New Haven County is a

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

in the south central part of the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

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. ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 864,835, making it the third-most populous county in Connecticut. Two of the state's five largest cities,

New Haven New Haven is a city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound. With a population of 135,081 as determined by the 2020 U.S. census, New Haven is the third largest city in Co ...

(3rd) and

Waterbury Waterbury is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. Waterbury had a population of 114,403 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 Census. The city is southwest of Hartford, Connecticut, Hartford and northeast of New York City. Waterbury i ...

(5th), are part of New Haven County. New Haven County is part of the New Haven-Milford, CT Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is included in the New York metropolitan Combined Statistical Area.

County government A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) ''Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denotin ...

s were abolished in Connecticut in 1960. Thus, as is the case with all eight of Connecticut's counties, there is no county government, and no county seat. Until 1960, the city of New Haven was the county seat. In Connecticut, towns are responsible for all local government activities, including fire and rescue,

snow removal Snow removal or snow clearing is the job of removing snow after a snowfall to make travel easier and safer. This is done both by individual households and by governments institutions, and commercial businesses. De-icing and anti-icing De-icin ...

and schools. In some cases, neighboring towns will share certain activities, e.g. schools, health, etc. New Haven County is merely a group of towns on a map, and has no specific government authority. The county Sheriff system was abolished by voters and replaced by State Judicial Marshals in 2000. As a result, the state judicial system in New Haven County has three judicial districts: New Haven, Ansonia-Milford, and Waterbury. On June 6, 2022, the U.S. Census Bureau formally recognized Connecticut's nine councils of governments as county equivalents instead of the state's eight counties. Connecticut's eight historical counties continue to exist in name only, and are no longer considered for statistical purposes.

History

Following the process of unification of

New Haven Colony New Haven Colony was an English colony from 1638 to 1664 that included settlements on the north shore of Long Island Sound, with outposts in modern-day New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Delaware. The colony joined Connecticut Colony in 16 ...

with

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 ...

in 1664–65, cohesion could be improved. New Haven County was constituted by an act of the Connecticut General Court on May 10, 1666, along with Hartford County, Fairfield County, and New London County. The act establishing the county states: :This Court orders that from the east bounds of Guilford :vnto y^e west bounds of Milford shalbe for future one County :w^ch shalbe called the County of N: Hauen. And it is :ordered that the County Court shalbe held at N: Hauen on :the second Wednesday in March and on the second Wednesday :in Nouember yearely. As established in 1666, New Haven County consisted of the towns of Milford, New Haven, and Guilford. The town of Wallingford was established in 1670 in unincorporated area north of New Haven and formally added to New Haven County in 1671. In 1675, the town of Derby was established north of Milford. In 1686, the town of Waterbury was established, but was assigned as part of Hartford County. Waterbury was transferred to New Haven County in 1728. In 1722, most of northwestern Connecticut (except for the town of Litchfield) was placed under the jurisdiction of New Haven County. Eight years later, in 1730, the eastern half of northwestern Connecticut was transferred to the jurisdiction of Hartford County. By mid-1738, with the exception of the towns of New Milford, Sharon, and Salisbury, the entire territory of northwestern Connecticut was under Hartford County. In 1751, Litchfield County was constituted consisting of all the towns in northwestern Connecticut. Between 1780 and 1807, several more towns were established along the northern boundary of New Haven County, resulting in the alteration of the limits of the county. The final boundary alteration leading to the modern boundary resulted from the establishment of the town of Middlebury on October 8, 1807.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (29.9%) is water. It is the second-largest county in Connecticut by total area.

Features

The terrain is mostly flat near the coast, with low hills defining the rest of the area, rising significantly only in the north of the county. The highest elevation is close to the northernmost point in the county, found at two areas of approximately above sea level in the town of Wolcott. The lowest point is sea level. Notable geographic landmarks include Mount Carmel (''"Sleeping Giant"''), West Rock and East Rock.

Adjacent counties

* Hartford County (north) * Middlesex County (east) * Fairfield County (west) * Litchfield County (northwest) New Haven county is bounded on the south by

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, ...

