East Windsor, Connecticut

East Windsor, Connecticut
—  Town  —
The dam and Opera House in the Broad Brook section of town
Seal
Nickname(s): East Side
East Windsor's location in Hartford County, Connecticut
Coordinates: 41°55′00″N 72°33′28″W / 41.9166667°N 72.55778°W / 41.9166667; -72.55778Coordinates: 41°55′00″N 72°33′28″W / 41.9166667°N 72.55778°W / 41.9166667; -72.55778
Country	United States
State	Connecticut
NECTA	Springfield, Massachusetts
Region	Capitol Region
Incorporated	1768
Government
- Type	Selectman-town meeting
- First Selectman	Denise Menard
Area
- Total	26.8 sq mi (69.5 km2)
- Land	26.3 sq mi (68.1 km2)
- Water	0.5 sq mi (1.4 km2)
Elevation	72 ft (22 m)
Population (2005)[1]
- Total	11,162
- Density	397/sq mi (153/km2)
Time zone	Eastern (UTC-5)
- Summer (DST)	Eastern (UTC-4)
ZIP code	06016, 06088
Area code(s)	860
FIPS code	09-24800
GNIS feature ID	0212329
Website	http://www.eastwindsor-ct.gov/

East Windsor is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 11,162 at the 2010 census. The town has five villages: Broad Brook, Melrose, Scantic, Warehouse Point and Windsorville.

Area

East Windsor is surrounded by the towns of Enfield to the North, South Windsor to the South, Ellington to the East, and Windsor Locks and Windsor to the West. To the west. The border with Windsor and Windsor Locks is run though by the Connecticut River.

History

The first English settler in what is today known as East Windsor, was William Pynchon, the founder of the City of Springfield, Massachusetts. In 1636, he erected a warehouse for his settlement's transshipment of goods at what is, to this day, known as "Warehouse Point." Warehouse Point served as the southern border of Springfield, Massachusetts, for 132 years - until 1768 - when East Windsor, Connecticut was annexed by Connecticut Colony. Pynchon selected the site of Warehouse Point because of its location near the Enfield Falls - the first major falls in the Connecticut River, where all sea-going vessels were forced to terminate their voyages, and then transship to smaller shallops. By constructing a warehouse at Warehouse Point, Pynchon essentially forced all northern Connecticut River business to run through him and his settlement at Springfield.

The northern portion of East Windsor was annexed from Springfield, Massachusetts, in 1768; the southern portion was annexed from Windsor, Connecticut, also in 1768.

East Windsor Citizens had an uneasy relationship with the Podunk tribe which inhabited the area, particularly following King Phillip's War in 1675. Originally, the town was originally called Eastford and settled by farmers who were drawn to its even topography and the fertile soil of the Connecticut River Valley. Eastford was renamed East Windsor because another Eastford already existed in the state of Connecticut. In 1832, the Broad Brook Mill was created at the waterfall of the Mill Pond.

The oldest section of town is Warehouse Point, which as mentioned was first used by William Pynchon in the 1630s, and later settled as part of Springfield in the 1680s.The Scantic section of town was the center of town until the mills were built. The Windsorville section of town used to be its own community. It had a church, a post office, mini mart, and a park. Mulnite Farms is a tobacco farm on Graham Road, established in 1905. In 1897, the town's voluntary fire department was created in the mill. The Broad Brook Elementary school was established in 1951. In 1961 the town hall burned down. The new town hall is on Rye Street across from the elementary school. The new voluntary fire department building and senior center was built on the same site of the old town hall. On Memorial Day Weekend 1986 the mill caught on fire during renovations and the mill and the tire shop (on the site of the mill) burned down and the smoke could be seen as far as Bradley International Airport and Hartford. A new mini strip mall was built on the site of the mill. In recent years, the town's location - equidistant to the two major cities of Springfield and Hartford - has led to exponential population growth, and has caused it to become the fastest growing town in Connecticut. The town's population is now approximately 14,000.

