Bridgewater, Connecticut

Bridgewater, Connecticut
Town
A historic house in the town center
Seal
Coordinates:41°31′33″N73°21′39″W
Country	United States
U.S. state	Connecticut
County	Litchfield
Region	Western CT
Incorporated	1856
Government
• Type	Selectman-town meeting
• First selectman	Curtis Read (D)
• Selectmen	Laszlo Pinter (R) Alan Brown (D)
Area
• Total	17.31 sq mi (44.82 km2)
• Land	16.39 sq mi (42.46 km2)
• Water	0.91 sq mi (2.36 km2)
Elevation	715 ft (218 m)
Population (2020)
• Total	1,662
• Density	96/sq mi (37/km2)
Time zone	UTC−5(Eastern)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4(Eastern)
ZIP Code	06752
Area code(s)	860/959
FIPS code	09-08210
GNISfeature ID	0213397
Website	bridgewater-ct.gov

Bridgewateris atowninLitchfield County,Connecticut,United States. The population was 1,662 at the2020 census,a decline from the figure of 1,727 tabulated in 2010. The town is part of theWestern Connecticut Planning Region.

Bridgewater is well known as being a weekend getaway for wealthy New Yorkers, due to its scenic wooded areas, location on the banks ofLake Lillinonahand proximity toNew York City.Bridgewater was one of the last remainingdry towns(Eastford is still a dry town) in Connecticut until voters approved the sale of alcohol in a 2014 referendum, by a 660–246 vote.The Bridgewater Country Fair is a popular annual event held every August, attracting visitors from all over New England and the Tri-state area.

Geography

Bridgewater is in southwestern Litchfield County and is bordered byFairfield Countyto the south andNew Haven Countyto the southeast. According to theUnited States Census Bureau,the town has a total area of 17.3 square miles (44.8 km²), of which 16.4 square miles (42.5 km²) are land and 0.93 square miles (2.4 km²), or 5.27%, are water.Bridgewater is located on the northeastern bank of theHousatonic River,on a section that is impounded to form Lake Lillinonah.Danburyis 13 miles (21 km) to the southwest, andWaterburyis 20 miles (32 km) to the east.

Bridgewater houses, farms, and fields, as seen fromBrookfield,December 17, 2020

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1850	815		—
1860	1,048		28.6%
1870	877		−16.3%
1880	708		−19.3%
1890	617		−12.9%
1900	649		5.2%
1910	600		−7.6%
1920	481		−19.8%
1930	432		−10.2%
1940	537		24.3%
1950	639		19.0%
1960	898		40.5%
1970	1,277		42.2%
1980	1,563		22.4%
1990	1,654		5.8%
2000	1,824		10.3%
2010	1,727		−5.3%
2020	1,662		−3.8%
U.S. Decennial Census

See also:List of Connecticut locations by per capita income

As of thecensusof 2000, there were 1,824 people, 703 households, and 525 families residing in the town. The population density was 112.4 inhabitants per square mile (43.4/km²). There were 779 housing units at an average density of 48.0 per square mile (18.5/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 97.53%White,0.93%African American,0.05%Native American,0.71%Asian,0.11% fromother races,and 0.66% from two or more races.HispanicorLatinoof any race were 0.49% of the population.

There were 703 households, out of which 29.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 67.4% weremarried couplesliving together, 5.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.2% were non-families. 21.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 2.96.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 22.1% under the age of 18, 4.9% from 18 to 24, 23.8% from 25 to 44, 35.9% from 45 to 64, and 13.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.5 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $80,420, and the median income for a family was $94,720. Males had a median income of $61,750 versus $40,455 for females. Theper capita incomefor the town was $42,505. About 2.3% of families and 4.1% of the population were below thepoverty line,including 4.8% of those under age 18 and 0.8% of those age 65 or over.

Voter registration and party enrollment as of October 26, 2021
Party		Active voters	Inactive voters	Total voters	Percentage
	Democratic	466	3	469	32.71%
	Republican	417	9	426	29.71%
	Unaffiliated	513	7	520	36.26%
	Minor Parties	19	0	19	1.32%
Total		1,415	19	1,434	100%

Presidential Election Results
Year	Democratic	Republican	Third Parties
2020	54.1%667	44.5%549	1.4%17
2016	45.6%518	50.1%571	4.3%50
2012	44.4%472	54.5%580	1.1%12
2008	49.9%587	49.3%580	0.8%9
2004	44.4%521	53.5%628	2.1%25
2000	45.3%508	48.6%545	6.1%69
1996	42.5%439	44.6%461	12.9%132
1992	36.2%411	39.5%448	24.3%276
1988	40.2%425	59.1%624	0.7%7
1984	33.3%328	66.4%655	0.3%3
1980	31.4%285	52.5%477	16.1%146
1976	41.3%325	58.2%458	0.5%3
1972	32.9%248	64.8%488	2.3%17
1968	34.6%229	62.7%415	2.7%18
1964	62.4%378	37.6%228	0.00%0
1960	29.6%166	70.4%394	0.00%0
1956	22.8%102	77.2%345	0.00%0

Transportation

Bridgewater is served by two state highways:Route 67running east–west in the northern part of town, andRoute 133running north–south. Route 67 leads northwest toNew Milfordand east toRoxbury,while Route 133 leads south across the Housatonic River intoBrookfield.TheDanbury Metro-North Railroad stationis located roughly 10 miles from the town center.

