Ridgefield, Connecticut
Ridgefield | |
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Ridgefield Town Hall (2010) |
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Location of Ridgefield in Fairfield County | |
Basic data | |
Foundation : | 1709 |
State : | United States |
State : | Connecticut |
County : | Fairfield County |
Coordinates : | 41 ° 18 ′ N , 73 ° 30 ′ W |
Time zone : | Eastern ( UTC − 5 / −4 ) |
Residents : | 24,638 (as of 2010) |
Population density : | 276.2 inhabitants per km 2 |
Area : | 90.6 km 2 (approx. 35 mi 2 ) of which 89.2 km 2 (approx. 34 mi 2 ) are land |
Height : | 201 m |
Postal code : | 06877 |
Area code : | +1 203 |
FIPS : | 09-63970 |
GNIS ID : | 0213496 |
Website : | www.ridgefieldct.org |
Ridgefield is a small town near New York City in Fairfield County , Connecticut .
history
Ridgefield was founded in 1708 after a group of settlers acquired land from the Ramapoo Indians. The most famous historical event was the Battle of Ridgefield on April 27, 1777, a skirmish during the American Revolutionary War between colonial militias and British forces returning from a raid on a colonial supply depot in nearby Danbury . The Keelern Tavern Museum at the scene of the battle still commemorates this event today.
geography
The city covers an area of approximately 90 square kilometers (35 square miles), according to the United States Census Bureau, of which 1.4 square kilometers are water. The city is bordered to the west by Westchester County, New York State, to the north by Danbury, to the south by Wilton, and to the east by Redding (all state of Connecticut).
population
According to the last 2000 census, the town of Ridgefield has 23,643 residents who live in 8,433 households and 6,611 families. The population density is 265 people per square kilometer (686 per square mile). The vast majority of the population is white (approx. 96 percent), the largest minority is the Hispanic / Latino community (approx. 2%). Many households have children under the age of 18 (43%). Approx. 70% of the households are married couples, only about 19% of the households live singles. For every 100 adult women there are 89 men. The average age of the residents is 39 years. The median household income is approximately $ 107,000 (approximately 128,000 per family).
Famous residents
More or less famous residents of the city include Carolyn Kepcher , known from the NBC television show The Apprentice , the author Maurice Sendak , best known for his book Where the Wild Things Are , the entrepreneur Jay Walker , founder of Priceline.com, the actor and screenwriter Harvey Fierstein , the composer and poet Stephen Schwartz, and the writer Mark Salzman . The politician Joel Abbot was also born here.
Former residents included the adviser to President John F. Kennedy , Theodore Sorenson , the television journalist Morton Dean , the publisher George Doubleday , the soprano Geraldine Farrar , the writer Howard Fast , Jolie Gabor , mother of Zsa Zsa Gabor , the architect Cass Gilbert , the antiquarian Hans Peter Kraus , the governors of Connecticut George Lounsbury and Phineas Lounsbury , the children's author Richard Scarry , the composer Maxim Shostakovich , son of Dmitri Shostakovich , the Nobel Prize winner for literature Eugene O'Neill and Henry Luce , founder of the US news magazine TIME , as well the famous Hollywood actor Robert Vaughn . The journalist and author Peter Wyden lived and died here.
Science fiction writer Diane Detzer was born in Ridgefield .
Education
Ridgefield has nine public schools. The six elementary schools are called Veterans Park, Branchville, Farmingville, Scotland, Barlow Mountain, and Ridgebury. The so-called "Middle Schools" are Scotts Ridge and East Ridge. The comprehensive school is Ridgefield High School, home of the Ridgefield Tigers sports team.
Web links
- Town of Ridgefield (Official Site of the City Council)
- The Ridgefield Press (local newspaper)
- The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum (well-known art museum)
- Keeler Tavern Museum (Historical Museum)