Middlesex County, Connecticut

Middlesex County is a county in the south central part of the U.S. state of Connecticut. As of the 2020 census, the population was 164,245. The county was created in May 1785 from portions of Hartford County and New London County.
Middlesex County is included in the Hartford-East Hartford-Middletown metropolitan statistical area known as Greater Hartford.
As with all eight of Connecticut's counties, there is now no county government and no county seat. In Connecticut, towns are responsible for all local government activities, including local police, fire and rescue, snow removal, and schools. In a few cases, neighboring towns will share certain resources, e.g. water, gas, etc. On June 6, 2022, the U.S. Census Bureau formally recognized Connecticut's nine councils of governments as county equivalents instead of the state's eight counties. Connecticut's county governments were disbanded in 1960, and the councils of governments took over some of the local governmental functions. Connecticut's eight historical counties continue to exist in name only, and are no longer considered for statistical purposes.

Government

Middletown was the county seat of Middlesex County from its creation in 1785 until the elimination of county government in 1960. There is no government in Middlesex County other than the Middlesex County Judicial District. All county functions other than courts and county sheriff's departments were discontinued in 1960, and again in 2000 when the county sheriff's departments were reorganized as the Connecticut Judicial Marshal, due to political corruption in the county sheriff's departments. Joseph E. Bibisi was the last person to serve as high sheriff of Middlesex County.

Geography

The county has a total area of, of which is land and is water. It is the smallest county in Connecticut by land area and second-smallest by total area.
The terrain trends from mostly level along the Connecticut River and Atlantic coast to gently rolling uplands away from them. The highest elevation is close to a triangulation station in Meshomasic State Forest, at above sea level; the lowest point is sea level.
Middlesex County is also the home of Wadsworth Falls.

Adjacent counties

National protected areas

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 164,245. Of the residents, 17.2% were under the age of 18 and 21.4% were 65 years of age or older; the median age was 46.4 years. For every 100 females there were 94.9 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 92.9 males. 70.8% of residents lived in urban areas and 29.2% lived in rural areas.
The racial makeup of the county was 82.0% White, 5.2% Black or African American, 0.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 3.0% Asian, 0.0% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 2.6% from some other race, and 6.9% from two or more races. [Hispanic and Race (United States Census)|Latino Americans|Hispanic or Latino] residents of any race comprised 7.3% of the population.
There were 68,685 households in the county, of which 24.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 26.4% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 30.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 76,289 housing units, of which 10.0% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 73.0% were owner-occupied and 27.0% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.3% and the rental vacancy rate was 6.2%.

Race / Ethnicity	Pop 2000	Pop 2010		% 2000	% 2010
White alone	138,979	143,144	131,954	89.62%	86.39%	80.33%
Black or African American alone	6,588	7,256	8,001	4.24%	4.37%	4.84%
Native American or Alaska Native alone	229	210	214	0.14%	0.12%	0.13%
Asian alone	2,392	4,207	4,923	1.54%	2.53%	2.99%
Pacific Islander alone	46	53	43	0.02%	0.03%	0.02%
Other race alone	146	290	744	0.09%	0.17%	0.45%
Mixed race or Multiracial	2,042	2,682	6,438	1.31%	1.61%	3.91%
Hispanic or Latino	4,649	7,834	11,928	2.99%	4.72%	7.26%
Total	155,071	165,676	164,245	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States census, there were 165,676 people, 67,202 households, and 43,743 families living in the county. The population density was. There were 74,837 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the county was 89.2% white, 4.7% black or African American, 2.6% Asian, 0.2% American Indian, 1.3% from other races, and 2.1% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 4.7% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 24.6% were Italian, 21.2% were Irish, 14.0% were English, 13.5% were German, 11.1% were Polish, and 3.4% were American.
Of the 67,202 households, 29.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.9% were married couples living together, 9.4% had a female householder with no husband present, 34.9% were non-families, and 28.2% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 2.95. The median age was 43.1 years.
The median income for a household in the county was $74,906 and the median income for a family was $91,589. Males had a median income of $62,031 versus $50,031 for females. The per capita income for the county was $37,519. About 3.0% of families and 6.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.7% of those under age 18 and 4.3% of those age 65 or over.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 155,071 people, 61,341 households, and 40,607 families living in the county. The population density was. There were 67,285 housing units at an average density of. According to the Census of 2010, the racial makeup of the county was 89.22% White, 4.64% Black or African American, 0.17% Native American, 2.56% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 1.30% from other races, and 2.06% from two or more races. 4.73% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 20.4% were of Italian, 14.3% Irish, 11.1% English, 8.9% Polish and 8.2% German ancestry. 91.1% spoke English, 2.6% Spanish, 1.9% Italian, 1.2% French and 1.0% Polish as their first language.
There were 61,341 households, out of which 30.30% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.40% were married couples living together, 8.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.80% were non-families. 27.20% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 2.98.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 23.20% under the age of 18, 7.30% from 18 to 24, 31.10% from 25 to 44, 24.80% from 45 to 64, and 13.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.10 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $59,175, and the median income for a family was $71,319. Males had a median income of $48,341 versus $35,607 for females. The per capita income for the county was $28,251. About 2.30% of families and 4.60% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.00% of those under age 18 and 5.90% of those age 65 or over.

Demographic breakdown by town

Income

Data is from the 2010 United States Census and the 2006-2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates.

Rank	Town		Per capita income	Median household income	Median family income	Population	Number of households
1	Fenwick	Borough	$110,127	$114,375	$250,000+	43	26
2	Essex	Town	$57,365	$87,480	$105,982	6,683	2,916
3	Killingworth	Town	$45,404	$99,500	$108,232	6,525	2,474
4	Old Saybrook	Town	$43,400	$79,985	$99,595	10,242	4,247
5	Cromwell	Town	$41,926	$82,012	$99,362	14,005	5,752
6	Chester	Town	$40,783	$80,185	$89,760	3,994	1,714
7	Durham	Town	$39,579	$105,417	$110,583	7,388	2,610
8	Portland	Town	$39,100	$86,661	$96,016	9,508	3,822
9	Westbrook	Town	$38,158	$61,069	$72,969	6,938	2,948
10	Haddam	Town	$37,324	$86,179	$100,343	8,346	3,218
11	East Haddam	Town	$37,156	$82,695	$86,023	9,126	3,593
12	Clinton	Town	$37,117	$74,174	$82,839	13,260	5,303
13	Middlefield	Town	$36,747	$80,392	$94,432	4,425	1,742
14	Deep River	Town	$35,564	$65,250	$81,641	4,629	1,940
15	East Hampton	Town	$34,555	$88,281	$95,854	12,959	5,060
16	Middletown	City	$31,348	$57,655	$78,006	47,648	19,863

Race

Data is from the 2007-2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, ACS Demographic and Housing Estimates, "Race alone or in combination with one or more other races."

Communities

City

Middletown

Towns

Villages are named localities within towns, but have no separate corporate existence from the towns they are in.

Politics

Middlesex County was a Republican leaning county for most of its history, but since 1992 it has become reliably Democratic.