Roxbury 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 2,260 at the 2020 census. The town is located northeast of

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 ...

, and is part of the Northwest Hills Planning Region.

History

Roxbury, whose Native name was ''Shepaug'', a

Mahican The Mohicans ( or ) are an Eastern Algonquian Native American tribe that historically spoke an Algonquian language. As part of the Eastern Algonquian family of tribes, they are related to the neighboring Lenape, whose indigenous territory was ...

word signifying "rocky water", was settled about 1713 as a

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

of Woodbury, which meant that the parish rate, a household-based tax, supported the local Roxbury puritan church rather than the Woodbury church. About a decade after the end of the

American Revolution The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...

, Roxbury incorporated as a town in October 1796. Roxbury is either descriptively named, or the name is a transfer from

Roxbury, Massachusetts Roxbury () is a Neighborhoods in Boston, neighborhood in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. Roxbury is a Municipal annexation in the United States, dissolved municipality and one of 23 official neighborhoods of Boston used by the city for ne ...

. Mine Hill and its minerals have been associated with Roxbury since the middle of the 18th century. A silver mine was opened here and was later found to contain spathic iron, specially adapted to steel making, and a small

smelting Smelting is a process of applying heat and a chemical reducing agent to an ore to extract a desired base metal product. It is a form of extractive metallurgy that is used to obtain many metals such as iron-making, iron, copper extraction, copper ...

furnace was built. The abundance of

granite Granite ( ) is a coarse-grained (phanerite, phaneritic) intrusive rock, intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly coo ...

found in many of Mine Hill's quarries provided the building material for the ore roaster and blast furnace, as well as for such world wonders as the

Brooklyn Bridge The Brooklyn Bridge is a cable-stayed suspension bridge in New York City, spanning the East River between the boroughs of Manhattan and Brooklyn. Opened on May 24, 1883, the Brooklyn Bridge was the first fixed crossing of the East River. It w ...

and

Grand Central Terminal Grand Central Terminal (GCT; also referred to as Grand Central Station or simply as Grand Central) is a commuter rail terminal station, terminal located at 42nd Street (Manhattan), 42nd Street and Park Avenue in Midtown Manhattan, New York Ci ...

in New York City.

Geography

Roxbury is in southern Litchfield County and is bordered to the south by New Haven County. It is northeast of Danbury and the same distance west of

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 ...

. 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 , or 0.21%, are water.

Principal communities

*Judd's Bridge *Roxbury Center *Roxbury Falls *Roxbury Station

On the National Register of Historic Places

Three places in Roxbury are included 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 ...

. They are: *Roxbury Center (CT 67, Weller's Bridge Rd., South and Church streets); 32 buildings in designated local historic district. *Roxbury Iron Mine and Furnace Complex *Roxbury Station Historic District (added 2009) (CT 67, Botsford Hill, Hodge, and Mine Hill Roads)

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 2,136 people, 848 households, and 620 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 1,018 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 97.24%

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 ...

, 0.23%

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 ...

, 0.19% Native American, 0.94% Asian, 0.66% from other races, and 0.75% 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 1.31% of the population. There were 848 households, out of which 29.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 66.5% were married couples living together, 4.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.8% were non-families. 20.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.52 and the average family size was 2.95. In the town, the population was spread out, with 22.8% under the age of 18, 3.7% from 18 to 24, 25.5% from 25 to 44, 34.3% from 45 to 64, and 13.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females, there were 104.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 102.0 males. The median income for a household in the town was $87,794, and the median income for a family was $97,672. Males had a median income of $61,477 versus $45,417 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 $56,769. About 3.0% of families and 3.9% 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 6.3% of those age 65 or over.

Transportation

Connecticut Route 67 is the main thoroughfare in the town, leading west to New Milford and southeast to Southbury. The town is also served by secondary highways Route 199 (leading north to Washington) and Route 317 (leading east to Woodbury).

Roads in Roxbury on the List of Connecticut State Scenic Highways

The following roads are Connecticut State Scenic Highways: *Connecticut Route 317; 0.40 from Painter Hill Road, west to Route 67. (added November 14, 1990) *Connecticut Route 67; 0.87 mile from Ranny Hill Road, south to 0.30 mile south of Route 317. (added November 14, 1990) *Connecticut Route 67; 2.90 miles from the Roxbury/Bridgewater Town line, east to Ranny Hill Road. (added August 23, 1996)

Local media

*'' Waterbury Republican-American'', a Waterbury-based independent daily newspaper *'' The Danbury News-Times'', a Danbury-based daily newspaper *''The Greater New Milford Spectrum'', a MediaNews Group-owned weekly paper *''Voices'', a local newspaper serving Southbury, Middlebury, Oxford, Seymour, Naugatuck, Woodbury, Bethlehem, New Preston, Washington, Washington Depot, Roxbury, Bridgewater, Monroe, Sandy Hook and Newtown.