Points of interest

• The Connecticut Trolley Museum and the Connecticut Fire Museum are located in the Warehouse Point section of town.
• The East Windsor Academy Museum operated by the historical society is located in the Scantic neighborhood.
• The East Windsor Hill section of the nearby town of South Windsor was the boyhood home of the theologian Jonathan Edwards.
• The Melrose School, now called the Melrose Library, is a one-room schoolhouse that was active until the early 20th century. It is located in the Melrose section of town and is now used for local functions.
• St. John's Episcopal Church (Warehouse Point, Connecticut) is on the National Register of Historic Places.

Notable people, past and present

• Jonathan Edwards, a colonial American Christian preacher and theologian.
• Lorrin Andrews (1795–1868), born in East Windsor, Congregational Church clergyman missionary to Hawaii, translated the Bible into the Hawaiian language, judge, and first Associate Justice of Hawaii State Supreme Court^[2]
• John Warner Barber (1798–1885), an engraver whose books of state, national, and local history featured his vivid engravings, said to have caught the flavor and appearance of city, town, and countryside scenes in his day, was born in town.
• Israel Bissell (1752–1800), a post-rider in Massachusetts originally from East Windsor, alerted the colonists of the British attack on April 19, 1775. He rode for four days and six hours covering the 345 miles from Watertown, Massachusetts, to Philadelphia along the Boston Post Road. He was carrying a message from General Joseph Palmer. The message was copied at each of his stops, and he shouted "To arms, to arms, the war has begun."
• Daniel Bissell (1754–1824), a soldier and spy for the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War, was the last recipient of the Badge of Military Merit, one of only three awarded by George Washington himself. Under Washington's direct orders, he became a spy in British-occupied New York City and decided he had to join the British Army to get the desired information, which he memorized before returning to the American side. He was born in town.
• Eliphalet Chapin (1741–1807), a cabinetmaker and furniture maker in town whose furniture design is regarded as one of the most elegant of its time. He was born in town.
• Frederick Holbrook (1814–1909), governor of Vermont, was born in town.
• Eli Terry (1772–1852) was an influential clockmaker and the first inventor to receive a United States patent for a clock mechanism. He introduced mass production to clock manufacturing, making them affordable for the average person. He was born in town.
• Kevin Olson (born 1989), minor child star in films such as Stuart Little 2. Went to elemntary and middle school here.
• Jerry Marquis (Born 1965), NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series and NASCAR Whelen Modefed Series Driver. Also the 1994 Busch North Series rookie of the year.
• Walter Loomis Newberry (1804–1888) Was an American businessman and philanthropist, best known for its bequest in its creation of the Newberry Library in Chicago.
• Oliver Newberry(1789–1860) The steamboat king was born here. Also served in the Black Hawk war

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 26.8 square miles (69 km²), of which, 26.3 square miles (68 km²) of it is land and 0.5 square miles (1.3 km²) of it (1.98%) is water.

Tobacco field in the Windsorville section of town

Transportation

U.S. Route 5 runs right though the town from the border in South Windsor to Enfield.

East Windsor is about halfway from both Hartford and Springfield as they are both 12 miles away. Interstate 91 serves East Windsor with exits 44 and 45. At one point Interstate 284 was going to run though East Windsor but was utimatley canceled because of environmental concerns in the swampland in the area. An on-ramp was constructed for I-284 at exit 44.

Bradley International Airport is 5 miles away. Skylark Airport is a small airstip to help young aviators learn how to fly.

Demographics

As of the census^[3] of 2000, there were 9,818 people, 4,078 households, and 2,556 families residing in the town. The population density was 373.5 people per square mile (144.2/km²). There were 4,356 housing units at an average density of 165.7 per square mile (64.0/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 91.47% White, 4.09% African American, 0.16% Native American, 2.00% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.83% from other races, and 1.41% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.11% of the population.

There were 4,078 households out of which 27.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.7% were married couples living together, 10.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.3% were non-families. 30.0% 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 2.34 and the average family size was 2.94.