National protected area

* Stewart B. McKinney National Wildlife Refuge (part)

Government and municipal services

As of 1960, counties in Connecticut do not have any associated county government structure. All municipal services are provided by the towns. In order to address issues concerning more than one town, several regional agencies that help coordinate the towns for infrastructure, land use, and economic development concerns have been established. Within the geographical area of New Haven County, the regional agencies are:
South CentralCentral Naugatuck Valley
(partly in Litchfield County)
The Valley
(partly in Fairfield County)

Judicial

The geographic area of the county is served by the three separate judicial districts: Ansonia-Milford, Waterbury, and New Haven. The Ansonia-Milford jurisdiction has two superior courthouses, one in Derby, the other in Milford. The Waterbury and New Haven judicial districts have superior courthouses located, respectively, in Waterbury, and New Haven.

Law enforcement

Law enforcement within the geographic area of the county is provided by the respective town police departments. Prior to 2000, a County Sheriff's Department existed for the purpose of executing judicial warrants, prisoner transport, and court security. These responsibilities have now been taken over by the Connecticut State Marshal System.

Fire protection

Fire protection in the county is provided by the towns. Several towns also have fire districts that provide services to a section of the town. Founded in 1937, New Haven County has a county-wide fire-protection agency called "New Haven County Fire Emergency Plan" based in Hamden to ''"Coordinate Mutual Aid - Radio Problems, assist members of county at major incidents if requested, provide training"''.

Water service

Water service is provided by a regional non-profit public corporation known as the South Central Connecticut Regional Water Authority. The Regional Water Authority supplies water to most of the towns within New Haven County, excluding the Waterbury area and the towns of Guilford and Madison. The Regional Water Authority is one of only two such county-wide public water service providers in the state.

Politics

As with most other Connecticut counties, New Haven County is a Democratic stronghold. The last Republican victory in New Haven County was George H.W. Bush in 1988. From the 1990s through 2012, the county increasingly trended Democratic, though since then it has become more competitive. Though he did not carry the county, Republican

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

received over 40% of its vote in all three of his campaigns (2016, 2020 and 2024), a feat that Republican candidates had achieved only once in the previous six elections.

Transportation

Major Roads

Boston Post Road

U.S. 1 is the oldest east–west route in the county, running through all of its shoreline cities and towns. Known by various names along its length, most commonly " Boston Post Road" or simply "Post Road", it gradually gains latitude from west to east. Thus U.S. 1 west is officially designated "South" and east is "North".

Interstate 91

The start of

Interstate 91 Interstate 91 (I-91) is an Interstate Highway in the New England region of the United States. It is the primary north–south thoroughfare in the western part of the region. Its southern terminus is in New Haven, Connecticut, at I-95, whi ...

begins at the interchange in New Haven with I-95. It runs parallel to U.S. Route 5 as it heads towards Hartford and Vermont.

Interstate 95

The western portions of

Interstate 95 in Connecticut Interstate 95 (I-95) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the East Coast of the United States, running in a general east–west compass direction for in Connecticut, from the New York state line to the Rhode Island st ...

are known as the Connecticut Turnpike or the Governor John Davis Lodge Turnpike in New Haven County and it crosses the state approximately parallel to U.S. Route 1. The road is most commonly referred to as "I-95". The highway is six lanes (sometimes eight lanes) throughout the county. It was completed in 1958 and is often clogged with traffic particularly during morning and evening

rush hour A rush hour (American English, British English) or peak hour (Australian English, Indian English) is a part of the day during which traffic congestion on roads and crowding on public transport is at its highest. Normally, this happens twice e ...

s. With the cost of land so high along the Gold Coast, state lawmakers say they do not consider widening the highway to be fiscally feasible, although occasional stretches between entrances and nearby exits are now sometimes connected with a fourt
"operational improvement"
lane (for instance, westbound between the Exit 10 interchange in Darien and Exit 8 in Stamford). Expect similar added lanes in Darien and elsewhere in the Fairfield County portion of the highway in the future, lawmakers and state Department of Transportation officials say.

Wilbur Cross Parkway

The Wilbur Cross Parkway or

Connecticut Route 15 Route 15 is a state highway in the U.S. state of Connecticut that runs from a connection with New York (state), New York's Hutchinson River Parkway in Greenwich, Connecticut, to its northern terminus intersecting with Interstate 84 (east) ...