Local media

• Waterbury Republican-American,a Waterbury-based independent daily newspaper
• The News-Times,a Danbury-based daily newspaper
• The Greater New Milford Spectrum,a MediaNews Group-owned weekly paper
• Voices,a local newspaper serving Southbury, Middlebury, Oxford, Seymour, Naugatuck, Woodbury, Bethelhem, New Preston, Washington, Washington Depot, Roxbury, Bridgewater, Monroe, Sandy Hook and Newtown

Education

Regional School District 12is the area school district. Residents are served by REACH Preschool inWashington,Burnham Elementary School in Bridgewater, andShepaug Valley School(secondary school) in Washington.

The Burnham Library

William Dixon Burnhamc. 1919

The Burnham Library, May 11, 2012

In 1904, the Bridgewater Library Association was established, succeeding previous lending libraries operated by individuals in town. In 1909 room for library purposes was set aside in recently built town hall. A bequest from William Dixon Burnham, a native who made his fortune in shipping, allowed a Greek Revival style building to be erected from 1925 to 1926, using Mine Hill granite from nearby Roxbury. The dedication took place on August 26, 1926.

By the early 1960s, the library's two floors were finally becoming cramped. With the death of town residentVan Wyck Brooks,a biographer and critic, a "Van Wyck Brooks Memorial Fund was set up to raise money for a library wing in his name. The effort, however, flopped, despite support from such celebrities asPearl BuckandArchibald MacLeish.Just enough money was raised for a bust of the author and a display of some of his memorabilia. His desk, books, and other items can be found on display in the library's biography section. The fund-raising committee disbanded in 1972, but a year later, a surprising source of funding became known.

Charles E. Piggott, a hermit, misanthrope, and miser living in a Los Angeles slum, died in 1973. As a bulldozer operator razed the shack that had been Piggott's home, the operator happened to notice something shiny. It was a bottle with Piggott's holographic will inside.

Despite apparently having no discernible connection with Bridgewater, Piggott left the fund $300,000—money from careful investments over the years. The state of California contested the will and the library hired a lawyer, at considerable cost, to defend the bequest. Eventually, the lawyer won the case and the library got $210,000.

By 1980, the Van Wyck Brooks Memorial Wing was dedicated, doubling the size of the library.

Burton Bernstein, a longtime town resident, looked into why Piggott would leave money to the library, then wrote an article on the bequest, which appeared in the December 18, 1978, issue ofThe New Yorker.Piggott, as it turned out, had been a voracious reader on any number of subjects and loved public libraries (which are, after all, free). Bernstein believes that Piggott came across Van Wyck Brooks'The Flowering of New England,which describes the hermitHenry David Thoreau.Piggott may have compared himself to Thoreau, or saw wisdom in some of Thoreau's ideas as presented by Brooks. Perhaps this quote stuck in his mind: "The mass of men led lives of quiet desperation... Did they not know that the wisest had always lived, with respect to comforts and luxuries, a life more simple and meager than the poor?... Poverty had given him all this wealth."

Piggott heard of the Van Wyck Brooks Memorial Fund, recognized the name, and, Bernstein believes, decided to contribute.

Notable people

• Woody Allen,film director, writer, actor, and comedian
• Cathie Black,media executive andNew York City Schools Chancellor
• Dan Briody,author
• Van Wyck Brooks(1886–1963), long-time town resident, was a literary critic, biographer, and historian
• Philip Evergood(1901–1973), artist
• Mia Farrow,actress
• Louise Fitzhugh(1928–1974), author of children's books includingHarriet the Spy
• Susie Gharib,business news journalist
• Kathy Godfrey(1915–1981),talk showhost
• Susan Kinsolving,author and poet
• E.G. Marshall(1914–1998), actor
• Lanford Monroe(1950–2000), wildlife artist and sculptor
• Mike Nichols(1931–2014), film and theater director, producer, actor, and comedian
• Drake Olson,racing driver
• Lee Pockriss(1924–2011), songwriter for films andBroadway shows
• Diane Sawyer,television broadcast journalist
• Charles Seeger(1886–1979), noted musicologist and composer
• Luman Hamlin Weller(1833–1914),congressmanfromIowa
• David Wooldridge (1927–1998), British conductor and composer
• Teresa Wright(1918–2005),Academy Award-winning actress

External links

• Town of Bridgewater official website
• Bridgewater Historical Society
• Burnham Library,the town public library
• Regional School District 12
• Northwest Connecticut Convention and Visitors Bureau
• Northwest Connecticut Arts Council
• Bridgewater Fair