Connecticut

State nickname: The Constitution State
Other U.S. States
Capital Hartford
Largest city Bridgeport
Governor M. Jodi Rell
Official languages English
Area 14,371 km² (48th)
 - Land 12,559 km²
 - Water 1,809 km² (12.6%)
Population (2000)
 - Population 3,405,565 (29th)
 - Density 271.40 /km² (4th)
Admission into Union
 - Date January 9, 1788
 - Order 5th
Time zone Eastern: UTC-5/-4
Latitude 40°58'N to 42°3'N
Longitude 71°47'W to 73°44'W
Width 113 km
Length 177 km
Elevation
 - Highest 725 m
 - Mean 152 m
 - Lowest 0 m
Abbreviations
 - USPS CT
 - ISO 3166-2 US-CT
Web site www.ct.gov

Connecticut is a state of the United States, part of the New England region, as well as the southernmost state in New England and one of the wealthiest states in the country. Connecticut was one of the thirteen colonies that revolted against British rule in the American Revolution.

USS Connecticut was named in honor of this state.

History

Main article: History of Connecticut

The name "Connecticut" comes from an Algonquin Indian word meaning "on the long tidal river". Connecticut is one of the original 13 states. The first Europeans to settle permanently in Connecticut were English Puritans from Massachusetts in 1633. Its first constitution, the "Fundamental Orders", was adopted on January 14, 1639, while its current constitution, the fourth for Connecticut, was adopted in 1965. The traditional abbreviation of the state's name is "Conn."

Law and government

Hartford has been the sole capital of Connecticut since 1875. Prior to that, New Haven and Hartford alternated as capital. Unlike most other states, Connecticut does not have county governments or county seats; rather, there is only the state government and the governments of the local municipalities. The state judicial system and the associated state marshal system, however, are still divided by county, and the eight counties are still widely used for purely geographical purposes, e.g. in weather reports. There are 169 incorporated cities and towns across the state. Most cities are coterminal with their namesake towns and have a merged city-town government. The sole exception is the City of Groton, which is a subsection of the Town of Groton. There are also 9 incorporated boroughs, eight of which provide additional services to a section of town. One, Naugatuck, is a merged town-borough.

The current governor of Connecticut is M. Jodi Rell (Republican) and the two U.S. senators are Christopher J. Dodd (Democrat) and Joseph I. Lieberman (Democrat). Connecticut currently has five representatives in the House.

Geography

Connecticut is bordered on the south by Long Island Sound, on the west by New York State, on the north by Massachusetts, and on the east by Rhode Island. The state capital is Hartford, and the other major cities include New Haven, New London, Norwich, Stamford, Waterbury, Torrington and Bridgeport. In all, there are a total of 169 incorporated towns in Connecticut. There is an ongoing civic pride and economic competition between Hartford and New Haven, which stems back to the days when the two cities shared the state's capital, and even back to when New Haven and Hartford were two separate colonies.

The Connecticut River cuts through the center of the state, flowing into Long Island Sound, Connecticut's outlet to the Atlantic Ocean. See: List of Connecticut rivers

The state, although small, has regional variations in its landscape and culture from the wealthy estates of Fairfield County's "Gold Coast" to the rolling mountains and farms of the Litchfield Hills and the casinos of Southeastern Connecticut. Connecticut's rural areas and small towns in the northeast and northwest corners of the state contrast sharply with its industrial cities, located along the coastal highways from the New York border to New Haven, then northwards to Hartford, as well as further up the coast near New London. Many towns center around a small park, known as a "green", e.g. New Haven Green. Near the green may stand a small white church, a town meeting hall, a tavern and several colonial houses. Forests, rivers, lakes, waterfalls and a sandy shore add to the state's beauty.


See also: Geology of Connecticut


Regions of Connecticut

Connecticut

The state of Connecticut can be said to be sub-divided into eight general regions which generally correspond with the eight counties of the state, though there are differences in the boundaries. Each region boasts varied qualities which distinguish it within the state, and at times there are minor cultural frictions between the regions and their major cultural centers as each competes for tourists, new residents, and internal state pride. Fairfield County's "Gold Coast", for example, is often derided by residents of the rest of the state as being more similar to New York than to New England, and many of the residents go for years or even decades without ever traveling to other regions of the state, considering themselves more attached to New York City and its suburbs in eastern New York State.

The eight regions of Connecticut are:

Transportation

Transportation in Connecticut is predominantly via highway. There is railway service along the coastline from New York City to Boston, including commuter rail service between New Haven and New York and a new commuter service along the coastline north of New Haven, with spur service running northwards to cities such as Hartford. (In an episode of the American television show Miracles, the protagonist took a train from Boston directly to Hartford, causing Connecticut residents to joke that that would really have been a miracle.) Bus service is supplied by Connecticut Transit, owned by the Connecticut Department of Transportation. In practice, most Connecticut residents find public transportation not fully adequate for all their needs and either own a private vehicle or have access to one.

The glaciers carved valleys in Connecticut running north to south; as a result, many more roadways in the state run north to south than do east to west, mimicking the previous use of the many north-south rivers as transportation. The Interstate highways in the state are I-95 (the Connecticut Turnpike) running southwest to northeast along the coast, I-84 running southwest to northeast in the center of the state, I-91 running north to south in the center of the state, and I-395 running north to south near the eastern border of the state. The other major interstate traffic arteries in Connecticut are the Merritt Parkway and Wilbur Cross Parkway, which together form Connecticut State Route 15, running from the Hutchinson River Parkway in New York State parallel to I-95 before turning north of New Haven and running parallel to I-91, finally becoming a surface road in Berlin, Connecticut. This road and I-95 were originally toll roads; they relied on a system of toll plazas at which all traffic would stop and pay an incremental fare, rather than the alternative system of providing drivers a ticket where they entered the highway and charging them when they exited. A series of terrible crashes at these plazas eventually led to abandonment of the whole toll system in 1988. Other major arteries in the state include State Routes 8 and 25 (http://www.nycroads.com/roads/CT-8/|) and US Route 7.

I-95 from south of New Haven to the New York border is one of the most congested highways in the United States due to increasing population density, increasing business in the New York area, and a general increase in American driving, and the congestion spills over to clog the parallel Merritt Parkway. At rush hours, multiple backups tens of miles long are common, and the daily radio broadcasts of where crashes have completely blocked traffic are a fact of life for commuters in the area. As a result, commuter rail is also heavily crowded, along with parking facilities and traffic at the stations. Funds to relieve the situation, either by enhancing commuter rail, increasing highway capacity, or both, are lacking, and the problem is noted as one hindering further economic development for the state.

See [1] (http://www.kurumi.com/roads/ct/index.html) for a very complete and in-depth discussion of Connecticut roadways, current, past, and future.

Economy

The total gross state product for 2003 was $172 billion. The per capita income for 2003 was $42,972, 2nd in the United States. [2] (http://www.bea.doc.gov/bea/regional/statelocal.htm) There is, however, a great disparity in incomes through the state; although New Canaan has the highest per capita income in America, Bridgeport, Hartford, and New Haven are three of the ten cities with the lowest per capita incomes in America. This is due to Fairfield County having become a bedroom community for higher paid New York City workers seeking a less urban lifestyle, as well as the spread of businesses outwards from New York City having reached into southwestern Connecticut. The state did not have an income tax until 1991, making it an attractive haven for high earners fleeing the heavy taxes of New York State, but putting an enormous burden on Connecticut property tax payers, particularly in the cities with their more extensive municipal services. As a result, the middle class largely fled the urban areas for the suburbs, taking stores and other tax-paying businesses with them, and leaving only the urban poor in the now impoverished Connecticut cities. As evident from the dichotomy in income figures described above, this problem has yet to be successfully solved. Exacerbating this problem, the state has a high cost of living, due to a combination of expensive real estate, expensive heating for the winters, the need to import much food from warmer states, and the dependence on private automobiles for mobility.

