Bethel, Connecticut | |
Settlement Type: | Town |
Coordinates: | 41.3742°N -73.395°W |
Subdivision Type: | Country |
Subdivision Name: | United States |
Subdivision Type1: | U.S. state |
Subdivision Name1: | Connecticut |
Subdivision Type2: | County |
Subdivision Name2: | Fairfield |
Subdivision Type3: | Region |
Subdivision Name3: | Western CT |
Established Title: | Incorporated |
Established Date: | 1855 |
Government Type: | Selectman-town meeting |
Leader Title: | First selectman |
Leader Name: | Dan Carter (R) |
Leader Title1: | Selectman |
Leader Name1: | Richard C. Straiton (D) |
Leader Title2: | Selectman |
Leader Name2: | Bryan Terzian (R) |
Unit Pref: | Imperial |
Area Total Km2: | 43.8 |
Area Total Sq Mi: | 16.9 |
Area Land Km2: | 43.5 |
Area Land Sq Mi: | 16.8 |
Area Water Km2: | 0.2 |
Area Water Sq Mi: | 0.1 |
Elevation M: | 147 |
Elevation Ft: | 482 |
Population Footnotes: | [1] |
Population Total: | 20,156 |
Population As Of: | 2022 |
Population Density Sq Mi: | 1,204.6 |
Timezone: | Eastern |
Utc Offset: | -5 |
Timezone Dst: | Eastern |
Utc Offset Dst: | -4 |
Postal Code Type: | ZIP Code |
Postal Code: | 06801 |
Area Codes: | 203/475 |
Blank Name: | FIPS code |
Blank Info: | 09-04720 |
Blank1 Name: | GNIS feature ID |
Blank1 Info: | 213390 |
Bethel is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the town was 20,358. The town is part of the Western Connecticut Planning Region. The town includes the Bethel Census-Designated Place.
Bethel was first settled around 1700. The town incorporated in 1855 from Danbury. Bethel is a name derived from Hebrew meaning "house of God".[2]
The first meeting of the Young Communist League was held in Bethel in May 1922.[3]
In 1934, Rudolph Kunett started the first vodka distillery in the U.S. after purchasing rights to the recipe from the exiled Smirnoff family.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of, of which is land and, or 0.53%, is water. The Bethel CDP, corresponding to the town center, has a total area of, all land. Bethel borders Redding to the south, Danbury to the west, Brookfield to the north, and Newtown to the east.
See also: List of Connecticut locations by per capita income.
As of the 2010 census Bethel had a population of 18,584. The racial and ethnic composition of the population was 88.8% white, 1.8% black or African American, 0.1% Native American, 4.5% Asian, 2.8% from some other race and 1.9% from two or more races. 7.6% of the population was Hispanic or Latino from any race.[4]
As of the census[5] of 2000, there were 18,067 people, 6,505 households, and 4,846 families residing in the town. The population density was 1075.7sp=usNaNsp=us. There were 6,653 housing units at an average density of 396.1sp=usNaNsp=us. The racial makeup of the town in 2005 was 85.86% White, 1.91% African American, 0.26% Native American, 4.58% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 3.20% from other races or of multiple races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.33% of the population. 20.2% were of Italian, 17.5% Irish, 9.1% German, 7.0% English, 6.7% American and 6.0% Polish ancestry according to Census 2000.[6] 88.7% spoke English, 4.4% Spanish, 3.3% Portuguese, 1.5% German and 1.0% French as their first language.[7]
There were 6,505 households, out of which 38.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.4% were married couples living together, 9.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.5% were non-families. 20.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.76 and the average family size was 3.23.
In the town, the population was spread out, with 27.3% under the age of 18, 6.0% from 18 to 24, 31.9% from 25 to 44, 24.6% from 45 to 64, and 10.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.1 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $68,891, and the median income for a family was $78,358. Males had a median income of $51,816 versus $36,544 for females. The per capita income for the town was $28,927. About 1.2% of families and 2.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 1.3% of those under age 18 and 5.5% of those age 65 or over.
Battery manufacturer Duracell is headquartered in Bethel.
Sites listed on the National Register of Historic Places include Greenwood Avenue Historic District, Rev. John Ely House, and Seth Seelye House.
Year | Democratic | Republican | Third Parties | |
---|---|---|---|---|
2020 | 56.12% 6,270 | 42.37% 4,734 | 1.51% 168 | |
2016 | 48.52% 4,777 | 46.47% 4,575 | 5.02% 494 | |
2012 | 51.18% 4,777 | 47.63% 4,445 | 1.19% 111 | |
2008 | 53.57% 5,179 | 45.20% 4,370 | 1.23% 119 | |
2004 | 46.74% 4,486 | 51.34% 4,927 | 1.92% 184 | |
2000 | 48.50% 4,324 | 45.50% 4,057 | 6.00% 535 | |
1996 | 46.62% 3,883 | 41.69% 3,472 | 11.69% 974 | |
1992 | 34.04% 3,178 | 42.56% 3,974 | 23.40% 2,185 | |
1988 | 36.41% 2,924 | 62.43% 5,013 | 1.16% 93 | |
1984 | 29.09% 2,312 | 70.57% 5,610 | 0.34% 27 | |
1980 | 32.24% 2,379 | 54.42% 4,015 | 13.34% 984 | |
1976 | 41.54% 2,640 | 57.67% 3,665 | 0.79% 50 | |
1972 | 30.88% 1,709 | 67.56% 3,739 | 1.55% 86 | |
1968 | 39.80% 1,780 | 53.06% 2,373 | 7.13% 319 | |
1964 | 65.63% 2,731 | 34.37% 1,430 | 0.00% 0 | |
1960 | 44.86% 1,862 | 55.14% 2,289 | 0.00% 0 | |
1956 | 24.59% 850 | 75.41% 2,607 | 0.00% 0 |
Voter Registration & Party Affiliation as of October 31, 2023[10] | ||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Party | Active voters | Inactive voters | Total voters | Percentage | ||||||
Republican | align = center | 3,126 | align = center | 240 | align = center | 3,366 | align = center | 23.9% | ||
Democratic | align = center | 3,985 | align = center | 326 | align = center | 4,311 | align = center | 30.6% | ||
Unaffiliated | align = center | 5,469 | align = center | 710 | align = center | 6,179 | align = center | 43.9% | ||
Minor parties | align = center | 199 | align = center | 26 | align = center | 225 | align = center | 1.6% | ||
Total | align = center | 12,779 | align = center | 1,302 | align = center | 14,081 | align = center | 100% |
Bethel High School located in Bethel.
Films partially shot in Bethel include: Rachel, Rachel (1968), Other People's Money (1991), and Revolutionary Road (2008).[11]
Interstate 84 passes through Bethel, and it has a train station on the Danbury Branch of Metro-North's New Haven Line.[15] The Danbury Branch provides commuter rail service between Danbury, to South Norwalk, Stamford, and Grand Central Terminal in New York City. Housatonic Area Regional Transit provides local bus service.