New London County, Connecticut

New London County
County of Connecticut
Former New London County Courthouse
Location within the U.S. state of Connecticut
Connecticut's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 41°28′N72°06′W / 41.47°N 72.1°W / 41.47; -72.1
Country	United States
State	Connecticut
Founded	1646 by John Winthrop, Jr.
Named for	London, England
Seat	none (since 1960) New London, Connecticut (before 1960)
Largest city	Norwich
Area
• Total	772 sq mi (2,000 km2)
• Land	665 sq mi (1,720 km2)
• Water	107 sq mi (280 km2)  13.8%
Population  (2020)
• Total	268,555
• Density	403.8/sq mi (155.9/km2)
Time zone	UTC−5 (Eastern)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district	2nd

Interactive map of New London County, Connecticut

New London County is a county in the southeastern corner of Connecticut and comprises the Norwich-New London, Connecticut Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the Hartford-East Hartford, Connecticut Combined Statistical Area. There is no county government and no county seat, as is the case with all eight of Connecticut's counties; towns are responsible for all local government activities, including fire and rescue, snow removal, and schools.

New London County contains reservations of four of the five state-recognized Indian tribes, although the Paugassett were historically located farther west. The population was 268,555 as of the 2020 census. ^[1]

On June 6, 2022, the U.S. Census Bureau formally recognized Connecticut's nine councils of governments as county equivalents instead of the state's eight counties. Connecticut's county governments were disbanded in 1960, and the councils of governments took over some of the local governmental functions. Connecticut's eight historical counties continue to exist in name only, and are no longer considered for statistical purposes. ^[2]

History

Southeastern New England was dominated by the Pequot people at the time of English colonization. They spoke the Mohegan-Pequot language and were one of the Algonquian-speaking tribes in the coastal areas. After years of conflict, the Colonists and their Indian allies defeated the Pequots in the Pequot War of 1637, ending their dominance. Two descendant Pequot tribes are recognized by the state today, as are three other tribes.

New London County was one of four original counties in Connecticut that were established on May 10, 1666, by an act of the Connecticut General Court, which states:

This Court orders that from the Paukatuck River w^th

Norridge to y^e west bounds of Homonoscet Plantation ^[a] shalbe

for future one County, w^ch County is called the County of

N: London. And it is ordered that the County Court shalbe

held at N. London the first Wednesday in June and the third

Thursday in September yearly. ^[3]

New London County in 1666 consisted of the towns of Stonington, Norwich, New London, and Saybrook. The "Homonoscet Plantation" was settled in March 1663, at first as Kenilworth, but was incorporated as the town of Killingworth in 1667. ^[4] Several new towns were incorporated and added to New London over the next few decades: Preston in 1687, Colchester in 1699, and Lebanon in 1700. The settlements along the Quinebaug Valley were placed in New London County in 1697, and incorporated as Plainfield in 1699. By 1717, more towns were established in northeastern Connecticut and added to New London County between the Quinebaug Valley and the Rhode Island border.

Windham County was constituted from Hartford and New London counties on May 12, 1726, consisting of towns in northeastern Connecticut. New London County lost the towns of Voluntown, Pomfret, Killingly, Canterbury, Plainfield, and Lebanon to the newly formed county. In 1785, Middlesex County was constituted, consisting of towns along the lower Connecticut River Valley, taking away the towns of Killingworth and Saybrook from New London County. Several additional boundary adjustments took place in the 19th century: the establishment of the town of Marlborough in 1803, the transfer of the town of Lebanon from Windham County in 1824, and the transfer of the town of Voluntown from Windham County in 1881. ^[5]

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 772 square miles (2,000 km²), of which 665 square miles (1,720 km²) is land and 107 square miles (280 km²) (13.8%) is water. ^[6]

The terrain of the county is mostly level, becoming more elevated only in its northern extreme. The highest point in the county is Gates Hill in the Town of Lebanon at approximately 660 feet (200 m) above sea level, and the lowest point is sea level.

Adjacent counties

• Windham County (north)
• Kent County, Rhode Island (northeast)
• Washington County, Rhode Island (east)
• Middlesex County (west)
• Tolland County (northwest)
• Hartford County (northwest)
• Suffolk County, New York (south)

Government and municipal services

As of 1960, counties in Connecticut do not have any associated county government structure. All municipal services are provided by the towns. Regional councils of governments were established throughout the state in 1989 in order to address regional issues concerning infrastructure, land use, and economic development. Most of the towns of New London County are part of the Southeastern Connecticut Council of Governments, the exceptions being the towns of Lyme, Old Lyme, and Lebanon. Lyme and Old Lyme are part of the Connecticut River Estuary Regional Planning Agency, while Lebanon is part of the Windham Regional Council of Governments.

