Old Greenwich, Connecticut

Sound Beach Avenue, west side

Old Greenwich is a neighborhood/section and census-designated place in Greenwich in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States.^[1] As of the 2010 census it had a population of 6,611.^[2] It was founded in 1641 and has been a long-time beach community. One of the founding settlers was Elizabeth Fones Winthrop,^[3] niece and daughter-in-law of John Winthrop, founder and Governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. What is now called Greenwich Point was known for much of its early history as "Elizabeth Neck" in recognition of Elizabeth (Fones) Winthrop Feake and their 1640 purchase of the Point and much of the area now known as Old Greenwich.^[4]

The Old Greenwich Railroad Station, originally called the "Sound Beach Railroad Station", built in 1894 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1989, serves commuters in the neighborhood. The town's largest beach is on a long, thin peninsula at the southwest end of the neighborhood. The town's local beach is called Tod's Point after a former resident. The beach is now public property, which belongs to the town of Greenwich. Residents can purchase a seasonal beach pass. Non-residents can purchase a one-day pass for $20 per vehicle. During "off season", Innis was a popular sledding destination for kids in Old Greenwich and neighboring Stamford.

Old Greenwich was called "Sound Beach" in the last century, and the main road through the small downtown business section is Sound Beach Avenue. This street serves as a popular hangout for children and teenagers as well as hosting annual street fairs and events.

Old Greenwich had an industrial presence back in the 1950's/60's when Electrolux had a vacuum manufacturing facility on Forest Avenue, opposite "ECCman Center" (now Greenwich Civic Center). The Civic Center also hosted a very fine swamp where local kids would pick cattails and search for frogs and turtles.

The town of Greenwich has one political body (RTM - Representative Town Meeting). It has several distinct sections each with its own mailing address and ZIP code, such as Byram, Cos Cob, Glenville, Mianus, and Riverside and Greenwich proper (downtown Greenwich). The original "well to do" population lived mainly in "The Back Country" (north of the Merritt Parkway) or in the exclusive Belle Haven area on the waterfront.

Pictures

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  Sound Beach Avenue, east side

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  Old Greenwich Railroad Station

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  Arch Street tunnel under the railroad tracks

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  "The Castle", about 1908

References

1. ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Old Greenwich, Connecticut
2. ^ "Race, Hispanic or Latino, Age, and Housing Occupancy: 2010 Census Redistricting Data (Public Law 94-171) Summary File (QT-PL), Old Greenwich CDP, Connecticut". U.S. Census Bureau, American FactFinder 2. http://factfinder2.census.gov. Retrieved August 11, 2011. 
3. ^ Mead, Spencer P. Ye Historie of Ye Town of Greenwich (New York: Knickerbocker Press, 1911), pp 4-9
4. ^ http://www.friendsofgreenwichpoint.org/page2.php

Coordinates: 41°01′22″N 73°33′53″W / 41.02278°N 73.56472°W / 41.02278; -73.56472