Education

Regional School District 12 operates the Booth Free School in Roxbury,STRATEGIC SCHOOL PROFILE 2012-13 Elementary School K-6 Edition Booth Free School
" Regional School District 12. Retrieved on January 20, 2017. as well as the Shepaug Valley School (secondary) in Washington.

Notable people

* Remember Baker (1737–1775), militiaman *

Candace Bushnell Candace Bushnell (born December 1, 1958) is an American author, journalist, and television producer. She wrote a column for ''The New York Observer'' (1994–96) that was adapted into the bestselling ''Sex and the City'' anthology. The book was ...

, author, journalist and television producer *

Alexander Calder Alexander "Sandy" Calder (; July 22, 1898 – November 11, 1976) was an American sculptor known both for his innovative mobile (sculpture), mobiles (kinetic sculptures powered by motors or air currents) that embrace chance in their aesthetic, hi ...

(1898–1976), artist * Graydon Carter (born 1949), editor, ''Vanity Fair'' *

Tom Cole Thomas Jeffery Cole (born April 28, 1949) is the U.S. representative for , serving since 2003. He is a member of the Republican Party and serves as the chairman of the House Appropriations Committee. Before serving in the House of Representati ...

, playwright *

Dustin Hoffman Dustin Lee Hoffman (born August 8, 1937) is an American actor. As one of the key actors in the formation of New Hollywood, Hoffman is known for Dustin Hoffman filmography, his versatile portrayals of antiheroes and emotionally vulnerable charac ...

(born 1937), actor * Lindsey Jacobellis (born 1985), Olympic athlete * Marianna Mayer (born 1945), children's book author and illustrator, "Baba Yaga and Vasilisa the Brave", "Pegasus", and "The Twelve Dancing Princesses" * Mercer Mayer (born 1943), children's book author ('' Little Critter'') * Frank McCourt (1930–2009), author, '' Angela's Ashes'' *

Arthur Miller Arthur Asher Miller (October 17, 1915 – February 10, 2005) was an American playwright, essayist and screenwriter in the 20th-century American theater. Among his most popular plays are '' All My Sons'' (1947), '' Death of a Salesman'' (1 ...

(1915–2005), playwright * Rebecca Miller (born 1962), actress and filmmaker *

Marilyn Monroe Marilyn Monroe ( ; born Norma Jeane Mortenson; June 1, 1926 August 4, 1962) was an American actress and model. Known for playing comic "Blonde stereotype#Blonde bombshell, blonde bombshell" characters, she became one of the most popular sex ...

(1926–1962), actress and model * Inge Morath (1923–2002), Austrian photographer * Ron Norsworthy (born 1966), visual artist and designer * Rex Reed (born 1938), film critic * Nathan Smith (1770-1835), U.S. senator *

Stephen Sondheim Stephen Joshua Sondheim (; March22, 1930November26, 2021) was an American composer and lyricist. Regarded as one of the most important figures in 20th-century musical theater, he is credited with reinventing the American musical. He received Lis ...

(1930–2021), composer and lyricist * William Styron (1925–2006), author, '' Sophie's Choice'' *

Gay Talese Gaetano "Gay" Talese (; born February 7, 1932) is an American writer. As a journalist for ''The New York Times'' and ''Esquire (magazine), Esquire'' magazine during the 1960s, he helped to define contemporary literary journalism and is considere ...

, writer and journalist * Joe Wanag (born 1966), Olympic athlete * Seth Warner (1743–1784), Green Mountain Boys *

Richard Widmark Richard Weedt Widmark (December 26, 1914March 24, 2008) was an American film, stage, and television actor and producer. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his role as the villainous Tommy Udo in his debut film, ''Kiss of Death (1947 film ...

(1914–2008), actor * Betty Gilpin (born 1986), actress

References

External links

Town of Roxbury official websiteShepaug Regional School District #12
{{authority control Towns in Litchfield County, Connecticut Towns in the New York metropolitan area Towns in Connecticut Towns in Northwest Hills Planning Region, Connecticut