Judicial

The geographic area of the county is coterminous with the New London judicial district, with the superior courts located in the cities of New London and Norwich.

Law enforcement

Law enforcement within the geographic area of the county is provided by the respective town police departments. Prior to 2000, a County Sheriff's Department existed for the purpose of executing judicial warrants, prisoner transport, and court security. These responsibilities have now been taken over by the Connecticut State Marshal System.

Fire protection

Fire protection in the county is provided by the towns. Several towns also have fire districts that provide services to a section of the town.

Water service

Water service to 12 of the 21 towns of New London County is provided by a regional non-profit public corporation known as the Southeastern Water Authority. The Southeastern Water Authority supplies water to participating towns within New London County and is one of only two such county-wide public water service providers in the state. Seven towns receive water service from one or more private corporations. The city of Norwich and most of the town of Groton provide for their own water service.

Garbage disposal

Several towns in New London County have organized the Southeastern Connecticut Regional Resources Recovery Authority. The participating towns are East Lyme, Griswold, Groton, Ledyard, Montville, New London, North Stonington, Norwich, Preston, Sprague, Stonington, and Waterford.

Education

Education in the county area is usually provided by the individual town governments. The less populated towns of Lyme and Old Lyme have joined to form a single, regional school district (Region 18).

School districts include: ^[7]

K-12:

• Colchester Public Schools
• East Lyme School District
• Griswold School District
• Groton School District
• Lebanon School District
• Ledyard School District
• Montville Public Schools
• New London School District
• North Stonington School District
• Norwich School District
• Regional School District 18
• Stonington School District
• Waterford School District

Elementary only:

• Bozrah School District
• Franklin School District
• Lisbon School District
• Preston School District
• Salem School District
• Sprague School District
• Voluntown School District

There is also a privately endowed publicly funded school, Norwich Free Academy.

Politics

Since 1952, New London County has voted for the presidential candidate that won Connecticut. In the last two presidential elections, Democratic strength was predominantly seen in the cities of New London and Norwich, as well as much of the county's southern and coastal areas. Conversely, Republican strength in the same elections was seen in the northern areas of the county. ^{[8] [9] [10]}

United States presidential election results for New London County, Connecticut ^[11]

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party(ies)
	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2024	58,858	42.81%	76,190	55.41%	2,452	1.78%
2020	57,110	40.91%	79,459	56.92%	3,035	2.17%
2016	54,058	43.76%	62,278	50.42%	7,192	5.82%
2012	46,119	40.07%	67,144	58.33%	1,839	1.60%
2008	48,491	38.83%	74,776	59.88%	1,607	1.29%
2004	49,931	42.19%	66,062	55.81%	2,367	2.00%
2000	41,168	37.72%	60,449	55.38%	7,530	6.90%
1996	33,039	32.05%	54,377	52.74%	15,679	15.21%
1992	34,567	29.35%	49,808	42.29%	33,392	28.35%
1988	52,681	51.22%	48,882	47.53%	1,288	1.25%
1984	63,121	61.59%	38,857	37.91%	509	0.50%
1980	47,217	47.96%	36,628	37.21%	14,603	14.83%
1976	47,231	50.40%	45,908	48.98%	581	0.62%
1972	58,516	63.40%	32,935	35.68%	850	0.92%
1968	37,116	44.41%	41,507	49.66%	4,951	5.92%
1964	24,391	30.88%	54,551	69.06%	49	0.06%
1960	38,070	48.38%	40,625	51.62%	1	0.00%
1956	43,453	61.40%	27,317	38.60%	0	0.00%
1952	38,148	54.76%	31,374	45.03%	148	0.21%
1948	27,416	47.42%	29,425	50.90%	973	1.68%
1944	24,153	44.94%	29,304	54.53%	285	0.53%
1940	23,389	45.18%	28,286	54.63%	98	0.19%
1936	21,367	44.79%	24,999	52.41%	1,337	2.80%
1932	19,721	49.11%	19,576	48.75%	858	2.14%
1928	21,378	56.30%	16,299	42.93%	292	0.77%
1924	18,205	62.34%	8,615	29.50%	2,381	8.15%
1920	17,422	63.31%	9,209	33.46%	889	3.23%
1916	8,283	48.51%	8,322	48.74%	469	2.75%
1912	5,543	35.13%	6,942	44.00%	3,292	20.87%
1908	9,941	58.70%	6,549	38.67%	446	2.63%
1904	10,385	58.23%	7,093	39.77%	357	2.00%
1900	9,582	57.39%	6,824	40.87%	290	1.74%
1896	8,395	66.88%	3,352	26.70%	806	6.42%
1892	6,186	49.32%	5,902	47.05%	455	3.63%
1888	6,080	49.21%	5,790	46.87%	484	3.92%
1884	5,442	46.05%	5,912	50.03%	464	3.93%