Connecticut is an important center of the insurance and financial industries, largely in Hartford and in Fairfield county. The recent establishment of two very large and lucrative Indian casinos in the southeastern region of the state has led to a large influx of money in that area, as well as statewide in general.

The agricultural output for the state is nursery stock, eggs, dairy products, cattle, and tobacco. Its industrial outputs are transportation equipment (especially helicopters, aircraft parts, and nuclear submarines), heavy industrial machinery and electrical equipment, fabricated metal products, chemical and pharmaceutical products, and scientific instruments.

History of Connecticut industry

Connecticut began, as most communities at the time, as a farming economy. It rapidly developed trade and manufacturing as the farmers, and then the merchants and manufacturers themselves, became affluent enough to start buying things. Manufacturing was aided by a plenitude of resources, including water power, wood for fires and building material, and iron ore, while transportation benefited from several excellent natural harbors, and navigable rivers leading all the way to Massachusetts. As in most of New England, the residents believed that industry, in all senses of the word, not only strengthened individual moral fiber, but also served to make the colony independent and free to pursue its own religious and philosophical beliefs. While manual labor was valued, learning and study was also prized and many schools were founded, with Yale the most significant. The development by Eli Whitney of the system of precision manufacturing of interchangeable parts and the assembly line in the late 1700s, however made Connecticut into a major center of manufacturing. This development changed "made in the United States" from a phrase connoting shoddy workmanship and expensive maintenance, into a world standard for high quality, and the entire system became known as the American system of manufacturing.

Between 1800 and 1860, Connecticut manufacturers applied the system to the manufacture of economically priced high quality firearms, leading to Connecticut's nickname "the arsenal of democracy". Middletown, Connecticut was the major supplier of pistols to the United States government during the War of 1812, with numerous gun manufacturers in the area. In 1810, Oliver Bidwell built the first pistol factory in the United States on the Pameacha River in Middletown, winning a contract with the United States war department for handmade pistols. Also in 1810, Colonel Simeon North built a pistol factory in Middletown on the West River, now the Coginchaug River, also winning a contract from the secretary of war, which led to enlarging his factory to 8,500 square feet (790 m²); he built about 10,000 pistols a year, up until just before the [Civil War]], designing America's first milling machine. Even more successful was Colonel Nathan Starr Jr., whose factory (built of stone quarried from the river) was about the same size as North's, and located across the river half a mile northeast. Starr initially manufactured swords, about 5,000 a year; including presentation swords for the state of Tennessee and War of 1812 heroes, colonel Richard M. Johnson, General Edmond P. Gaines, and General andrew Jackson. The factory later manufactured muskets and rifles until 1845, after which the United States government started government armories in Massachusetts and West Virginia partially modeled after Starr's. In 1812, John R. Johnson and J. D. Johnson built a factory, also on the Pameacha River, which was to sell rifles to the government until 1825. After this period, firearm manufacturing declined in Middletown, but briefly revived during the Civil War. The Savage Revolving Fire Arm Company manufactured pistols between 1859 and 1866, and the Sage Ammunition Works manufactured ammunition between 1864 and 1867.

In 1836, Samuel Colt invented the revolver design which continues to be used to this day. Colt's Manufacturing Company hired Elisha K. Root to modernize production, making Colt weapons the first in the world with truly interchangeable parts. Horace Smith and Daniel B. Wesson designed the first repeating rifle in Norwich in the early 1850s, which went into production by the New Haven Arms Company (which later became the Winchester Repeating Arms Company), and, just across the border in Massachusetts, the Springfield Armory. Smith also patented a metallic rifle cartridge in 1854. Christian Sharps designed the Sharps breech-loading rifle which in 1854 began to be manufactured in Hartford by the Sharps Rifle Manufacturing Company. Christopher Spencer designed the Spencer repeating rifle which played an important role for union troops at the Battle of Gettysburg.

Another area where precision manufacture led to industrial dominance for Connecticut was in the manufacture of clocks, watches, and other timepieces, by Eli Terry and his apprentice Seth Thomas, the Forestville Manufacturing Company (which became the E. N. Welch Company), the New England Clock Company, the Ansonia Clock Company, Gilbert Clocks, Ingraham Clocks, the New Haven Clock Company, Welch Clocks, Sessions Clocks, and the Waterbury Clock Company, which became Timex Corporation, and is the sole Connecticut survivor of this once flourishing field, now decimated by lower costs of production elsewhere, in the United States and overseas. The American Clock and Watch Museum is located in Bristol, Connecticut.

Similarly, Connecticut industry became well known in allied fields. Hardware and tools continue to be manufactured by Stanley Corporation in New Britain, despite having almost moving elsewhere for financial reasons. Connecticut was a major area for development and manufacture of machine tools. In 1818, Simeon North designed America's first milling machine. Machinist Elisha Root first designed machinery for the Collins Company of Collinsville which manufactured axes which became world-famous, then was hired by Colt in 1849 to modernize firearm production by designing precision drop hammers, boring machines, gauges, jigs, etc., and improving the milling machines designed by Francis A. Pratt for the George S. Lincoln company in Hartford; the resulting Lincoln Miller became world-famous, selling over 150,000 machines. Another Colt engineer, William Mason, patented 125 inventions for manufacture of firearms, as well as steam pumps and power looms. Christopher Spencer invented the automatic lathe turret for machining screws, as well as the variable cam cylinder used to control the turret. Francis A. Pratt and Amos Whitney invented a thread milling machine in 1865; Whitney also perfected various measurement instruments and Pratt designed the original milling machine manufactured by the George S. Lincoln company of Hartford.. Simon Fairman invented the lathe chuck in West Stafford in 1830, and his son-in-law, Austin F. Cushman, invented the self-centering Cushman Universal Chuck in 1862. Edward P. Bullard designed the vertical boring mill in 1883. Charles E. Billings perfected the drop hammer for metal forging in the 1870s and designed the copper commutator central to the operation of electrical generators and motors. Edwin R. Fellows of Torrington designed the first flat turret lathe, and in 1896 built a gear shaper which permitted the manufacture of effective and reliable gear transmissions for the soon-to-come automobile industry. The name Bridgeport on heavy industrial machinery continues to be a guarantee of high quality around the world, for people who have no idea that it is a city in Connecticut. Even the world of toys was dominated by the A. C. Gilbert Company, manufacturers of Erector Sets as well as other educational toys such as chemistry sets, microscopes, toy trains, etc.

Another area of industry where Connecticut excelled was in bicycle manufacturing, and its spin-off, the earliest automobile manufacturing. Albert Pope of Hartford saw a bicycle in Philadelphia in 1876 and was immediately enthralled with the concept of an "ever-saddled horse that eats nothing and requires no care". He subsequently began the first bicycle manufacturing in America, Columbia Bicycles, and set about marketing the vehicle, setting up a system of distributorships with fixed prices, hiring doctors to tout cycling as healthy exercise, and founding cycling magazines. When the safety bicycle was developed in the 1880s, he was in a perfect position to benefit from the subsequent craze.