, is a truck-free scenic parkway that runs through the county parallel and generally several miles north of Interstate 95. It begins at the Igor I. Sikorsky Memorial Bridge and terminates at the Berlin turnpike. The parkway goes through Heroes Tunnel in New Haven. The parkway is a

National Scenic Byway A National Scenic Byway is a road recognized by the United States Department of Transportation for one or more of six "intrinsic qualities": archeological, cultural, historic, natural, recreational, and scenic. The program was established by Co ...

and is 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 ...

Interstate 84

Interstate 84, which runs through Danbury, is scheduled to be widened to a six-lane highway at all points between Danbury and Waterbury. State officials say they hope the widening will not only benefit drivers regularly on the route but also entice some cars from the more crowded Interstate 95, which is roughly parallel to it. Heavier trucks are unlikely to use Interstate 84 more often, however, because the route is much hillier than I-95 according to a state Department of Transportation official.

Demographics

2000 census

At 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 824,008 people, 319,040 households, and 210,566 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 340,732 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 79.40%

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 ...

, 11.32%

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 ...

, 0.25% Native American, 2.33% Asian, 0.04%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 4.51% from other races, and 2.16% from two or more races. 10.09% of the population were

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. 24.5% were of

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

, 12.3% Irish, 6.0% Polish, 5.7% English and 5.6% German ancestry according to Census 2000. 8.73% of the population reported speaking Spanish at home, while 2.05% speak

. There were 319,040 households, of which 31.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.60% 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, 13.60% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.00% were non-families. 28.20% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.50 and the average family size was 3.08. The age distribution was 24.50% under the age of 18, 8.70% from 18 to 24, 30.00% from 25 to 44, 22.40% from 45 to 64, and 14.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.70 males. The median household income was $48,834, and the median family income was $60,549. Males had a median income of $43,643 versus $32,001 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 county was $24,439. About 7.00% of families and 9.50% 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 13.00% of those under age 18 and 7.70% of those age 65 or over.

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States census, there were 862,477 people, 334,502 households, and 215,749 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 362,004 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 74.8% white, 12.7% black or African American, 3.5% Asian, 0.3% American Indian, 6.0% from other races, and 2.6% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 15.0% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 24.0% were

, 17.5% were Irish, 9.3% were German, 8.5% were English, 7.6% were Polish, and 2.0% were American. Of the 334,502 households, 31.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.5% were married couples living together, 14.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 35.5% were non-families, and 28.9% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 3.09. The median age was 39.3 years. The median income for a household in the county was $61,114 and the median income for a family was $77,379. Males had a median income of $56,697 versus $43,941 for females. The per capita income for the county was $31,720. About 7.9% of families and 10.9% of the population were below the

, including 15.7% of those under age 18 and 7.1% of those age 65 or over.

Demographic breakdown by town

The following income data is from the 2010 United States Census and the 2006-2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates:

Metropolitan Statistical Area

The

United States Office of Management and Budget The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is the largest office within the Executive Office of the President of the United States (EOP). The office's most prominent function is to produce the president's budget, while it also examines agency pro ...

has designated New Haven County as the New Haven-Milford, CT Metropolitan Statistical Area. 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 ...

ranked the New Haven-Milford, CT Metropolitan Statistical Area as the 62nd most populous metropolitan statistical area of the United States as of July 1, 2012. The Office of Management and Budget has further designated the New Haven-Milford, CT Metropolitan Statistical Area as a component of the more extensive New York-Newark, NY-NJ-CT-PA Combined Statistical Area, the most populous combined statistical area and primary statistical area of the United States as of July 1, 2012.

Education

Primary and secondary education

Education in the county area is usually provided by the individual town governments. Several less populated towns have joined to form regional school districts. Bethany, Orange, and Woodbridge are part of Region 5; Middlebury and Southbury are part of Region 15; and Beacon Falls and Prospect are part of Region 16. School districts include:
Text list
K-12: * Ansonia School District * Branford School District * Cheshire School District * Derby School District * East Haven School District * Guilford School District * Hamden School District * Madison School District * Meriden School District *

Milford School District Milford School District is the school district of Milford, Delaware, United States. It includes areas in Kent County and Sussex County, including all of Milford, Ellendale, Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by popu ...