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1790	32,918		—
1800	34,888		6.0%
1810	34,707		−0.5%
1820	35,943		3.6%
1830	42,201		17.4%
1840	44,463		5.4%
1850	51,821		16.5%
1860	61,731		19.1%
1870	66,570		7.8%
1880	73,152		9.9%
1890	76,634		4.8%
1900	82,758		8.0%
1910	91,253		10.3%
1920	104,611		14.6%
1930	118,966		13.7%
1940	125,224		5.3%
1950	144,821		15.6%
1960	185,745		28.3%
1970	230,654		24.2%
1980	238,409		3.4%
1990	254,957		6.9%
2000	259,088		1.6%
2010	274,055		5.8%
2020	268,555		−2.0%
U.S. Decennial Census [12] 1790-1960 [13] 1900-1990 [14] 1990-2000 [15] 2010-2018 [16]

2000 census

As of the census ^[17] of 2000, there were 259,088 people, 99,835 households, and 67,188 families residing in the county. The population density was 389 people per square mile (150 people/km²). There were 110,674 housing units at an average density of 166 per square mile (64/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 87.00% White, 5.29% Black or African American, 0.96% Native American, 1.96% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 2.05% from other races, and 2.68% from two or more races. 5.11% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 13.8% were of Irish, 12.7% Italian, 10.8% English, 7.9% German, 7.1% Polish and 6.4% French ancestry, 90.1% spoke English, 4.5% Spanish and 1.1% French as their first language.

There were 99,835 households, out of which 32.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.50% were married couples living together, 11.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.70% were non-families. 26.40% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 3.00.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.40% under the age of 18, 8.60% from 18 to 24, 31.20% from 25 to 44, 22.80% from 45 to 64, and 13.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 97.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.50 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $50,646, and the median income for a family was $59,857. Males had a median income of $41,292 versus $30,525 for females. The per capita income for the county was $24,678. About 4.50% of families and 6.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.80% of those under age 18 and 6.60% of those age 65 or over.

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 274,055 people, 107,057 households, and 69,862 families residing in the county. ^[18] The population density was 412.2 inhabitants per square mile (159.2/km²). There were 120,994 housing units at an average density of 182.0 per square mile (70.3/km²). ^[19] The racial makeup of the county was 82.2% white, 5.8% black or African American, 4.2% Asian, 0.9% American Indian, 0.1% Pacific islander, 3.2% from other races, and 3.7% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 8.5% of the population. ^[18] In terms of ancestry, 18.9% were Irish, 15.2% were Italian, 14.8% were English, 11.6% were German, 9.6% were Polish, and 3.7% were American. ^[20]

Of the 107,057 households, 31.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.7% were married couples living together, 11.8% had a female householder with no husband present, 34.7% were non-families, and 27.6% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 2.98. The median age was 40.4 years. ^[18]

The median income for a household in the county was $65,419 and the median income for a family was $80,425. Males had a median income of $54,352 versus $41,721 for females. The per capita income for the county was $32,888. About 5.0% of families and 7.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.7% of those under age 18 and 5.6% of those age 65 or over. ^[21]

Demographic breakdown by town

Income

See also: List of Connecticut locations by per capita income

Data is from the 2010 United States Census and the 2006-2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. ^{[22] [23]}

