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About Our Town
The Town of Bloomfield encompasses 26.4 square miles with an estimated population of 20,000 people. The 2000 US Census Demographic Profile provides employment figures, population statistics, education information, and housing statistics for the town. Bloomfield is located in Central Connecticut and just 10 minutes west of the state capitol, Hartford. Bloomfield is approximately 10 minutes from the Bradley International Airport and easy access to I-84 and I-91.
History of Bloomfield
Formally incorporated in 1835, the Town of Bloomfield is rooted in a 1640 settlement known as the Messenger Farms located at the eastern end of what is now Park Avenue. Originally part of Windsor, the settlement slowly grew to over 900 persons by the time of its incorporation. What led to the formal incorporation of Bloomfield was the founding of a new parish called Wintonbury in 1736(a composite of the names of the three founding towns: Windsor, Farrnington, and Simsbury).
Traditionally an agricultural community, Bloomfield began to diversify its economic base following its incorporation. Tobacco was added to the agricultural list, as were numerous cider mills and a brandy distillery. The Prosser Inn on Simsbury Road housed the headquarters of the Hartford to Westfield stage line, and the Hartford to Tariffville stage line passed through the Town Center. Within thirty years of its incorporation, Bloomfield’s new rail service included eight trains daily to and from Hartford, and was serviced by four stations in Town. In 1891, the Hartford Electric Light Company brought Bloomfield into the twentieth century, and by l920 the Town’s population had grown to over 2,000.
Until the advent of the automobile, growth in Bloomfield was restricted to those areas near rail, trolley or bus lines. By the 1950s, however, the suburban exodus from Hartford had commenced, and was accelerated by the construction of 1-91, providing Bloomfield highway access via Windsor to downtown Hartford. In the period from 1950 to 1970, Hartford’s population declined from approximately 177,000 to 158,000, while the combined populations of six suburbs contiguous to Hartford rose from approximately 113,000 to 221,000. Bloomfield’s 220% growth rate topped all the others by a wide margin. The expanding population spurred housing development while a fast-growing local economy brought industrial growth to the Town.
This expansion continued through the 1970s when Bloomfield’s population neared 20,000. In 1973, the Town of Bloomfield was named an All-American City, an award that recognized Bloomfield’s success as an ethnically and culturally diverse community.
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