Darien, Connecticut

Darien is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States.

As of the 2000 census, the town population was 19,607, but a July 1, 2002 Census estimate put the town's population at 19,887. Like its neighbor to the north, New Canaan, Darien is one of the most affluent small communities in the United States.

Two Metro North railroad stations serve Darien: Noroton Heights and Darien.

The part of Interstate 95 that runs through Darien is considered the most dangerous stretch of that highway in Connecticut.

Both the 1975 and the 2004 versions of the film The Stepford Wives were filmed in part in Darien.

The public library in Darien, the Darien Library, has consistently ranked in the top ten of its category in the HAPLR Index of libraries.

Its ambulance service, Darien EMS known as "Post 53" (run by a Boy Scout Explorer post and open to both boys and girls) is the only ambulance service in the nation staffed and run entirely by high school student volunteers.

The service provides emergency care at no cost to the patient, funded entirely by private donations from town residents. Teenagers are allowed to perform patient care due to the fact that Connecticut is one the few states in the nation which allows Emergency medical technicians to be certified at age 16.

Supervised by trained adults, Post 53 lets in 15 teenagers a year to join the crew. "Each student receives at least 150 hours of training for basic certification as emergency medical technicians; by their senior year, some even qualify to drive the ambulance."^* A Haven for Both Sailors and Commuters," an article (part of the ongoing "If you're thinking of living in" feature) by By Lisa Prevost in the Real Estate section of The New York Times, December 14, 2003, accessed online on July 14, 2003

The McDonald's restaurant located at the rest stop on Interstate 95 is the busiest McDonald's in the country ^*.

How local residents pronounce the town name

Contrary to what any dictionary will tell you, the vast majority of town residents pronounce the name of the community “Dairy-Ann” with the stress on the last syllable. Evonne Klein, the first selectwoman, pronounces it that way and says that's the way she hears it pronounced by "99 percent" of residents. The way locals pronounce it, it rhymes with "Mary Ann," not "Marion." “You can always tell when someone is not from here because they do pronounce it the way it’s spelled,” Louise Berry, director of the town library, said in a 2006 interview.^* "The town name that sounds like a milk maid," "Grapevine" column, The Fairfield County Business Journal, July 10, 2006

Government and politics

Darien is primarily a Republican town, voting for George Bush in the last 2 elections, but now has a Democrat in office as First Selectwoman. In 2004, Evonne Klein became the first Democrat elected to the post in 14 years. This was due to the overall disapproval of the previous Republican first selectman, Robert Harrel.

It has a Board of Finance, which approves financial measures, including the town budget, a Board of Education, which controls the town's public schools, and a large Representative Town Meeting.

The town has three fire departments, all of which are volunteer; Darien, Noroton, and Noroton Heights.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 38.4 km² (14.8 mi²). 33.3 km² (12.9 mi²) of it is land and 5.2 km² (2.0 mi²) of it (13.41%) is water. The town is served by Interstate 95 and the Merritt Parkway. It also has two Metro North railroad stations for commuter trains into New York City, with a commute of approximately 55 minutes. The central part of town is on Route 1.

Darien is bordered on the west by Stamford, on the north by New Canaan, and on the east by Norwalk. On the south it faces Long Island Sound. It is part of the "panhandle" of Connecticut sticking out into New York state.

Sections of Town

In addition to some small neighborhoods, the larger divisions of the town (which are not governed separately except for volunteer fire department services) are Noroton (roughly in the southwest corner of town) and Noroton Heights (roughly north of Interstate 95 to Middlesex Avenue with an eastern boundary somewhere east of Noroton Avenue. Tokeneke is in the southeastern end of town.

Noroton Heights "grew up around the Noroton Heights train station and housed the European immigrants who serviced the old estates," according to an article about the community in The New York Times. The densely populated streets of this part of town are full of "modest Capes and colonials" along with other house styles.^* A Haven for Both Sailors and Commuters," an article (part of the ongoing "If you're thinking of living in" feature) by By Lisa Prevost in the Real Estate section of The New York Times, December 14, 2003, accessed online on July 14, 2003 The same description of housing applies to much of Noroton as well.

Long Neck Point is a peninsula in the south-central part of town.

History

For more information, see: History of Darien, Connecticut

Originally part of Stamford, this area became Middlesex Parish in 1737. It was incorporated as the Town of Darien in 1820. Settlement had begun in the 1680s. Tories raided the town several times during the American Revolution, at one point taking 26 men in the parish prisoner for five months, including the Rev. Moses Mather, pastor of the parish.