Rank	Town		Per capita income	Median household income	Median family income	Population	Number of households
1	Lyme	Town	$64,506	$88,500	$98,500	2,406	1,033
2	Stonington	Borough	$64,224	$74,583	$96,667	929	531
3	Old Lyme	Town	$52,037	$92,024	$107,174	7,603	3,172
4	Stonington	Town	$42,184	$72,445	$86,029	18,545	8,115
5	Salem	Town	$41,414	$95,000	$106,875	4,151	1,525
6	North Stonington	Town	$39,588	$88,869	$96,125	5,297	2,052
7	Bozrah	Town	$38,339	$75,000	$99,625	2,627	1,007
8	Waterford	Town	$37,690	$69,810	$91,893	19,517	8,005
9	Ledyard	Town	$37,663	$85,321	$97,152	15,051	5,634
10	East Lyme	Town	$37,019	$79,815	$102,864	19,159	7,192
11	Colchester	Town	$35,479	$92,431	$101,860	16,068	5,915
12	Lebanon	Town	$34,608	$72,431	$80,566	7,308	2,644
13	Lisbon	Town	$33,685	$77,872	$86,469	4,338	1,659
14	Preston	Town	$32,956	$77,377	$86,435	4,726	1,869
15	Voluntown	Town	$32,760	$73,980	$76,197	2,603	1,002
16	Franklin	Town	$31,518	$74,226	$87,237	1,922	729
17	Sprague	Town	$31,226	$68,241	$78,438	2,984	1,135
18	Groton	Town	$31,110	$56,904	$67,465	40,115	15,809
19	Griswold	Town	$29,421	$59,295	$75,870	11,951	4,646
20	Groton	City	$28,872	$49,464	$52,366	10,389	4,182
21	Montville	Town	$28,492	$65,349	$80,156	19,571	6,942
22	Norwich	City	$26,702	$52,186	$62,616	40,493	16,599
23	Jewett City	Borough	$23,876	$39,334	$55,781	3,487	1,466
24	New London	City	$21,110	$43,551	$49,811	27,620	10,373

Race

Data is from the 2007-2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, ACS Demographic and Housing Estimates, "Race alone or in combination with one or more other races." ^[24]

Rank	Town		Population	White	Black	Asian	American Indian	Other	Hispanic
1	Groton	Town	40,190	83.9%	9.1%	6.1%	2.4%	4.8%	9.4%
2	Norwich	City	40,085	79.4%	14.5%	8.3%	2.2%	5.6%	10.0%
3	New London	City	27,550	64.5%	20.4%	5.0%	2.5%	13.5%	27.7%
4	Montville	Town	19,505	82.8%	6.2%	7.1%	4.0%	3.8%	6.8%
5	Waterford	Town	19,451	92.9%	3.7%	3.5%	0.4%	1.7%	4.1%
6	East Lyme	Town	19,080	85.9%	5.8%	5.5%	1.1%	4.1%	6.7%
7	Stonington	Town	18,482	96.0%	2.2%	2.2%	0.7%	1.3%	2.7%
8	Colchester	Town	15,929	97.3%	3.3%	0.6%	0.8%	0.3%	3.8%
9	Ledyard	Town	15,016	91.7%	2.3%	5.2%	4.4%	0.9%	4.0%
10	Griswold	Town	11,837	94.6%	2.3%	3.3%	0.7%	0.9%	5.2%
11	Groton	City	10,305	78.8%	14.9%	6.3%	2.5%	5.2%	11.0%
12	Old Lyme	Town	7,583	99.1%	0.5%	0.8%	1.5%	0.3%	1.5%
13	Lebanon	Town	7,268	98.5%	1.1%	2.3%	2.1%	0.6%	3.9%
14	North Stonington	Town	5,272	96.6%	1.9%	1.1%	0.9%	0.5%	3.5%
15	Preston	Town	4,729	89.8%	1.6%	8.5%	3.3%	1.0%	2.5%
16	Lisbon	Town	4,322	96.8%	2.3%	1.9%	3.6%	0.0%	0.2%
17	Salem	Town	4,118	94.3%	1.0%	6.7%	1.8%	0.5%	4.8%
18	Jewett City	Borough	3,445	86.8%	6.6%	8.4%	0.5%	1.2%	8.2%
19	Sprague	Town	2,983	90.5%	0.6%	6.1%	0.0%	2.7%	2.7%
20	Bozrah	Town	2,603	94.7%	2.9%	1.6%	1.5%	1.0%	2.7%
21	Voluntown	Town	2,603	98.4%	2.6%	1.2%	5.1%	0.2%	1.1%
22	Lyme	Town	2,327	97.6%	0.0%	0.3%	0.0%	2.8%	1.5%
23	Franklin	Town	1,958	98.8%	0.1%	0.2%	3.9%	0.2%	2.1%
24	Stonington	Borough	1,069	98.4%	0.8%	0.7%	0.0%	0.1%	3.2%

Communities

Map of New London County, Connecticut showing cities, boroughs, towns, CDPs, and Indian Reservations

Cities

• New London
• Norwich

Towns

Villages are named localities within towns, but have no separate corporate existence from the towns they are in.