* Naugatuck School District * New Haven School District * North Branford School District * North Haven School District * Oxford School District * Regional School District 15 * Regional School District 16 * Seymour School District * Wallingford School District * Waterbury School District * West Haven School District * Wolcott School District * Woodbridge School District Secondary districts: * Regional High School District 05 Elementary districts: * Bethany School District * Orange School District

Tertiary education

New Haven county serves as a center of advanced learning, with several noted educational institutions located within its borders centered on the city of New Haven. These include: * Albertus Magnus College * Gateway Community College *

Naugatuck Valley Community College Naugatuck Valley Community College (NVCC) is a Public college, public community college in Waterbury, Connecticut. It is one of the 13 colleges in the Connecticut State Colleges & Universities system. NVCC grants a variety of associate degrees ...

* Paier College of Art *

Post University Post University is a private for-profit university in Waterbury, Connecticut. It was founded in 1890 as Post College. The university offers over 25 undergraduate and graduate programs in day, evening, and online courses. History Post Univer ...

Quinnipiac University Quinnipiac University ( ) is a private university in Hamden, Connecticut, United States. The university grants undergraduate, graduate, and professional degrees. It also hosts the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute. History What became ...

Southern Connecticut State University Southern Connecticut State University (Southern Connecticut, Southern Connecticut State, SCSU, or simply "Southern") is a public research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Part of the Connecticut State University System, it ...

University of Connecticut The University of Connecticut (UConn) is a public land-grant research university system with its main campus in Storrs, Connecticut, United States. It was founded in 1881 as the Storrs Agricultural School, named after two benefactors. In 1893, ...

University of New Haven The University of New Haven (UNH) is a private university in West Haven, Connecticut, United States. History The University of New Haven was founded in 1920 as the New Haven YMCA Junior College, a division of Northeastern University, which sha ...

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

Communities

Map of New Haven County Connecticut With Municipal Labels

Cities

* Ansonia *

Derby Derby ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area on the River Derwent, Derbyshire, River Derwent in Derbyshire, England. Derbyshire is named after Derby, which was its original co ...

* Meriden * Milford **

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

** Woodmont *

** Amity ** Cedar Hill ** City Point **

Downtown ''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in American and Canadian English to refer to a city's sometimes commercial, cultural and often the historical, political, and geographic heart. It is often synonymous with its central business district ( ...

** East Rock ** Fair Haven ** Fair Haven Heights ** Long Wharf ** Mill River ** Quinnipiac Meadows ** Westville ** Wooster Square *

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

** Bunker Hill **Bucks Hill ** Downtown Waterbury ** East Mountain ** Town Plot ** Waterville * West Haven

Towns

Villages are named localities within towns but have no separate corporate existence from the towns they are in. * Beacon Falls *

Bethany Bethany (,Murphy-O'Connor, 2008, p152/ref> Syriac language, Syriac: ܒܝܬ ܥܢܝܐ ''Bēṯ ʿAnyā''), locally called in Palestinian Arabic, Arabic Al-Eizariya or al-Aizariya (, "Arabic nouns and adjectives#Nisba,

lace Lace is a delicate fabric made of yarn or thread in an open weblike pattern, made by machine or by hand. Generally, lace is split into two main categories, needlelace and bobbin lace, although there are other types of lace, such as knitted o ...

of Lazarus (name), L ...

* Branford ** Branford Center ** Short Beach ** Stony Creek *

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Merseyside to the north-west, Greater Manchester to the north-east, Derbyshire to the east, Staffordshire to the south-east, and Shrop ...

** Cheshire Village * East Haven * Guilford ** Guilford Center * Hamden * Madison ** Madison Center * Middlebury * Naugatuck (consolidated with the

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 ...

of Naugatuck) ** Union City * North Branford ** Northford ** Twin Lakes * North Haven * Orange *

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

** Quaker Farms * Prospect * Seymour * Southbury ** Heritage Village ** South Britain **Southford * Wallingford ** Wallingford Center ** Yalesville * Wolcott **Woodtick * Woodbridge

References

External links

*
New Haven County Marshals AssociationNew Haven County Fire Emergency Plan
* ttp://www.newhavenbar.org New Haven County Bar Association {{Coord, 41.35, -72.90, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-CT_source:UScensus1990 1666 establishments in Connecticut 1960 disestablishments in Connecticut Counties in the New York metropolitan area Populated places established in 1666