Connecticut also became an innovative leader in the shipbuilding industry. The first recorded steam powered boat in America was built by South Windsor's John Fitch in 1786. The first military submarine, the Turtle, was built in Connecticut in 1775 by David Bushnell; since then, Connecticut has remained a world leader in the manufacture of these specialized ships. Simon Lake produced submarines for the US Navy in Bridgeport, beginning in 1913, and the work done by John P. Holland led to submarine production by the Electric Boat Company in Groton beginning in 1924, which continues to this day.

In the late 1700s, the Connecticut government engaged in financial incentives for building and operating textile mills.

Between the birth of the US patent system in 1790 and 1930, Connecticut had more patents issued per capita than any other state; in the 1800s, when the US as a whole was issued one patent per three thousand population, Connecticut inventors were issued one patent for every 700-1000 residents. Connecticut's first recorded invention was a lapidary machine, by Abel Buell of Killingworth, in 1765.

Demographics

As of the 2003, the population of Connecticut was 3,483,372. Its population has grown 6% from its 1990 levels.

10.9% of the population is foreign-born.

Racially, Connecticut is:

The five largest ancestries in the state are: Italian (18.6%), Irish (16.6%), English (10.3%), German (9.9%), African American (9.1%).

6.6% of its population were reported as under 5, 24.7% under 18, and 13.8% were 65 or older. Females made up approximately 51.6% of the population, with 48.4% male.

Religion

The religious affiliations of the people of Connecticut are:

There is a significant Jewish population in the state, mostly concentrated in the "Gold Coast" towns between Greenwich and New Haven and in the Hartford suburb of West Hartford. New Haven once had a significant Jewish population, but it has mostly fled elsewhere, although there is still a large concentration in the suburban towns west of New Haven. There are also growing populations of other religions, making the state more diverse.

The three largest Protestant denominations in Connecticut are: Baptist (5% of the total state population), Episcopalian (4%), Methodist (4%).

Important cities and towns

25 richest places in Connecticut

Ranked by per capita income:

  1. New Canaan, Connecticut $82,049
  2. Darien, Connecticut $77,519
  3. Weston, Connecticut $74,817
  4. Greenwich, Connecticut $74,346
  5. Westport, Connecticut $73,664
  6. Deep River Center, Connecticut $72,261
  7. Wilton, Connecticut $65,806
  8. Fenwick, Connecticut $60,625
  9. Roxbury, Connecticut $56,769
  10. Georgetown, Connecticut $55,029
  11. Easton, Connecticut $53,885
  12. Essex Village, Connecticut $51,928
  13. Ridgefield, Connecticut $51,795
  14. Avon, Connecticut $51,706
  15. Groton Long Point, Connecticut $51,066
  16. Redding, Connecticut $50,687
  17. Woodbridge, Connecticut $49,049
  18. Sharon, Connecticut $45,418
  19. Fairfield, Connecticut $43,670
  20. Lyme, Connecticut $43,347
  21. Essex, Connecticut $42,806
  22. Bridgewater, Connecticut $42,505
  23. Cornwall, Connecticut $42,484
  24. Madison Center, Connecticut $42,046
  25. Old Lyme, Connecticut $41,386
See Richest Places in Connecticut for full list, by county and by municipality.

Education

Colleges and universities

Sports teams

Minor league baseball teams:


This page about Connecticut includes information from a Wikipedia article.
Additional articles about Connecticut
News stories about Connecticut
External links for Connecticut
Videos for Connecticut
Wikis about Connecticut
Discussion Groups about Connecticut
Blogs about Connecticut
Images of Connecticut

Minor league baseball teams:. </gallery>. Ranked by per capita income:.
. The three largest Protestant denominations in Connecticut are: Baptist (5% of the total state population), Episcopalian (4%), Methodist (4%).
. There are also growing populations of other religions, making the state more diverse.
.

New Haven once had a significant Jewish population, but it has mostly fled elsewhere, although there is still a large concentration in the suburban towns west of New Haven. When creating references please refer to the Wikipedia Cite Sources guidelines. There is a significant Jewish population in the state, mostly concentrated in the "Gold Coast" towns between Greenwich and New Haven and in the Hartford suburb of West Hartford.
. The religious affiliations of the people of Connecticut are:.
. Females made up approximately 51.6% of the population, with 48.4% male. Related topics.

6.6% of its population were reported as under 5, 24.7% under 18, and 13.8% were 65 or older. Museums. The five largest ancestries in the state are: Italian (18.6%), Irish (16.6%), English (10.3%), German (9.9%), African American (9.1%). Related topics. Racially, Connecticut is:. and international transportation hub by working to expand O'Hare International Airport. Additionally, a new airport has been proposed for Peotone, Illinois, and the city is working toward expanding its ties with the Gary/Chicago International Airport in Gary, Indiana. 10.9% of the population is foreign-born. In the 21st century, Chicago is working toward maintaining its status as a U.S.

Its population has grown 6% from its 1990 levels. The land is to be converted into a lakeside park. As of the 2003, the population of Connecticut was 3,483,372. Daley in a nighttime coup, was a relatively small airstrip but unique because of its proximity to Chicago's downtown, and as an airstrip for private planes it was one of the busiest in the world. Connecticut's first recorded invention was a lapidary machine, by Abel Buell of Killingworth, in 1765. Meigs Field, which was closed by Mayor Richard M. Between the birth of the US patent system in 1790 and 1930, Connecticut had more patents issued per capita than any other state; in the 1800s, when the US as a whole was issued one patent per three thousand population, Connecticut inventors were issued one patent for every 700-1000 residents. In the 20th century, Chicago held on to its status as a transportation hub with the building of three airports: O'Hare International Airport, Midway Airport, and Meigs Field.

In the late 1700s, the Connecticut government engaged in financial incentives for building and operating textile mills. All of the Class I railroads in existence in the United States maintain (often multiple) terminals in and around Chicago, and the city is served by a large number of smaller railroads that both interconnect the larger railroads and connect to locations not served by the larger railroads. Holland led to submarine production by the Electric Boat Company in Groton beginning in 1924, which continues to this day. Chicago is still the railroad hub of the United States. Simon Lake produced submarines for the US Navy in Bridgeport, beginning in 1913, and the work done by John P. This network allowed Chicago to become the center of the meat packing industry. The first military submarine, the Turtle, was built in Connecticut in 1775 by David Bushnell; since then, Connecticut has remained a world leader in the manufacture of these specialized ships. By 1856, Chicago was the railroad hub of America and by the end of the decade more than 100 trains were coming and going each day.

The first recorded steam powered boat in America was built by South Windsor's John Fitch in 1786. In the 1850s the railroads started growing from Chicago faster than anywhere else in the world. Connecticut also became an innovative leader in the shipbuilding industry. Even today Chicago's importance in global distribution remains as it is the third largest inter-modal port in the world after Hong Kong and Singapore. When the safety bicycle was developed in the 1880s, he was in a perfect position to benefit from the subsequent craze. Chicago then became one of the largest grain and lumber ports in the world, with grain going to more established populations and lumber being sent to the forest-starved prairies where new settlers needed to build. He subsequently began the first bicycle manufacturing in America, Columbia Bicycles, and set about marketing the vehicle, setting up a system of distributorships with fixed prices, hiring doctors to tout cycling as healthy exercise, and founding cycling magazines. Louis, and south to New Orleans and the Gulf of Mexico.

