The state of Connecticut is one of the original Thirteen Colonies and the fifth state admitted to the Union. This portal is for people researching its residents, southernmost state in the New England region, Connecticut is also often grouped along with New York and New Jersey as the Tri-State Area. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its capital city is Hartford, and its most populous city is Bridgeport. The state is named for the Connecticut River, a major U.S. river that approximately bisects the state. The word "Connecticut" is derived from various anglicized spellings of an Algonquian word for "long tidal river."

Connecticut is the third smallest state by area, the 29th most populous, and the fourth most densely populated of the 50 United States. It is known as the "Constitution State," the "Nutmeg State," the "Provisions State," and the "Land of Steady Habits." It was influential in the development of the federal government of the United States. Much of southern and western Connecticut (along with the majority of the state's population) is part of the New York metropolitan area: three of Connecticut's eight counties are statistically included in the New York City combined statistical area, which is widely referred to as the Tri-State area. Connecticut's center of population is in Cheshire, New Haven County, which is also located within the Tri-State area.

Connecticut's first European settlers were Dutch. They established a small, short-lived settlement in present-day Hartford at the confluence of the Park and Connecticut rivers called Huys de Goede Hoop. Initially, half of Connecticut was a part of the Dutch colony New Netherland, which included much of the land between the Connecticut and Delaware rivers. The first major settlements were established in the 1630s by England. Thomas Hooker led a band of followers overland from the Massachusetts Bay Colony and founded what became the Connecticut Colony; other settlers from Massachusetts founded the Saybrook Colony and the New Haven Colony. The Connecticut and New Haven Colonies established documents of Fundamental Orders, considered the first constitutions in North America. In 1662, the three colonies were merged under a royal charter, making Connecticut a crown colony. This colony was one of the Thirteen Colonies that revolted against British rule in the American Revolution.

The Connecticut River, Thames River, and ports along the Long Island Sound have given Connecticut a strong maritime tradition which continues today. The state also has a long history of hosting the financial services industry, including insurance companies in Hartford and hedge funds in Fairfield County. As of the 2010 Census, Connecticut features the highest per-capita income, Human Development Index (0.962), and median household income in the United States.

• Wikipedia: Connecticut

Please do not add profiles to the State of Connecticut project. Add them to the appropriate sub-project(s).

Projects

Please add your projects both to this index and the Related Projects list at right.

Cemeteries

• For a list of projects related to Connecticut cemeteries, see the Cemeteries of Connecticut subportal.

Cities and Towns

• East Haddam, Connecticut - 1600-1800
• Farmington, Connecticut - Original Proprietors
• Guilford, Connecticut - Original Planters
• Haddam, Connecticut - Original Proprietors
• Hartford, Connecticut - The Gilded Age: 1870 - 1900
• Hartford, Connecticut - Original Proprietors
• Middletown, Connecticut - Early Settlers
• Milford, Connecticut - Early Families
• New Haven, Connecticut - Original Planters
• Norwich, Connecticut - Founders
• Pomfret, Connecticut - Early Settlers
• Stratford, Connecticut - Founding Families
• Suffield, Connecticut - Early Families
• Wallingford, Connecticut - Early Families
• Wethersfield, Connecticut - Families of Ancient Wethersfield
• Woodstock, Connecticut - Early Settlers

Education

• For a list of projects related to Connecticut schools, colleges, and universities, see the Education in Connecticut subportal.

Ethnic Groups

• Jamaican Families of Hartford, Connecticut
• Jews of Connecticut
• Native American Tribes of Connecticut
• Swamp Yankees of Southern New England

Government

• Governors of Connecticut
• United States House of Representatives from Connecticut
• United States Senators from Connecticut

History

• American Revolution: Battle of Groton Heights & Storming of Fort Griswold
• Connecticut in the U.S. Civil War
• Founders of the Saybrook Colony
• Great Migration: Passengers of The Hector, 1637 & 1638
• Great Migration: Passengers on The Marigold, 1638
• Pequot War
• Today in Connecticut History

Religion

• Old Stone Church of East Haven, Connecticut

Sports

• Connecticut Sun
• Hartford Dark Blues
• Hartford Whalers
• New England Whalers
• New Haven Elm Cities

Miscellaneous

• Connecticut Women's Hall of Fame
• Founders of the New Haven Colony
• Baldwin Family, of Milford, Connecticut

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Research Resources

• Connecticut State Library: Genealogy Reference Guide
• CTGenWeb Project
• FamilySearch: Connecticut Genealogy
• Connecticut Society of Genealogists