Connecticut Facts and Trivia

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Things Connecticut is famous for:

  • Connecticut State insect is the Praying Mantis.
  • Connecticut’s most important crops are dairy, poultry, forest and nursery, tobacco, vegetables and fruit.
  • Connecticut is home to the first hamburger (1895), Polaroid camera (1934), helicopter (1939), and color television (1948).
  • The World Wrestling Federation or the WWF is headquartered in Stamford.
  • Bristol, CT is considered the “Mum City” of the USA because of the many Chrysanthemums grown and sold to various states and Canada
  • The manufacturing of the first safety fuse started in Simsbury in 1836.
  • In 1728, the first steel mill operating in America was located in Simsbury.
  • Wallingford has earned a worldwide reputation for the production of silverware.
  • PEZ Candy is made in the city of Orange.
  • Thomas Sanford made the first friction matches in Beacon Falls in 1834.
  • Some of the world’s most famous cloth is woven in the Stafford textile mills.
  • Beacon Hill, Bear Mountain, Chauncey Peak, and East Rock as part of Appalachian Mountain Range (among others) exist in the state of Connecticut

Fun Facts about Connecticut State’s Geography

Connecticut State Symbols Trivia

  • On Jan. 9, 1788 Connecticut was the 5th official state to enter the US.
  • White Oak is the official state tree of Connecticut
  • The official state motto of Connecticut is ‘Qui transtulit sustinet’ which translates to ‘He who transplanted sustains’
  • The official state flower of Connecticut is Mountain Laurel
  • Connecticut State Bird is called the Robin-Turdus migratorius
  • The Seal of Connecticut came from England in 1639 and was originally the seal of Saybrook Colony, which is now Old-Saybrook, Connecticut
  • The Connecticut state flag was officially adopted in 1897
  • Connecticut was designated the “Constitution State” by the General Assembly in 1959
  • Find out the interesting facts about the famous people born in Connecticut

Historical Facts about the State of Connecticut

  • The first telephone book ever issued contained only fifty names. The New Haven District Telephone Company published it in New Haven in February 1878.
  • CT is the Two-letter or Postal Abbreviation and Conn. is the Traditional or Standard Abbreviation for the State of Connecticut.
  • The USS Nautilus – the world’s first nuclear-powered submarine was built in Groton in 1954.
  • Connecticut and Rhode Island never ratified the 18th Amendment (Prohibition).
  • In 1705, copper was discovered in Simsbury. Later, the copper mine became the infamous New-Gate Prison of the Revolutionary War. Doctor Samuel Higley of Simsbury started the first copper coinage in America in 1737.
  • Connecticut quarter was issued on October 12, 1999.
  • The Scoville Memorial Library is the United States’ oldest public library. The library collection began in 1771, when Richard Smith, owner of a local blast furnace, used community contributions to buy 200 books in London. Patrons could borrow and return books on the third Monday of every third month. Fees were collected for damages, the most common being “greasing” by wax dripped from the candles by which the patrons read.
  • On April 9, 1810, a Salisbury town meeting voted to authorize the “selectmen draw upon the town treasurer for the sum of one hundred dollars” to purchase more books for the Scoville Memorial Library collection, making the library the first publicly supported free town library in the United States.
  • Mary Kies, of South Killingly was the first woman to receive a U.S. patent. On May 15th, 1809 for a method of weaving straw with silk.
  • On January 28, 1878, 21 venturous citizens of New Haven became the world’s first subscribers to telephone exchange service.
  • America’s first trade association was founded in Naugatuck Valley.
  • Cattle branding in the United States began in Connecticut when farmers were required by law to mark all of their pigs.
  • In Hartford, you may not, under any circumstances, cross the street walking on your hands!
  • Connecticut is home to the oldest U.S. newspaper still being published: The Hartford Courant, established in 1764.
  • Connecticut has approx. 144 newspapers published in the State (daily, Sunday, weekly and monthly).
  • The first automobile law was passed by the state of CT in 1901. The speed limit was set at 12 miles per hour.
  • The first lollipop-making machine opened for business in New Haven in 1908. George Smith named the treat after a popular racehorse.
  • Ella Grasso was elected in her own right to be a state governor in 1974.
  • In 1937, Connecticut became the first state to issue permanent license plates for cars.
  • In 1784, New Haven was incorporated as a city.
  • Danbury, An important military depot for the American Revolutionary armies was burned and looted in April 1777 by the British under Major General William Tryon.
  • The first blast furnace in Connecticut was built in Lakeville in 1762.
  • The Submarine Force Museum in Groton is home of the historic ship Nautilus (SSN 571). It is the official submarine museum of the United States Navy.
  • In colonial New Haven cut pumpkins were used as guides for haircuts to ensure a round uniform style. Because of this fashion, these New Englanders were nicknamed “pumpkin-heads.”
  • The name Middlebury derives from the central position the Town’s meetinghouse occupies, six miles from three older neighbors, Waterbury, Southbury, and Woodbury.
  • The first human inhabitants of present-day Burlington were members of the Tunxis Tribe, who belonged to a confederation of Algonquian Indians. Legend holds they used the area as a hunting ground.
  • The first English settlers of Connecticut arrived in 1636, settling the plantations of Windsor, Hartford and Wethersfield.
  • The Monroe Town seal is in the form of a circle with the words “Town of Monroe Connecticut” written on the outer rim of the seal. Inside this outer circle is a profile of a bust of James Monroe, who was the fifth President of the United States, serving from 1817-1825.
  • Originally, Montville, along with Groton and Waterford, was a part of New London. New London was settled in 1646 under the name of Pequot, so called after the Pequot Indians, the name changing to New London in 1658.
  • B.F. Clyde’s Cider Mill is the only steam-powered Cider Mill in the United States and is located in Mystic.
  • 7-year-old James Thorsell designed the New Hartford “Town Bicentennial Emblem”.
  • New Milford’s worst disaster struck in 1902 when the main business section centered on Bank Street was almost completely leveled by the “Great Fire”.
  • Named in 1724 for the stony character of the hilly countryside, North Stonington was incorporated in 1807.
  • To register to vote in Connecticut you must:
    • Be a U.S. citizen;
    • Be a resident of a Connecticut Town;
    • Be at least 18 years old on or before the next election
    • Not be convicted of a felony
  • The first expert in the treatment of Asiatic cholera was Dr. Henry Bronson in 1832. He was a professor at Yale Medical School.
  • The first golf tournament in Connecticut for women only was held in Waterbury on June 12, 1917.
  • West Hartford is the birthplace of Noah Webster, the author of the first dictionary published in 1807.
  • Although West Haven is Connecticut’s youngest city, being incorporated in 1972, it is a community that dates back over 360 years, making it one of the oldest settlements in the country.
  • The town of Washington was incorporated in 1779, being named in honor of General George Washington.
  • Hartford has remained the capital city of Connecticut since 1875.

Thanks to: Sandy Kreutter