In the town the population was spread out with 22.2% under the age of 18, 6.2% from 18 to 24, 33.1% from 25 to 44, 23.8% from 45 to 64, and 14.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 96.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.6 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $51,092, and the median income for a family was $60,694. Males had a median income of $39,785 versus $33,446 for females. The per capita income for the town was $24,899. About 3.5% of families and 4.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.9% of those under age 18 and 4.6% of those age 65 or over.

Voter Registration and Party Enrollment as of October 25, 2005[4]
Party		Active Voters	Inactive Voters	Total Voters	Percentage
	Democratic	1,909	129	2,038	29.72%
	Republican	1,227	99	1,326	19.34%
	Unaffiliated	3,215	278	3,493	50.94%
	Minor Parties	0	0	0	0.0%
Total		6,351	506	6,857	100%

Crime

Graph of East Windsor Crime Statistics

East Windsor crime, according to city-data.com is relatively low against U.S. averages. Between 1999 and 2004, not including 2003, there was one murder, 26 rapes, 43 robberies, 41 assaults, 254 burglaries, 1248 thefts, and 177 car thefts.

Education

Elementary

The East Windsor Elementary School System runs from pre-kindergarten through grade 4.
The Connecticut Children's Place runs from Grade 4 through Grade 12.
Homebound runs from Pre-K through 12.

School Name	Students	Principal
East Windsor Elementary School [1]	624	Jeanne McCarroll
Connecticut Children's Place [2]	45	Joyce Welch

CMT Testing

The Connecticut Mastery Test Results for 2006 in the Elementary School:

	Reading		Writing
Grade	"Proficient"* or Above	Below "Proficient"	"Proficient" or Above	Below "Proficient"
3	64%	36%	81%	19%

* Rating System is, from highest to lowest: Advanced, Goal, Proficient, Basic, Below Basic. East Windsor Elementary School aims for "Proficient".

Middle School

The East Windsor Middle School System runs from grade 5 through grade 8.

School Name	Students	Principal
East Windsor Middle School [3]	521	Kimberly Hellerich

*

CMT Testing

The Connecticut Mastery Test Results for 2006 in the Middle School:

	Reading		Writing
Grade	"Proficient"* or Above	Below "Proficient"	"Proficient" or Above	Below "Proficient"
4	67%	31%**	82%	18%
5	55%	44%	70%	27%**
6	61%	36%**	58%	38%**
7	63%	34%**	64%	33%**
8	71%	27%**	70%	28%**

* Rating System is, from highest to lowest: Advanced, Goal, Proficient, Basic, Below Basic. East Windsor Middle School aims for "Proficient".
** This does not add up to 100%.

High school

The East Windsor High School System runs from grade 9 through grade 12.

School Name	Students	Principal
East Windsor High School [4]	463	Ted Keleher	}

CAPT Testing

The CAPT Results for the High School between 2004 and 2006:

	Mathematics		Science		Reading Across The Disciplines		Writing Across The Disciplines
Year	"Proficient"* or Above	Below "Proficient"	"Proficient" or Above	Below "Proficient"	"Proficient" or Above	Below "Proficient"	"Proficient" or Above	Below "Proficient"
2006	77%	23%	76%	24%	68%	30%**	77%	23%
2005	74%	28%**	79%	21%	82%	18%	85%	15%
2004	83%	16%**	89%	11%	83%	18%**	84%	16%

* Rating System is, from highest to lowest: Advanced, Goal, Proficient, Basic, Below Basic. East Windsor High School aims for "Proficient".
** This does not add up to 100%.

References

1. ^ U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates
2. ^ Who Was Who in America, Historical Volume, 1607-1896. Chicago: Marquis Who's Who. 1963. 
3. ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
4. ^ "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

Connecticut portal

• East Windsor Ambulance Paramedics
• East Windsor
• East Windsor Academy
• Connecticut Trolley Museum
• East Windsor Historical Society
• Central Regional Tourism District
• East Windsor Schools