• Bozrah
• Colchester
  • Colchester village
  • Westchester
• East Lyme
  • Flanders
  • Niantic
• Franklin
• Griswold
  • Borough of Jewett City
  • Hopeville
  • Glasgo
  • Pachaug
• Groton
  • Burnett's Corner
  • Conning Towers-Nautilus Park
  • City of Groton
  • Groton Long Point
  • Long Hill
  • Mystic
  • Noank
  • Old Mystic
  • Poquonock Bridge
• Lebanon
• Ledyard
  • Gales Ferry
  • Ledyard Center
  • Mashantucket
• Lisbon
• Lyme
• Montville
  • Chesterfield
  • Mohegan
  • Oakdale
  • Oxoboxo River
  • Uncasville
• North Stonington
• Old Lyme
• Preston
  • Poquetanuck
  • Preston City
• Salem
• Sprague
  • Baltic
  • Hanover
• Stonington
  • Lords Point
  • Mystic
  • Pawcatuck
• Voluntown
• Waterford
  • Graniteville
  • Jordan Village
  • Oswegatchie
  • Quaker Hill
  • Waterford village

See also

• Connecticut portal

• National Register of Historic Places listings in New London County, Connecticut

References

1. "Census - Geography Profile: New London County, Connecticut". United States Census Bureau . Retrieved November 20, 2021.
2. https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2022/06/06/2022-12063/change-to-county-equivalents-in-the-state-of-connecticut Federal Register: Change to County-Equivalents in the State of Connecticut
3. "CCR: Volume 02, Page 39". Archived from the original on April 28, 2007. Retrieved June 17, 2008.
4. Frances Manwaring Caulkins, History of New London, Connecticut: From the first survey of the coast in 1612, to 1852 (New Haven) 1852, p. 249: "New London County extended from Pawkatuck River to the west bounds of Hammonasset Plantation (Killingworth), including all the eastern parts of the colony".
5. Newberry Library – Connecticut Atlas of Historical County Boundaries Archived November 10, 2013, at the Wayback Machine
6. "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. February 12, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
7. "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: New London County, CT" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 9, 2022. Retrieved July 22, 2022. - Text list
8. "General Elections Statement of Vote 1922".
9. https://authoring.ct.gov/-/media/SOTS/ElectionServices/StatementOfVote_PDFs/2016StatementofVotepdf.pdf ^{[ bare URL PDF ]}
10. https://authoring.ct.gov/-/media/SOTS/ElectionServices/StatementOfVote_PDFs/2020-SOV.pdf ^{[ bare URL PDF ]}
11. Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved May 26, 2017.
12. "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved June 11, 2014.
13. "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved June 11, 2014.
14. "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved June 11, 2014.
15. "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 9, 2022. Retrieved June 11, 2014.
16. "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on June 7, 2011. Retrieved June 11, 2014.
17. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau . Retrieved May 14, 2011.
18. "DP-1 Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics: 2010 Demographic Profile Data". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved January 12, 2016.
19. "Population, Housing Units, Area, and Density: 2010 - County". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved January 12, 2016.
20. "DP02 SELECTED SOCIAL CHARACTERISTICS IN THE UNITED STATES – 2006-2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved January 12, 2016.
21. "DP03 SELECTED ECONOMIC CHARACTERISTICS – 2006-2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved January 12, 2016.
22. "SELECTED ECONOMIC CHARACTERISTICS 2006-2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates". U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 12, 2020. Retrieved November 25, 2012.
23. "Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics: 2010 Demographic Profile Data". U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original on May 21, 2019. Retrieved November 25, 2012.
24. "ACS DEMOGRAPHIC AND HOUSING ESTIMATES 2007-2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates". U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 12, 2020. Retrieved January 8, 2013.

Notes

1. The Hammonasset River still bears this Indian place name.

External links

• National Register of Historic Places listing for New London Co., Connecticut

41°28′N72°06′W / 41.47°N 72.10°W / 41.47; -72.10