Suffield, Connecticut | |
|---|---|
 The Suffield Public Library | |
 Seal | |
| Motto: "Our Roots Run Deep"[1] | |
 Hartford County and Connecticut Capitol Planning Region and Connecticut | |
 Show Suffield Show Connecticut Show the United States | |
| Coordinates:41°59′N72°41′W / 41.983°N 72.683°W /41.983; -72.683 | |
| Country |  United States |
| U.S. state |  Connecticut |
| County | Hartford |
| Region | Capitol Region |
| Settled | 1670 |
| Incorporated (Massachusetts) | June 8, 1674 |
| Annexed by Connecticut | 1749 |
| Government | |
| • Type | Selectman-town meeting |
| • First selectman | Colin Moll (R) |
| • Selectmen |
|
| Area | |
• Total | 42.9 sq mi (111.2 km2) |
| • Land | 42.3 sq mi (109.5 km2) |
| • Water | 0.69 sq mi (1.8 km2) |
| Elevation | 200 ft (60 m) |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 15,752 |
| • Density | 372.6/sq mi (143.9/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−5 (Eastern) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−4 (Eastern) |
| ZIP Codes | 06078, 06093 |
| Area codes | 860/959 |
| FIPS code | 09-74540 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0212351 |
| Website | www |
Suffield is a town inHartford County, Connecticut, United States. The town is part of theCapitol Planning Region, and located in theConnecticut River Valley. As of the2020 census, the population was 15,752.[2] The town center is acensus-designated place listed asSuffield Depot.
BorderingMassachusetts, Suffield is part of theSpringfield, MassachusettsNECTA. It was once within the boundaries ofMassachusetts.
Originally known as Southfield—pronounced "Suffield," on May 20, 1674, the committee for the settling of the town petitioned:
...that the name of the place may be Suffield, it being the southernmost town that either at present is, or like to be in that Countrey, and neere adjoining to the south border of our Patent in those parts. [sic]
The petition was granted by the Massachusetts Bay court on June 8, 1674. Suffield was incorporated as a town in March 1682.[3]
Also, on early 17th and 18th century maps, Suffield was alternatively spelled as Suthfield.
Suffield and the surrounding area were part of theEquivalent Lands compromise with Massachusetts in 1715–1716.[4]
Suffield's native and adopted sons include The Rev. Ebenezer Gay, a renownedCongregational minister; U.S. Postmaster GeneralGideon Granger; real estate speculatorOliver Phelps, once the largest landowner in America; composerTimothy Swan; architectHenry A. Sykes; sculptorOlin Levi Warner; Seth Pease, surveyor of theWestern Reserve lands in Ohio, most of which were controlled by Suffield financiers and speculators; andThaddeus Leavitt,[5] inventor of an earlycotton gin, merchant and patentee of theWestern Reserve lands.[6] Thanks to the town's early prominence and wealth, it boasts an astonishing collection of early New England architecture.[7] The Kent family, for whom the town's library is named, originated inGloucester, Massachusetts, and boasted relations to many prominent early New England families, including theDwight family ofNorthampton, Massachusetts, theHooker family of Hartford, the Dudleys ofGuilford, Connecticut, and the Leavitts of Suffield.[8][9] Descendants of Robert Olds, who arrived fromSherborne,Dorset, in 1667, include automotive pioneerRansom Eli Olds,Copperhead Ohio politicianEdson Baldwin Olds, his great-grandsonUSAAF GeneralRobert Olds, and his son, iconicUSAF fighter pilotRobin Olds.
Slavery was common throughout theConnecticut River Valley during the 18th century, and the 1774 Census for theColony of Connecticut listed 37 slaves in Suffield. Throughout the Connecticut Valley, wealthy merchants, tavern owners and town ministers owned slaves. When Major John Pynchon originally purchased from the Pequonnocks andAgawam tribes a six-mile tract of land, which he called Stoney Brooke Plantation, he first ordered the construction of a sawmill, and used two of his slaves, Harry and Roco, for the construction.[10] Suffield's third minister, Reverend Ebenezer Devotion, became minister in 1710, and "sixteen years later the town voted to give him £20 to purchase a slave.[11] Reverend Ebenezer Gay, Devotion's successor, owned six slaves throughout his long term, 1742–1796. Reverend Ebenezer Gay Jr. manumitted his family's three remaining slaves in 1812. They were Titus, Ginny and Dinah.[12] "Princess," a slave belonging to early Suffield settler, Lieut. Joshua Leavitt, died November 5, 1732.[13] Some of Leavitt's descendants became ardentabolitionists, includingJoshua Leavitt and his cousinRoger Hooker Leavitt, who operated anUnderground Railroad station inCharlemont, Massachusetts.
One of the earliest graduates of theYale Medical School was one of Suffield's earliest physicians. Dr. Asaph Leavitt Bissell, born in 1791 atHanover, New Hampshire, to parents originally from Suffield,[14] attendedDartmouth College, and later graduated in the second class of the Yale Medical School. Bissell moved to Suffield, where he rode horseback to make house calls on his patients. Bissell's saddlebags are today in the collection of the Yale Medical School's Historical Society.[15]
According to theUnited States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 42.9 square miles (111.2 km2), of which 42.3 square miles (109.5 km2) is land and 0.69 square miles (1.8 km2), or 1.58%, is water.[16] The town center (Suffield Depot CDP) has a total area of 2.0 square miles (5.1 km2), all of it land.
