degrees true north, north of the Earth, Earth's equator, equatorial plane. It crosses Europe, the Mediterranean Sea, Asia, the Pacific Ocean, North America, and the Atla ...
and the 73rd meridian west meet in the central western part of town. Hartland is home to parts of three Connecticut State forests, Peoples State Forest, Tunxis State Forest, and American Legion State Forest The Barkhamsted Reservoir, which cuts through the middle of Hartland, is 11 miles long and holds approximately 30 billion gallon reservoir, and serves the primary source of drinking water for most of Hartford County. The construction of the reservoir and the Saville Dam required the relocation of over 1,000 people, four cemeteries, and numerous family farms in Hartland and Barkhamsted. In total, over 70% of Hartland's land, or over 15,500 acres, is permanently designated as open space, encompassing state forests and parks, watersheds, and public land conservation trusts.


Demographics

As of the U.S. Census Bureau's 2023
American Community Survey The American Community Survey (ACS) is an annual demographics survey program conducted by the United States Census Bureau. It regularly gathers information previously contained only in the long form of the United States census, decennial census ...
, there were 1,971 people and 818 households residing in the town. The
population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...
was 60 people per square mile (23.2/km). There were 923 housing units, of which 840 (91%) were owner-occupied. The racial makeup of the town was 89%
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 ...
, less than 1%
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 ...
, less than 1% Asian, 10% from other races and 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 less than 1% of the population. The population distribution in 2023 was 18.82% (397) age 19 and under, 8.22% (162) ages 20 to 29, 9.79% (193) ages 30 to 39, 9.49% (187) ages 40 to 49, 19.13% (377) ages 50 to 59, 22.83% (450) ages 60 to 69, 6.50% (137) ages 70 to 79, and 3.45% (68) who were 80 years of age or older. Median age was 52. The median household income was $105,921. 2% 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 ...
. As of 2022, 2.16% (40) of the town qualified for Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP).


Education

Educational data is provided by the Connecticut Economic Resource Center (CERC). Hartland School District consists of one school, Hartland School, Pre-K through grade eight, with an enrollment in 2017 of 162. High school students can attend any of the CREC magnet schools, State of Connecticut vocational schools, State of Connecticut vocational-agricultural schools, the town-designated public high school (Granby High School as of 2019), or receive a voucher to attend another town public high school. Because of the wide variety in high school choice, four-year cohort graduation rates were not available. From 2013 to 2017, 73.1% of students attended public school, while 26.9% attended private school. By highest education level achieved as of 2017, 32% of the town earned a high school diploma, 12% an associate degree, and 32% bachelor's degree or higher.


Government

Hartland is governed by a three-person, elected Board of Selectman with supporting elected town boards for Finance, Education, and Library. The remaining boards and committees, including Planning & Zoning, Wetlands, and Recreation, are appointed by the Board of Selectman. Total Revenues for 2017 was $7,217,096, with total expenditures of $6,988,601 including $115,495 (1.7% of expenditures) for debt (bond) service. Hartland is rated A1 by Moody's and conveys a mill rate of 25.50 on a net Grand List of $198,192,769. Of the net Grand List, 1.3% is commercial/industrial.


Politics

Hartland has published results for all presidential elections since 1856. From 1856 to 1876, Hartland supported Democratic candidates for president except for
Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was the 16th president of the United States, serving from 1861 until Assassination of Abraham Lincoln, his assassination in 1865. He led the United States through the American Civil War ...
received in the four-way race in
1860 Events January * January 2 – The astronomer Urbain Le Verrier announces the discovery of a hypothetical planet Vulcan (hypothetical planet), Vulcan at a meeting of the French Academy of Sciences in Paris, France. * January 10 &ndas ...
. Since 1880, Hartland voters have supported the Republican presidential candidate for 36 consecutive elections. As of 2022, Hartland had the largest share of registered Republican voters in the state, at 40% of the electorate.


Notable locations

* Hartland Historical Society & Museum * Tunxis Forest Headquarters House * Tunxis Forest Ski Cabin


Notable people

* Asher Benjamin, architect * Gary Burghoff, actor *
Don Winslow Don Winslow (born October 31, 1953) is an American political activist and retired author best known for his crime novels including ''Savages (novel), Savages'', ''The Force'' and the Cartel Trilogy. Early life Winslow was born on Staten Isl ...
, author * Theophilus Gates, religious leader * Uriel Holmes, congressman * Consider Tiffany, British loyalist *
John Trumbull John Trumbull (June 6, 1756 – November 10, 1843) was an American painter and military officer best known for his historical paintings of the American Revolutionary War, of which he was a veteran. He has been called the "Painter of the Revolut ...
, artist
Cody Wolfe
country artist


References


Further reading




External links



{{authority control Towns in Hartford County, Connecticut Towns in Connecticut Greater Hartford Towns in Northwest Hills Planning Region, Connecticut