Albert Pope of Hartford saw a bicycle in Philadelphia in 1876 and was immediately enthralled with the concept of an "ever-saddled horse that eats nothing and requires no care". The Illinois and Michigan Canal, completed in 1848, allowed for transport around the world with connecting waterways through Chicago all the way to New York and the Atlantic, west to St. Another area of industry where Connecticut excelled was in bicycle manufacturing, and its spin-off, the earliest automobile manufacturing. Much of this status stems from its geographic proximity during a time when the United States was growing quickly in population and area. Gilbert Company, manufacturers of Erector Sets as well as other educational toys such as chemistry sets, microscopes, toy trains, etc. Chicago can be considered one of the prime transportation hubs in America. Even the world of toys was dominated by the A. C. Related topics.

The name Bridgeport on heavy industrial machinery continues to be a guarantee of high quality around the world, for people who have no idea that it is a city in Connecticut. [2] (http://www.uic.edu/depts/mcam/aboutcom.html/). Fellows of Torrington designed the first flat turret lathe, and in 1896 built a gear shaper which permitted the manufacture of effective and reliable gear transmissions for the soon-to-come automobile industry. The University of Illinois at Chicago claims to be the largest medical school in the United States (1300 students, including those at campuses in Peoria, Rockford and Urbana-Champaign). Edwin R. It is also home to the sprawling Illinois Medical District on the Near West Side as well as the American Medical Association, the American Hospital Association, the American Dental Association, and the American College of Surgeons. Billings perfected the drop hammer for metal forging in the 1870s and designed the copper commutator central to the operation of electrical generators and motors. The city is first among the major dental and medical training centers in the United States.

Charles E. The United States has the largest health care system in the world, and Chicago is arguably the capital of that system. Edward P. Bullard designed the vertical boring mill in 1883. Related topics. Cushman, invented the self-centering Cushman Universal Chuck in 1862. Until about 1850, men outnumbered women and this male-dominated subculture encouraged gambling and drinking, as well as activities such as billiards and horse racing. Simon Fairman invented the lathe chuck in West Stafford in 1830, and his son-in-law, Austin F. While the complete truth of the story is sometimes doubted, it is important as an early Chicago legend and does reflect the early days of sports in the city. Early Chicago had only the most primitive of sports.

Lincoln company of Hartford. As soon as the fight began, police moved in and arrested every criminal and escorted them to the city borders. Pratt and Amos Whitney invented a thread milling machine in 1865; Whitney also perfected various measurement instruments and Pratt designed the original milling machine manufactured by the George S. During the city's boomtown days local authorities staged a dogfight, knowing that it would attract some of the more unsavory characters on the town's crime scene. Francis A. In the early history of the city, sports were at the heart of some founding legends. Christopher Spencer invented the automatic lathe turret for machining screws, as well as the variable cam cylinder used to control the turret. It is one of the few cities in the United States with two professional baseball teams (Cubs, White Sox) plus professional football (Bears), soccer (Fire), basketball (Bulls), and two professional hockey teams (the Blackhawks and the minor-league Wolves).

Another Colt engineer, William Mason, patented 125 inventions for manufacture of firearms, as well as steam pumps and power looms. Chicago is also identified with many sports teams. Machinist Elisha Root first designed machinery for the Collins Company of Collinsville which manufactured axes which became world-famous, then was hired by Colt in 1849 to modernize firearm production by designing precision drop hammers, boring machines, gauges, jigs, etc., and improving the milling machines designed by Francis A. Pratt for the George S. Lincoln company in Hartford; the resulting Lincoln Miller became world-famous, selling over 150,000 machines. Related topics. In 1818, Simeon North designed America's first milling machine. Moody, a 19th Century evangelist who held a Sunday School and founded a church there. Hardware and tools continue to be manufactured by Stanley Corporation in New Britain, despite having almost moving elsewhere for financial reasons. Connecticut was a major area for development and manufacture of machine tools. Chicago is home to the Moody Bible Institute, named after Dwight L.

Similarly, Connecticut industry became well known in allied fields. Historically, Chicago is remembered for machine politics ("Vote early and vote often" and "A city run of the Daleys, by the Daleys, for the Daleys" are two phrases associated with Chicago politics), meat packing (as mentioned in the nicknames section and made infamous by Upton Sinclair's The Jungle), and gangster violence during Prohibition (some key figures are linked to Chicago, such as Al Capone and John Dillinger). The American Clock and Watch Museum is located in Bristol, Connecticut. At the same time, Sandburg, who was a lifelong Socialist, published other less well-known poems criticising Chicago's disparities in wealth. Welch Company), the New England Clock Company, the Ansonia Clock Company, Gilbert Clocks, Ingraham Clocks, the New Haven Clock Company, Welch Clocks, Sessions Clocks, and the Waterbury Clock Company, which became Timex Corporation, and is the sole Connecticut survivor of this once flourishing field, now decimated by lower costs of production elsewhere, in the United States and overseas. These poems are representative of Chicago's spirit. N. Carl Sandburg, a Pulitzer Prize–winning poet and Abraham Lincoln biographer, gave the city one of its best-known nicknames, "City of Big Shoulders", in his Chicago Poems (1916).

Another area where precision manufacture led to industrial dominance for Connecticut was in the manufacture of clocks, watches, and other timepieces, by Eli Terry and his apprentice Seth Thomas, the Forestville Manufacturing Company (which became the E. Chicago also has a great literary tradition. Christopher Spencer designed the Spencer repeating rifle which played an important role for union troops at the Battle of Gettysburg. Many world-famous actors and comedians are from Chicago or have studied there, particularly at Northwestern University. Christian Sharps designed the Sharps breech-loading rifle which in 1854 began to be manufactured in Hartford by the Sharps Rifle Manufacturing Company. It is home to The Second City and ImprovOlympic, two of the largest comedy troupes in the world. Wesson designed the first repeating rifle in Norwich in the early 1850s, which went into production by the New Haven Arms Company (which later became the Winchester Repeating Arms Company), and, just across the border in Massachusetts, the Springfield Armory. Smith also patented a metallic rifle cartridge in 1854. Chicago is a well-known theater capital and is the mecca for improvizational comedy.

Horace Smith and Daniel B. In addition, Chicago schools have developed in various studies, such as the famed Chicago school of architecture and the Chicago schools of economic theory, literary criticism and urban sociology, the latter three founded at the University of Chicago. Root to modernize production, making Colt weapons the first in the world with truly interchangeable parts. Another local specialty is "cheese fries", French fries covered in cheese. Colt's Manufacturing Company hired Elisha K. The Italian Beef typically includes cheese, peppers, and onions. In 1836, Samuel Colt invented the revolver design which continues to be used to this day. Chicago has a homegrown riposte to the "po' boy" of New Orleans and the equivalent "hoagie" of Philadelphia in the Italian beef sandwich.

The Savage Revolving Fire Arm Company manufactured pistols between 1859 and 1866, and the Sage Ammunition Works manufactured ammunition between 1864 and 1867. In the field of popular cuisine, Chicago style Pizza provides the antithesis to New York styles and hot dogs, being synonymous with deep-dish and stuffed pizza in addition to being linked to a robustly complex Chicago style Hot Dog (often called "the garbage dog") that challenges the relative simplicity of a New York coney dog. After this period, firearm manufacturing declined in Middletown, but briefly revived during the Civil War. In the field of music, Chicago is well-known for its Chicago blues, but it is also the birthplace of the House style of music, whose history is related to the development and fostering of the techno electronic style of music in nearby Detroit. Johnson built a factory, also on the Pameacha River, which was to sell rifles to the government until 1825. For its youth as compared to Eastern cities, Chicago has made many significant pop-cultural contributions. D. Related topics.

