- Avon, Connecticut
-
Avon, Connecticut — Town — 
SealLocation within Hartford County, Connecticut
Coordinates: 41°47′40″N 72°51′28″W / 41.79444°N 72.85778°WCoordinates: 41°47′40″N 72°51′28″W / 41.79444°N 72.85778°W Country United States State Connecticut NECTA Hartford Region Capitol Region Incorporated 1830 Government – Type Council-manager – Town manager Brandon Robertson – Town council Mark C. Zacchio, Chrm
William J. Shea II
Pamela V. Samul
Douglas Evans
David PenaArea – Total 23.5 sq mi (60.9 km2) – Land 23.1 sq mi (59.9 km2) – Water 0.4 sq mi (1.0 km2) Elevation 276 ft (84 m) Population (2010) – Total 18,098 – Density 745/sq mi (288/km2) Time zone Eastern (UTC-5) – Summer (DST) Eastern (UTC-4) ZIP code 06001 Area code(s) 860 FIPS code 09-02060 GNIS feature ID 0213385 Website Avon Avon is a town in the Farmington Valley region of Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. As of 2010[update], the town had a population of 18,098.
Avon is a suburb of Hartford. Avon Old Farms School, a prestigious boarding school, is located there. In 2005, Avon was named the third-safest town in America by Money Magazine. It is home to the Pine Grove School House, which was built in 1865 and remains open today as a museum.
Avon is home to Avon High School; as well as two elementary schools, Pine Grove Elementary and Roaring Brook Elementary; an intermediate (grades 5-6) school, Thompson Brook; and a middle school (grades 7-8), Avon Middle School.[1]
One of the worst traffic accidents in Connecticut history occurred at the intersection of US 44 and Route 10 at the foot of Avon Mountain. This occurred on July 29, 2005 when a runaway dump truck plowed into many stopped vehicles, causing four deaths.[2] Governor M. Jodi Rell has since proposed safety improvements for this road[3] A second, nonfatal crash occurred at the same location on September 7, 2007 when a runaway truck crashed into Nassau's Furniture store [1]. Since these accidents, a run-away truck ramp has been built to avoid future fatalities.
Contents
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 23.5 square miles (61 km2), of which 23.1 sq m (59.9 km²) is land and 0.4 square miles (1.0 km² or 1.70%) is water.
The East side of Avon is flanked by Talcott Mountain, part of the Metacomet Ridge, a mountainous trap rock ridgeline that stretches from Long Island Sound to near the Vermont border. Talcott Mountain is a popular outdoor recreation resource notable for its towering western cliff faces. The 51-mile (82 km) Metacomet Trail traverses the Talcott Mountain ridge.
History
Avon was settled in 1645 and was originally a part of Farmington but was sold to the Puritans in a land charter granted by the Duke of York in 1830. Avon was originally called Northington (the north parish) before it broke off from Farmington. According to the Avon Historical Society, Avon's independence was rooted in the need for a church that was more accessible to the growing town's population than the Congregational Church in Farmington. The town eventually commissioned someone to come north from the Yale Divinity School to found the first church.
Public library
The Avon Free Public Library can be traced back to 1791 when Rev. Rufus Hawley started collecting money from residents to purchase books for a community library. In 1798, Samuel Bishop, a prominent citizen, began offering library services within his home with a collection of 111 titles.
The library is a member of Library Connection, Inc., the cooperative regional automated circulation and online catalog database system, CONNECT, to which 33 libraries belong. Through this system, over 4 million volumes are available through interlibrary loan, the statewide reciprocal borrowing arrangement which encompasses over 160 libraries.
Notable locations
Derrin House
- Avon Congregational Church built in 1819 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1972.
Properties owned by the Avon Historical Society
- Derrin House[4] – 18th-century farmhouse
- Living Museum[5] – former schoolhouse
- Pine Grove School House[6] – former schoolhouse
Avon Mountain traffic accidents
Avon Mountain, the section of Talcott Mountain between Avon and West Hartford, is known for the climb of U.S. Route 44. As the most direct path to Hartford from much of the Farmington Valley and Litchfield County, rush hour on the mountain is notoriously dangerous. In recent years, two particular car accidents at the intersection of Route 44, Waterville Road and Nod Road have prompted the State of Connecticut to modify Route 44. Changes include the addition of a runaway truck ramp just above the Avon Old Farms Inn and the straightening and widening of the road on the western slope of the mountain. The accidents and the reconstruction of the road have been heavily covered by local media including the Hartford Courant.
Summarizing the accidents:
In July 2005, the driver of a truck lost control of his brakes and swerved to avoid traffic waiting in his lane at the stoplight. On the eastbound side of the road, the truck then collided with rush hour traffic waiting at the light. Four people, including the driver of the truck, perished in the crash.