Suffield is on the west bank of theConnecticut River, 8 miles (13 km) south of the river's largest city,Springfield, Massachusetts, and 16 miles (26 km) north of Connecticut's capital,Hartford. Two bridges span the river to the town ofEnfield: theAmtrak/Springfield Terminal Railroad Bridge and theEnfield–Suffield Veterans Bridge.
TheMetacomet Ridge, a mountainoustrap rock ridgeline that stretches fromLong Island Sound to nearly theVermont border, runs through the center of Suffield from south to north asWest Suffield Mountain. The 51-mile (82 km)Metacomet Trail traverses the ridge.
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1850 | 2,962 | — | |
| 1860 | 3,260 | 10.1% | |
| 1870 | 3,277 | 0.5% | |
| 1880 | 3,225 | −1.6% | |
| 1890 | 3,169 | −1.7% | |
| 1900 | 3,521 | 11.1% | |
| 1910 | 3,841 | 9.1% | |
| 1920 | 4,070 | 6.0% | |
| 1930 | 4,346 | 6.8% | |
| 1940 | 4,475 | 3.0% | |
| 1950 | 4,895 | 9.4% | |
| 1960 | 6,779 | 38.5% | |
| 1970 | 8,634 | 27.4% | |
| 1980 | 9,294 | 7.6% | |
| 1990 | 11,427 | 23.0% | |
| 2000 | 13,552 | 18.6% | |
| 2010 | 15,735 | 16.1% | |
| 2020 | 15,752 | 0.1% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census[17] | |||
As of thecensus[18] of 2000, there were 13,552 people, 4,660 households, and 3,350 families residing in the town. The population density was 321.0 inhabitants per square mile (123.9/km2). There were 4,853 housing units at an average density of 115.0 per square mile (44.4/km2). The racial makeup of the town was 88.67%White, 6.95%African American, 0.24%Native American, 0.94%Asian, 0.04%Pacific Islander, 2.03% fromother races, and 1.13% from two or more races.Hispanic orLatino of any race were 4.25% of the population.
There were 4,660 households, out of which 32.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.2% weremarried couples living together, 6.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.1% were non-families. Of all households, 23.3% were made up of individuals, and 11.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 3.04.
In the town, the population was spread out, with 22.1% under the age of 18, 8.0% from 18 to 24, 31.7% from 25 to 44, 24.1% from 45 to 64, and 14.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 116.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 121.1 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $66,698, and the median income for a family was $79,189. Males had a median income of $52,096 versus $35,188 for females. Theper capita income for the town was $28,171. About 1.8% of families and 3.6% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 2.5% of those under age 18 and 6.2% of those age 65 or over.
Main Street, a designated historic district with the Green, three churches, Suffield Academy and vintage colonial and Victorian homes, typifies a New England town. Named for the Kent family of Suffield, the Kent Memorial Library is an important research center for source materials, records, and documents from north-central Connecticut. A walk along Main Street reveals many examples of 18th and 19th century architecture. The Dr. Alexander King House, on the corner of Kent Avenue, and the Phelps-Hatheway House, a little farther north on Main Street, are museums open to the public from May to October.
Sites listed on theNational Register of Historic Places include:[19]
| Voter Registration and Party Enrollment as of November 1, 2022[22] | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Active Voters | Inactive Voters | Total Voters | Percentage | |
| Democratic | 2,566 | 205 | 2,771 | 25.86% | |
| Republican | 2,763 | 215 | 2,978 | 27.80% | |
| Unaffiliated | 4,197 | 447 | 4,644 | 43.35% | |
| Minor parties | 294 | 27 | 321 | 2.99% | |
| Total | 9,820 | 894 | 10,714 | 100% | |
| Representative | Party | Years | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Roland Dowd | Suffield Community Party | 1995–1997 | Defeated for reelection |
| Robert Skinner | Republican | 1997–2001 | Did not seek reelection |
| Elaine Sarsynski | Republican | 2001–2005 | Did not seek reelection |
| Scott Lingenfelter | Republican | 2005–2009 | Defeated for reelection |
| Tom Frenaye | Democratic | 2009–2011 | Defeated for reelection |
| Edward McAnaney | Republican | 2011–2015 | Defeated for reelection |
| Melissa Mack | Democratic | 2015–2021 | Defeated incumbent by a 637-vote margin, ran unopposed in two subsequent elections, defeated for reelection after third term |
| Colin Moll | Republican | 2021–present |
The town's public school system,Suffield Public Schools, includes Spaulding Elementary School, McAlister Intermediate School, Suffield Middle School, andSuffield High School.
Suffield is also the home ofSuffield Academy, a private coeducational preparatory school.
{{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)Municipalities and communities ofHartford County, Connecticut,United States | ||
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