Johnson and J. Additionally Chicago is considered to be the Prime Global Advertising Service Center by the GaWC. In 1812, John R. Chicago is considered to command the third-largest market in North America (after New York City and Los Angeles - although Mexico City is larger, its market does not hold such importance) and as such has many different forms of media and outlets to support its status. The factory later manufactured muskets and rifles until 1845, after which the United States government started government armories in Massachusetts and West Virginia partially modeled after Starr's. They inspired the creation of the City Colleges of Chicago. Starr initially manufactured swords, about 5,000 a year; including presentation swords for the state of Tennessee and War of 1812 heroes, colonel Richard M. Johnson, General Edmond P. Gaines, and General andrew Jackson. Stanley Brown in 1899.

Even more successful was Colonel Nathan Starr Jr., whose factory (built of stone quarried from the river) was about the same size as North's, and located across the river half a mile northeast. Community colleges were pioneered by locals William Rainey Harper and J. Also in 1810, Colonel Simeon North built a pistol factory in Middletown on the West River, now the Coginchaug River, also winning a contract from the secretary of war, which led to enlarging his factory to 8,500 square feet (790 m²); he built about 10,000 pistols a year, up until just before the [Civil War]], designing America's first milling machine. Columbia College, Roosevelt University and The School of the Art Institute are major schools geared towards urban studies, fine arts and performance arts. In 1810, Oliver Bidwell built the first pistol factory in the United States on the Pameacha River in Middletown, winning a contract with the United States war department for handmade pistols. Major research universities such as the Illinois Institute of Technology and the University of Illinois at Chicago call Chicago home. Middletown, Connecticut was the major supplier of pistols to the United States government during the War of 1812, with numerous gun manufacturers in the area. Loyola is one of the largest institutions of the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities.

Between 1800 and 1860, Connecticut manufacturers applied the system to the manufacture of economically priced high quality firearms, leading to Connecticut's nickname "the arsenal of democracy". Two of the most honored institutions of the Roman Catholic Church are DePaul University in Lincoln Park and Loyola University in Rogers Park and Edgewater. This development changed "made in the United States" from a phrase connoting shoddy workmanship and expensive maintenance, into a world standard for high quality, and the entire system became known as the American system of manufacturing. Chicago holds a distinguished place in the United States for higher education as the home of such schools as the University of Chicago in Hyde Park and Northwestern University in Evanston. The development by Eli Whitney of the system of precision manufacturing of interchangeable parts and the assembly line in the late 1700s, however made Connecticut into a major center of manufacturing. Main article: Colleges and universities of Chicago. While manual labor was valued, learning and study was also prized and many schools were founded, with Yale the most significant.
.

As in most of New England, the residents believed that industry, in all senses of the word, not only strengthened individual moral fiber, but also served to make the colony independent and free to pursue its own religious and philosophical beliefs. Related topics. Manufacturing was aided by a plenitude of resources, including water power, wood for fires and building material, and iron ore, while transportation benefited from several excellent natural harbors, and navigable rivers leading all the way to Massachusetts. Of the total population, 28.1% of those under the age of 18 and 15.5% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line. It rapidly developed trade and manufacturing as the farmers, and then the merchants and manufacturers themselves, became affluent enough to start buying things. Below the poverty line are 19.6% of the population and 16.6% of the families. Connecticut began, as most communities at the time, as a farming economy. The per capita income for the city is $20,175.

Its industrial outputs are transportation equipment (especially helicopters, aircraft parts, and nuclear submarines), heavy industrial machinery and electrical equipment, fabricated metal products, chemical and pharmaceutical products, and scientific instruments. Males have a median income of $35,907 versus $30,536 for females. The agricultural output for the state is nursery stock, eggs, dairy products, cattle, and tobacco. The median income for a household in the city is $38,625, and the median income for a family is $42,724. The recent establishment of two very large and lucrative Indian casinos in the southeastern region of the state has led to a large influx of money in that area, as well as statewide in general. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 91.1 males. Connecticut is an important center of the insurance and financial industries, largely in Hartford and in Fairfield county. For every 100 females there are 94.2 males.

Exacerbating this problem, the state has a high cost of living, due to a combination of expensive real estate, expensive heating for the winters, the need to import much food from warmer states, and the dependence on private automobiles for mobility. The median age is 32 years. As evident from the dichotomy in income figures described above, this problem has yet to be successfully solved. Of the city population, 26.2% are under the age of 18, 11.2% are from 18 to 24, 33.4% are from 25 to 44, 18.9% are from 45 to 64, and 10.3% are 65 years of age or older. As a result, the middle class largely fled the urban areas for the suburbs, taking stores and other tax-paying businesses with them, and leaving only the urban poor in the now impoverished Connecticut cities. The average household size is 2.67 and the average family size is 3.50. The state did not have an income tax until 1991, making it an attractive haven for high earners fleeing the heavy taxes of New York State, but putting an enormous burden on Connecticut property tax payers, particularly in the cities with their more extensive municipal services. Of all households, 32.6% are made up of individuals and 8.7% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older.

This is due to Fairfield County having become a bedroom community for higher paid New York City workers seeking a less urban lifestyle, as well as the spread of businesses outwards from New York City having reached into southwestern Connecticut. There are 1,061,928 households, of which 28.9% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 35.1% are married couples living together, 18.9% have a female householder with no husband present, and 40.4% are non-families. [2] (http://www.bea.doc.gov/bea/regional/statelocal.htm) There is, however, a great disparity in incomes through the state; although New Canaan has the highest per capita income in America, Bridgeport, Hartford, and New Haven are three of the ten cities with the lowest per capita incomes in America. It is also considered to be the second-largest Serbian city in the world after Belgrade (which has a population of two million). The per capita income for 2003 was $42,972, 2nd in the United States. Daley. Chicago has the largest ethnically Polish population outside of Polish capital of Warsaw, making it one of the most important Polonia centers. The total gross state product for 2003 was $172 billion. Many of Chicago's politicians have come from this massive Irish population, including the current mayor, Richard M.

See [1] (http://www.kurumi.com/roads/ct/index.html) for a very complete and in-depth discussion of Connecticut roadways, current, past, and future. The main ethnic groups in Chicago are Irish, German, Italian and Polish. Chicago has a very large Irish-American population on its South Side. Funds to relieve the situation, either by enhancing commuter rail, increasing highway capacity, or both, are lacking, and the problem is noted as one hindering further economic development for the state. Chicago's unique culture arises from it being a melting pot, with nearly even percentages of Whites and African-Americans and a sizeable Hispanic minority. As a result, commuter rail is also heavily crowded, along with parking facilities and traffic at the stations. Of the population, 26.02% are Hispanic or Latino of any race. At rush hours, multiple backups tens of miles long are common, and the daily radio broadcasts of where crashes have completely blocked traffic are a fact of life for commuters in the area. The racial makeup of the city is 41.97% White, 36.77% Black or African American, 0.36% Native American, 4.35% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 13.58% from other races, and 2.92% from two or more races.