According to the Darien Historical Society, the name Darien was decided upon when the residents of the town could not agree on a name to replace Middlesex Parish, many families wanting it to be named after themselves. A sailor who had traveled to Darién, Panama, then part of Colombia, suggested the name Darien, which was eventually adopted by the people of the town.

Until the advent of the railroad in 1848, Darien remained a small, rural community of about 1,000. After the Civil War, the town became a one of the many resorts where prosperous New Yorkers built summer homes. A few daily commuters to New York City then were forerunners of the many who have settled here and changed Darien into a residential suburb of metropolitan New York.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 19,607 people, 6,592 households, and 5,385 families residing in the town. The population density was 588.7/km² (1,525.2/mi²). There were 6,792 housing units at an average density of 203.9 persons/km² (528.3 persons/mi²). The racial makeup of the town was 95.97% White, 0.45% African American, 0.04% Native American, 2.42% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.30% from other races, and 0.80% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.19% of the population.

There were 6,592 households out of which 46.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 74.5% were married couples living together, 5.6% have a woman whose husband does not live with her, and 18.3% were non-families. 15.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.95 and the average family size was 3.31.

In the town the population was spread out with 32.5% under the age of 18, 3.0% from 18 to 24, 28.2% from 25 to 44, 24.0% from 45 to 64, and 12.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 96.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.7 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $146,755, and the median income for a family was $173,777. Males had a median income of $100,000 versus $59,313 for females. The per capita income for the town was $77,519. 2.0% of the population and 0.6% of families were below the poverty line. Out of the total people living in poverty, 1.6% are under the age of 18 and 2.6% are 65 or older.

With a median home price of approximately $1 million, Darien is one of the most expensive places to live in North America, and was rated one of the best places to live in America by CNN in 2005.

Education

Darien Public Schools

Elementary Schools:

Middle School:

Middlesex Middle School

The $27 million addition to the school, completed in January 2000, "provided a second gymnasium, new cafeteria, media center, three computer labs and a music technology lab."^* A Haven for Both Sailors and Commuters," an article (part of the ongoing "If you're thinking of living in" feature) by By Lisa Prevost in the Real Estate section of The New York Times, December 14, 2003, accessed online on July 14, 2003

High School:

Darien High School

The new $73 million high school campus was completed in the fall of 2005.^* A Haven for Both Sailors and Commuters," an article (part of the ongoing "If you're thinking of living in" feature) by By Lisa Prevost in the Real Estate section of The New York Times, December 14, 2003, accessed online on July 14, 2003

Per Pupil Expenditure: $13,950 (Estimated)

Class of 2004 stats

Mean SAT I scores:

Verbal 577
Math 612

86.6% to Four Year Colleges 6.7% to Two Year Colleges

Private school

Pear Tree Point School serves students in pre-kindergarten through Grade 5.

Local media

Darien is served by two local weeklies: Darien News-Review and the Darien Times. Other newspapers from towns close to Darien, such as The Advocate, are read and sold in Darien. (The town is covered in the Stamford edition of the paper; there is also a Norwalk edition.) New Canaan Darien Magazine is a monthly published by Moffly Publications.

Social and recreational institutions

NOROTON YACHT CLUB -- Former members of "the world-renowned" club "have included two America's Cup skippers." The club runs the largest junior sailing program in the county.^* A Haven for Both Sailors and Commuters," an article (part of the ongoing "If you're thinking of living in" feature) by By Lisa Prevost in the Real Estate section of The New York Times, December 14, 2003, accessed online on July 14, 2003
OX RIDGE HUNT CLUB -- On 37 acres, the club hosts a popular annual horse show.
DARIEN Y -- the local Y.M.C.A., offers more than 300 programs.
PUBLIC BEACHES -- The town runs Weed Beach in Noroton and Pear Tree Point Beach on Pear Tree Point.
CHERRY LAWN PARK

Notable residents, past and present

Kate Bosworth - actress
Margaret Bourke-White - late photojournalist
Alex Breckenridge - actress
Clint Conley - musician in the band Mission of Burma
Topher Grace - actor
Alex Kelly - convicted rapist who earlier fled the country to escape charges CNN.com: "Alex Kelly found guilty of rape"
Anne Morrow Lindbergh - late author
Charles Lindbergh - late aviator
Moby - musician, grew up partly in Darien
Alex Michel - cast member on The Bachelor
Gerry Mulligan - jazz musician
Christopher Plummer - actor, former resident (now lives in Weston, Connecticut
Chloë Sevigny - actress
Christopher Shays - Republican congressman representing Connecticut's Fourth District; born in Darien (now a Bridgeport resident)
F.G. "Buck" Rodgers - President of U.S. operations, IBM; Vice President of sales and marketing, IBM
Gus Van Sant - film director
Brian Cashman - New York Yankees General Manager