In 2007, the driver of a truck lost control. The truck, traveling westbound on U.S. Route 44 at Route 10, crashed into the Nassau Furniture building at about 11 a.m., taking out a column that supports the roof of the building. No major injuries resulted from the crash.
Demographics
As of 2010 Avon had a population of 18,098. The racial composition of the population was 89.8% white, 1.5% black or African American, 6.3% Asian, 0.7% from other races and 1.7% from two or more races. 3.4% of the population was Hispanic or Latino of any race.[7]
As of the census[8] of 2000, there were 15,832 people, 6,192 households, and 4,483 families residing in the town. The population density was 684.8 people per square mile (264.4/km²). There were 6,480 housing units at an average density of 280.3 per square mile (108.2/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 94.93% White, 0.98% African American, 0.05% Native American, 2.96% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.28% from other races, and 0.77% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.57% of the population.
There were 6,192 households, out of which 34.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 65.8% were married couples living together, 4.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.6% were non-families. 23.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.5% 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 3.03.
In the town, the population was spread out with 26.1% under the age of 18, 3.3% from 18 to 24, 26.1% from 25 to 44, 29.5% from 45 to 64, and 15.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.0 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $90,934, and the median income for a family was $109,161. Males had a median income of $76,882 versus $44,848 for females. The per capita income for the town was $51,706. About 0.9% of families and 1.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 1.2% of those under age 18 and 1.9% of those age 65 or over.
Voter Registration and Party Enrollment as of October 25, 2005[9] Party Active Voters Inactive Voters Total Voters Percentage Republican 3,956 187 4,143 35.11% Democratic 2,655 100 2,755 23.35% Unaffiliated 4,639 251 4,890 41.44% Minor Parties 10 1 11 0.09% Total 11,260 539 11,799 100% Historical populations
1830 1,025 1840 1,001 1850 995 1860 1,059 1870 987 1880 1,057 1890 1,182 1900 1,302 1910 1,337 1920 1,534 1930 1,738 1940 2,258 1950 3,171 1960 5,273 1970 8,352 1980 11,201 1990 13,937 2000 15,832 2010 18,098 Sources: Interactive Connecticut State Register & Manual and U.S. Census Bureau, Population Division
References
- ^ http://avon.k12.ct.us/
- ^ Yardley, William; Stowe, Stacey (July 30, 2005). "Dump Truck Plows Through Intersection, Causing 20-Vehicle Accident and Killing 4". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2005/07/30/nyregion/30avon.html?ex=1280376000&en=0a5a121baf1afd4b&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss. Retrieved April 26, 2010.
- ^ Governor Rell: Governor Rell Pledges to Build On Road Safety Progress; First Anniversary of Avon Mountain Crash
- ^ "The Derrin House". Avon Historical Society. http://www.avonhistoricalsociety.org/DerrinHouse.htm. Retrieved 15 September 2010.
- ^ "Living Museum". Avon Historical Society. http://www.avonhistoricalsociety.org/LivingMuseum.htm. Retrieved 15 September 2010.
- ^ "Pine Grove School". Avon Historical Society. http://www.avonhistoricalsociety.org/PineGroveSchoolhouse.htm. Retrieved 15 September 2010.
- ^ 2010 population by race and Hispanic or Latino by place chart for Connecticut from the US Census
- ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
- ^ "Registration and Party Enrollment Statistics as of October 25, 2005" (PDF). Connecticut Secretary of State. Archived from the original on 2006-09-23. http://web.archive.org/web/20060923151511/http://www.sots.ct.gov/ElectionsServices/lists/2005OctRegEnrollStats.pdf. Retrieved 2006-10-02.
External links
- Avon Official Municipal Web Site
- Pine Grove Schoolhouse
- Central Regional Tourism District
- Avon Public Schools Website
- Avon Free Public Library Website
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Regions Counties Cities Places Municipalities and communities of Hartford County, Connecticut Cities 
Towns Avon | Berlin | Bloomfield | Burlington | Canton | East Granby | East Hartford | East Windsor | Enfield | Farmington | Glastonbury | Granby | Hartland | Manchester | Marlborough | Newington | Plainville | Rocky Hill | Simsbury | South Windsor | Southington | Suffield | West Hartford | Wethersfield | Windsor Locks | Windsor
Unincorporated
communitiesBlue Hills | Broad Brook | Burnside | Collinsville | Hazardville | Hockanum | Kensington | Marion | Milldale | Newington Junction | North Granby | Plantsville | Sherwood Manor | Simsbury Center | Southwood Acres | Tariffville | Terramuggus | Thompsonville | Weatogue | West Simsbury
Categories:- Avon, Connecticut
- Towns in Hartford County, Connecticut
- Populated places established in 1645
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