I-95 from south of New Haven to the New York border is one of the most congested highways in the United States due to increasing population density, increasing business in the New York area, and a general increase in American driving, and the congestion spills over to clog the parallel Merritt Parkway. There are 1,152,868 housing units at an average density of 1,959.8/km² (5,075.8/mi²). Other major arteries in the state include State Routes 8 and 25 (http://www.nycroads.com/roads/CT-8/|) and US Route 7. The population density is 4,923.0/km² (12,750.3/mi²). A series of terrible crashes at these plazas eventually led to abandonment of the whole toll system in 1988. This encompasses about one-fifth of the entire population of the state of Illinois and 1% of the population of the United States. This road and I-95 were originally toll roads; they relied on a system of toll plazas at which all traffic would stop and pay an incremental fare, rather than the alternative system of providing drivers a ticket where they entered the highway and charging them when they exited. As of the census2 of 2000, there are 2,896,016 people, 1,061,928 households, and 632,909 families residing in the city of Chicago proper.

The other major interstate traffic arteries in Connecticut are the Merritt Parkway and Wilbur Cross Parkway, which together form Connecticut State Route 15, running from the Hutchinson River Parkway in New York State parallel to I-95 before turning north of New Haven and running parallel to I-91, finally becoming a surface road in Berlin, Connecticut. People living in the Chicago area are called "Chicagoans.". The Interstate highways in the state are I-95 (the Connecticut Turnpike) running southwest to northeast along the coast, I-84 running southwest to northeast in the center of the state, I-91 running north to south in the center of the state, and I-395 running north to south near the eastern border of the state. Main article: Demographics of Chicago. The glaciers carved valleys in Connecticut running north to south; as a result, many more roadways in the state run north to south than do east to west, mimicking the previous use of the many north-south rivers as transportation.
. In practice, most Connecticut residents find public transportation not fully adequate for all their needs and either own a private vehicle or have access to one. Related topics.

(In an episode of the American television show Miracles, the protagonist took a train from Boston directly to Hartford, causing Connecticut residents to joke that that would really have been a miracle.) Bus service is supplied by Connecticut Transit, owned by the Connecticut Department of Transportation. Today Chicago is considered to be a Prime Accountancy, Advertising and Legal Service Centers by the GaWC. There is railway service along the coastline from New York City to Boston, including commuter rail service between New Haven and New York and a new commuter service along the coastline north of New Haven, with spur service running northwards to cities such as Hartford. From this were established the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT), the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME), and the modern systems we use today for futures and commodity trading. Transportation in Connecticut is predominantly via highway. Later, people as far away as New York City began buying contracts by telegraph on the goods that would be stored in Chicago in the future. The eight regions of Connecticut are:. Grain was stored in Chicago, and people began buying contracts on it.

Fairfield County's "Gold Coast", for example, is often derided by residents of the rest of the state as being more similar to New York than to New England, and many of the residents go for years or even decades without ever traveling to other regions of the state, considering themselves more attached to New York City and its suburbs in eastern New York State. Massive amounts of goods passed through Chicago from places in the Mississippi Valley such as St. Louis, Missouri. Each region boasts varied qualities which distinguish it within the state, and at times there are minor cultural frictions between the regions and their major cultural centers as each competes for tourists, new residents, and internal state pride. A number of events led to this, along with Chicago's transportation systems and geographic proximity to the rest of the country. The state of Connecticut can be said to be sub-divided into eight general regions which generally correspond with the eight counties of the state, though there are differences in the boundaries. Modern-day futures and commodity trading markets were pioneered in Chicago.
. As the major meat companies grew in Chicago many, such as Armour, created global enterprises and communicated with divisions spread across the globe via telegraph.


See also: Geology of Connecticut. Today, we consider industries such as steel, oil, and banking to be the great global market segments, but in the 1860s Chicago's pork and beef industry represented the first global industry. Forests, rivers, lakes, waterfalls and a sandy shore add to the state's beauty. The efficiency of Chicago's meat packing industry and its disassembly plants inspired others such as Henry Ford when he developed Model-T assembly lines. Near the green may stand a small white church, a town meeting hall, a tavern and several colonial houses. More operating months meant hundreds of thousands of new man-hours in which people could work. Many towns center around a small park, known as a "green", e.g. New Haven Green. Before this time, meat production and distribution facilities, otherwise known as disassembly plants, had to shut down in the hot summer months.

Connecticut's rural areas and small towns in the northeast and northwest corners of the state contrast sharply with its industrial cities, located along the coastal highways from the New York border to New Haven, then northwards to Hartford, as well as further up the coast near New London. During the 1860s two factors helped this development: First, the Civil War increased the demand for food products, and Chicago's transportation network ensured that goods could be delivered quickly to soldiers all over the northern United States; second, meat packing plants began to utilize ice. The state, although small, has regional variations in its landscape and culture from the wealthy estates of Fairfield County's "Gold Coast" to the rolling mountains and farms of the Litchfield Hills and the casinos of Southeastern Connecticut. By 1862 Chicago had displaced Cincinnati, Ohio, as "Porkopolis". See: List of Connecticut rivers. Swift and Philip Armour helped the area to become the largest producer of meat products in the world at the time. The Connecticut River cuts through the center of the state, flowing into Long Island Sound, Connecticut's outlet to the Atlantic Ocean. Great entrepreneurs such as Gustavus F.

There is an ongoing civic pride and economic competition between Hartford and New Haven, which stems back to the days when the two cities shared the state's capital, and even back to when New Haven and Hartford were two separate colonies. In the 1850s and 1860s Chicago's pork and beef industry exploded. In all, there are a total of 169 incorporated towns in Connecticut. Carl Sandburg described Chicago as a "stacker of wheat", and some would argue that the grain elevators were Chicago's first skyscrapers. The state capital is Hartford, and the other major cities include New Haven, New London, Norwich, Stamford, Waterbury, Torrington and Bridgeport. In 1848 Chicago built its first grain elevator, and in 1858 there were twelve grain elevators dotting the skyline. Connecticut is bordered on the south by Long Island Sound, on the west by New York State, on the north by Massachusetts, and on the east by Rhode Island. In the 1840s Chicago became the largest grain port in the world, shipping food from the Mississippi Valley region which was also growing into the largest food-producing region in the world.

Connecticut currently has five representatives in the House. Additionally, the building of the Illinois and Michigan Canal helped move goods south down the Mississippi River. Lieberman (Democrat). With that, many railroads started to be built from Chicago to other parts of the country, further aiding the growth of the city. Dodd (Democrat) and Joseph I. Situated on the Great Lakes and with so many new people settling the area, Chicago became an ideal location for shipping and receiving goods. senators are Christopher J. Before it was incorporated as a town in 1833 the primary industry was the fur trade. Chicago's early explosive growth led many land speculators and enterprising individuals to the area.

Jodi Rell (Republican) and the two U.S. In fact Chicago's gross metropolitan product would rank 18th in the world if it were a nation-state at approximately 380 billion dollars. The current governor of Connecticut is M. Today Chicago remains the United States' second financial center with the nation's second largest central business district and third largest gross metropolitan product. One, Naugatuck, is a merged town-borough. Chicago has been a center for commerce in the United States for most of its modern history. There are also 9 incorporated boroughs, eight of which provide additional services to a section of town. Main article: Economy of Chicago.

The sole exception is the City of Groton, which is a subsection of the Town of Groton. The coldest temperature ever recorded officially in Chicago is -27°F (-33°C) on January 11, 1982, with unofficial reports of -30°F.
. Most cities are coterminal with their namesake towns and have a merged city-town government. The highest official temperature ever recorded is 105°F (42°C) on July 17, 1995 during the Chicago Heat Wave. There are 169 incorporated cities and towns across the state. The highest temperature ever recorded in Chicago is an unofficial 109°F (44°C) on July 24, 1935. The state judicial system and the associated state marshal system, however, are still divided by county, and the eight counties are still widely used for purely geographical purposes, e.g. in weather reports. For example, in Chicago it has snowed in September (1942), been 90°F (33°C) in March (1982), and had a day where the high and low temperatures differed by more than 65°F (31°C) in one day (February 8, 1900).

Unlike most other states, Connecticut does not have county governments or county seats; rather, there is only the state government and the governments of the local municipalities. Chicago has four clearly defined seasons, although in certain years some seasons may overextend their welcome and linger into months they do not traditionally occupy. Prior to that, New Haven and Hartford alternated as capital. Sudden changes of weather, large daily temperature ranges, and unpredictable precipitation patterns are all staples of Chicago weather. Hartford has been the sole capital of Connecticut since 1875. Chicago has a climate typical of the Midwest. The traditional abbreviation of the state's name is "Conn.". Main article: Climate of Chicago.

Its first constitution, the "Fundamental Orders", was adopted on January 14, 1639, while its current constitution, the fourth for Connecticut, was adopted in 1965.
. The first Europeans to settle permanently in Connecticut were English Puritans from Massachusetts in 1633. Related topics. Connecticut is one of the original 13 states. A list of the color aerial views of the urban area of Chicago. The name "Connecticut" comes from an Algonquin Indian word meaning "on the long tidal river". Chicago is also recognized around the world for its magnificent skyline, and is globally ranked fourth based on number of buildings and floors.[1] (http://www.emporis.com/en/bu/sk/st/sr/).

Main article: History of Connecticut. The Chicago Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) consists of Cook County and five surrounding Illinois counties as well as the Chicago–Gary–Kenosha Consolidated Statistical Area (CSA), which is made up of nine counties, two of them in northwestern Indiana and one in southeastern Wisconsin. USS Connecticut was named in honor of this state. Connecting the Chicago River with the Des Plaines is the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal. Connecticut was one of the thirteen colonies that revolted against British rule in the American Revolution. The city lies beside Lake Michigan and two rivers, the Chicago in Downtown Chicago and the Calumet in the industrial Far South Side, entirely or partially flow through Chicago. Connecticut is a state of the United States, part of the New England region, as well as the southernmost state in New England and one of the wealthiest states in the country. The city has been built on relatively flat land; the average height of land is 579 feet (176 metres) above sea level.

New Britain Rock Cats. The total area is 2.94% water. Norwich Navigators. Census Bureau, Chicago has a total area of 606.1 km² (234.0 mi²), of which 588.3 km² (227.1 mi²) is land and 17.8 km² (6.9 mi²) is water. Bridgeport Bluefish. According to the U.S. Their departure to North Carolina caused great controversy and resentment. When the city we know today was initially founded in the 1830s the land was swampy and most of the early building began around the mouth of the Chicago River.

Until 1997, the National Hockey League had a franchise in Hartford, the Hartford Whalers. Chicago is located in northeastern Illinois at the southwestern tip of Lake Michigan. Hartford Wolf Pack of the American Hockey League. Main article: Geography of Chicago. Connecticut Sun of the Women's National Basketball Association.
. Old Lyme, Connecticut $41,386. Related topics.

Madison Center, Connecticut $42,046. The city is the county seat of Cook County. Cornwall, Connecticut $42,484. The council takes official action through the passage of ordinances and resolutions. Bridgewater, Connecticut $42,505. Government priorities and activities are established in a budget ordinance usually adopted each November. Essex, Connecticut $42,806. The council enacts local ordinances and approves the city budget.

Lyme, Connecticut $43,347. The City Council is the legislative branch and is made up of 50 aldermen, one elected from each ward in the city. Fairfield, Connecticut $43,670. In addition to the mayor, Chicago's two other citywide elected officials are the clerk and the treasurer. Sharon, Connecticut $45,418. Daley. Woodbridge, Connecticut $49,049. The current mayor is Richard M.

Redding, Connecticut $50,687. The mayor appoints commissioners and other officials who oversee the various departments. Groton Long Point, Connecticut $51,066. The mayor is the chief executive, elected by general election for a term of four years. Avon, Connecticut $51,706. The government of the City of Chicago is divided into executive and legislative branches. Ridgefield, Connecticut $51,795. Main article: Law and government of Chicago.

Essex Village, Connecticut $51,928. Related topics. Easton, Connecticut $53,885. Today, the Chinatown near 35th and Cermak is a tourist draw, and Devon avenue is a lively Indian neighborhood based on Indians and Pakistanis working as professionals in Chicago. Georgetown, Connecticut $55,029. Prior to World War I and the dispersal and persecution of German-Americans consequent on war hysteria, Lincoln Avenue was a major German-speaking area. Roxbury, Connecticut $56,769. Lively ethnic neighborhoods have long been a Chicago feature.

Fenwick, Connecticut $60,625. In a reversal of the pattern of the 1960s which is an emulation of modern Paris, the very wealthy once again dominate the city center, with new residential housing in the Loop (even the financial district), River North (formerly the Near North Side) and south of the Loop, while the poor have been migrating to the older ring of suburbs of Chicago. Wilton, Connecticut $65,806. At the same time, pathologies remain including homelessness and crime. Deep River Center, Connecticut $72,261. Chicago's population declines and lack of new construction, characteristic of the town during the 1960s and 1970s, have been reversed by a considerable amount of mostly private investment which make its center today quite lively, with a number of museums, a first rate symphony and opera company, and many live theaters. Westport, Connecticut $73,664. In August 1968, the Democratic National Convention in Chicago was disrupted, at first by peaceful, if noisy, protests and then by what an ex-governor of Illinois characterized as a "police riot" when overworked Chicago police charged demonstrators on Michigan avenue.

Greenwich, Connecticut $74,346. On December 2, 1942, the world's first controlled nuclear reaction was conducted at the University of Chicago as part of the top-secret Manhattan Project. Weston, Connecticut $74,817. Instead, the River flowed into the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, and eventually into the Mississippi River. Darien, Connecticut $77,519. The Chicago River's direction of flow was reversed in 1900 to prevent sewage from running into Lake Michigan, the city's water source. New Canaan, Connecticut $82,049. Today, Chicago remains a town of still-strong unions as a result of a tradition of labor militancy.

Non-Religious – 6%. The 1880s and 1890s were a time when many Chicagoans made their fortune, but the ordinary person's lot was fairly grim, with poor housing, disease and long hours the norm. Two noted events of this period were the Haymarket Riot, which started in a way that is still under debate and the Pullman Strike of 1894, started when railcar magnate George Pullman turned workers out of their company housing when they were no longer needed. Other Religions – 3%. Chicago's resurgence onto the world scene was capped by the World Columbian Exposition (1893 Chicago World's Fair). Other Christian – 1%. The first skyscraper was constructed in 1885 using novel steel-skeleton construction. Protestant – 34%. In the following years, Chicago rebuilt itself and its architecture became influential throughout the world.

Roman Catholic – 50%. In 1871, most of the city burned in the Great Chicago Fire. 2.2% Mixed race. The 1860 Republican National Convention in Chicago nominated home-state candidate Abraham Lincoln. 0.3% American Indian. In 1855, the level of the city was raised four to seven feet, with individual buildings jacked up and fill brought in to raise streets above the swamp. 2.4% Asian. Chicago also became home to nationwide retailers such as Montgomery Ward and Sears, Roebuck and Company that offered catalog shopping using these connections.

9.1% Black. Chicago would go on to become the transportation hub of the United States with its road, rail, and water (and later air) connections. 9.4% Hispanic. The first rail line to Chicago, the Galena & Chicago Union Railroad, was also completed in 1848. 77.5% White non-Hispanic. The opening of the Illinois and Michigan Canal in 1848 allowed shipping from the Great Lakes through Chicago to the Mississippi River and so to the Gulf of Mexico. Southeastern Connecticut. On March 4, 1837, Chicago was granted a city charter by the state.

The Quiet Corner. On August 12, 1833, the Town of Chicago was incorporated with a population of 350. Lower Connecticut River Valley. It was destroyed in the Fort Dearborn Massacre during the War of 1812, but was rebuilt in 1816 and remained in use until 1837. Greater Hartford. In 1803, Fort Dearborn was built. Greater New Haven. In 1795, the Chicago area was ceded by the Native Americans in the Treaty of Greenville to the United States for use as a military post.

Naugatuck River Valley. In the 1770s the first non-native settler, Jean Baptiste Point du Sable, a Haitian of African descent, settled on the banks of the Chicago River. Litchfield Hills. The area now known as Chicago was primarily inhabited by Potawatomis. Gold Coast. Main article: History of Chicago. Its unique cuisine, skyscrapers and sports teams are also the most recognized symbols of the city.

Chicago is known for its cultural and ethnic diversity and frontier and political history. With several colloquial nicknames, Chicago is ranked by the Globalization and World Cities Study Group and Network as one of the ten alpha world cities. A former frontier town in existence for over 175 years, Chicago is located in the midwest state of Illinois along the western shores of Lake Michigan. Chicago and Chicagoland, when combined with the greater Milwaukee region, is often considered a megacity or megalopolis with a population that nears approximately 12 million people.

The city itself covers 606.1 km² (234.0 mi²) but when combined with its suburbs and eight collar counties, forming the greater metropolitan area known as Chicagoland, it encompasses more than 5,000 mi² with a population that nears approximately 10 million people. Classified as a world class city, it is the fourth largest in North America and the seventh largest in Western Hemisphere. Chicago, Illinois — officially the City of Chicago and colloquially known as Chicago, the Second City and the Windy City — is the third largest city of the United States after New York City and Los Angeles and is the largest inland city of the nation. According to the 2000 census, it has a population of 2,896,016 people.
.

Miller ISBN 0684801949. City of the Century: The Epic of Chicago and the Making of America by Donald L. The Encyclopedia of Chicago (online version) (http://www.encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org/). The Encyclopedia of Chicago ISBN 0226310159.

City of Chicago Homepage (http://www.cityofchicago.org/). Travel guide to Chicago, Illinois from Wikitravel. Photos of Chicago - Terra Galleria (http://www.terragalleria.com/america/mid-west/illinois/). Spertus Institute - Museum dedicated solely to Judaica.

The Pacific Northwest–themed Oceanarium features dolphins, whales, and other animals from the region, as well as a panoramic view of Lake Michigan. Located on the Museum Campus, the Shedd Aquarium is home to a large collection of marine life from throughout the world. Lake Shore Dr., +1 312-939-2438. Shedd Aquarium, 1200 S.

Museum of Science and Industry. Museum of Holography. Oriental Institute, part of the University of Chicago, one of the best collections of ancient Egyptian and Near Eastern archeology in the world. $10 ($6 student, free Tu after 5PM).

Art of all types from around the world made since 1945. Tu 10AM-8PM, W-Su 10AM-5PM. Chicago Ave., +1 312-280-2660. Museum of Contemporary Art, 220 E.

$12 ($7 children, seniors and students; Monday and Tuesday are free seasonally). Highlights include the largest Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton in the world as well as a great, kids-friendly Egyptian exhibit. Chicago's natural history museum. Every day 9AM-5PM.

Lake Shore Dr., +1 312-922-9410. Field Museum of Natural History, 1400 S. The ceiling of Preston Bradley Hall includes a 38-foot Tiffany glass dome. Built in 1897 as Chicago's first public library, the building now houses the city's Visitor Information Center, galleries, and exhibit halls.

Except holidays, M-Th 10AM-7PM, F 10AM-6PM, Sa 10AM-5PM, Su 11AM-5PM. Washington St. Chicago Cultural Center (Home Page (http://www.ci.chi.il.us/Tourism/CultureCenterTour/)), 78 E. Famous pieces include American Gothic by Grant Wood, and A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte by Georges Seurat.

Michigan Ave. One of the premier museums in the United States. Art Institute of Chicago, 111 S. Public Transit Trip Planner (http://tripsweb.rtachicago.com/). Chicago Pedway.

Chicago Tunnel Company. Chicago Trolley Company. Route 66. Chicago rail stations.

Chicago Regional Port District. Multilevel streets in Chicago. Streets and highways of Chicago. Mass transit in Chicago.

Airports of Chicago. Chicagoland hospitals. U.S. cities with teams from four major sports. Chicago Wolves.

Chicago Bruisers. Chicago Enforcers. Chicago Rush. Chicago Blitz.

Chicago Motor Speedway. Arlington Park. List of non-fiction about Chicago. List of fiction set in Chicago.

Area code 773. Area code 312. Area codes

    . Radio stations.

    Newspapers. Broadcast television stations. ChicagoIrish.org (http://www.chicagoirish.org). Chicago Metropolitan Population.

    Maps of Chicago. Major companies in Chicagoland. Chicago GIS Maps (http://maps.cityofchicago.org/website/public/intro.htm). The Tallest Buildings.

    Chicago landmarks. Chicago community areas. Chicago neighborhoods. Chicago parks.

    Chicagoland. Satellite image from Google Maps (http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=41.840675,-87.679365&spn=0.11,0.18&t=k). Aerial image or topographic map from TerraServer-USA (http://terraserver-usa.com/image.aspx?s=14&lon=-87.679365&lat=41.840675&w=2). Topographic map from TopoZone  (http://topozone.com/map.asp?lat=41.840675&lon=-87.679365&s=200&size=m&layer=DRG100&datum=nad83).

    Street map from MapQuest  (http://mapquest.com/maps/map.adp?latlongtype=decimal&latitude=41.840675&longitude=-87.679365&zoom=6) or Google Maps (http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=41.840675,-87.679365&spn=0.11,0.18). Maps and aerial photos (http://kvaleberg.com/extensions/mapsources/index.php?params=41.840675_N_-87.679365_E_type:city_region:US)

      . Municipal Code of Chicago (http://library7.municode.com/gateway.dll/IL/illinois/7539?f=templates&fn=default.htm&npusername=13322&nppassword=MCC&npac_credentialspresent=true&vid=default). Municipal Flag of Chicago.

      Sister cities of Chicago. Chicago aldermen. Mayors of Chicago. Chicago Fire Department.

      Chicago Police Department. City Departments. Chicago City Council. Chicago City Hall.

      Notable citizens of Chicago.