Greenwich, Connecticut, United States

🇺🇸 Greenwich is a town in south-western Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. The largest town on Connecticut's Gold Coast, Greenwich is home to many hedge funds and other financial service firms. Greenwich is a principal community of the Bridgeport–Stamford–Norwalk–Danbury metropolitan statistical area, which comprises all of Fairfield County, and is part of the Western Connecticut Planning Region. The town is the southwesternmost municipality in both the State of Connecticut and the six-state region of New England. The town is named after Greenwich, a royal borough of London in the United Kingdom.

It is the largest town on Connecticut's affluent Gold Coast. Greenwich is home to many hedge funds and financial services firms due to its residential setting and proximity to New York City.

History The town of Greenwich was settled in 1640, by the agents Robert Feake and Captain Daniel Patrick, for Gov. Theophilus Eaton of New Haven Colony, who purchased the land from the Siwanoy Indians in exchange of 25 English coats. One of the founders was Elizabeth Fones Winthrop, daughter-in-law of John Winthrop, founder and governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. What is now called Greenwich Point was known for much of the area's early history as "Elizabeth's Neck" in recognition of Elizabeth Fones and the 1640 purchase of the Point and much of the area now known as Old Greenwich. Greenwich was declared a township by the Connecticut General Assembly in Hartford on May 11, 1665.

During the American Revolution, General Israel Putnam made a daring escape from the British on February 26, 1779, in Greenwich. Although British forces captured and sacked the town, Putnam was able to warn Stamford.

In 1974, Gulliver's Restaurant and Bar, on the border of Greenwich and Port Chester, burned, killing 24 young people.

In 1983, the Mianus River Bridge, which carries traffic on Interstate 95 over an estuary, collapsed, resulting in the death of three people.

For many years, Greenwich Point (locally termed "Tod's Point"), was open only to town residents and their guests. However, a lawyer sued, saying his rights to freedom of assembly were threatened because he was not allowed to go there. The lower courts disagreed, but the Supreme Court of Connecticut agreed, and Greenwich was forced to amend its beach access policy to all four beaches in 2001. These beaches include Greenwich Point Park, Island Beach, Great Captain Island, and Byram Park.

Geography According to the United States Census Bureau in 2000, the town had a total area of 67.2 square miles (174 km²), of which 47.8 square miles (124 km²) is land and 19.4 square miles (50 km²), or 28.88%, is water. In terms of area, Greenwich is twice the size of Manhattan. The town is bordered to the West by Port Chester, New York, and Rye Brook, New York. To the North it is bordered by Armonk, New York, and Banksville, New York. To the South it is bordered by the Long Island Sound. To the East, it is bordered by Stamford, Connecticut.

Neighborhoods and sections The U.S. Census Bureau recognizes nine CDPs within the town: Byram, Cos Cob, Glenville, Indian Field, Old Greenwich, Pemberwick, Riverside, Rock Ridge and the Greenwich CDP covering the historic municipal centre of the town. The USPS lists separate zip codes for "Greenwich" (spanning two zip codes), Cos Cob, Old Greenwich, and Riverside, for a total of five zip codes, plus a sixth zip code for PO Box. Additionally, Greenwich is often further divided into several smaller, unofficial neighborhoods.

Greenwich's Hispanic and Latin American population is concentrated in the south-western corner of the town. In 2011, numerous neighborhoods were described by Business Insider as being among the richest neighborhoods in America. • Back Country • Banksville (Connecticut side) • Belle Haven • Bruce Park • Byram • Chickahominy • Cos Cob • Edgewood • Fourth Ward (Fourth Ward Historic District) • Glenville • Downtown/Central Greenwich • Greenwich Cove • Holly Hill • Mianus • Mid-Country • Milbank • Milbrook • Municipal Center District • North Mianus • North Street (refers to the neighborhood surrounding North Street) • Old Greenwich (Sound Beach) • Palmer Hill • Pemberwick • Pine Hill • Riverbank • Riverside • Riversville • Rock Ridge • Round Hill • Stanwich

Historical sites • Bush-Holley House • Putnam Cottage • Thomas Lyon House

Islands Calf Island is a 29-acre (120,000 m²) island about 3,000 feet (910 m) from the Byram shore in Greenwich.

More than half of the island (on the west side) is a bird sanctuary off-limits to members of the public without permission to visit. As of 2006 the island is available for overnight stays for those with permits, otherwise the east side is open from dawn until dusk.

Great Captain Island is also off the coast of Greenwich, and includes the southernmost point in Connecticut. There is a U.S. Coast Guard lighthouse on this island, as well as a designated area as a bird sanctuary. The lighthouse is a skeletal tower.

Island Beach or "Little Captain Island" once was the venue for the town's annual Island Beach Day. Ventriloquist Paul Winchell and his dummy, Jerry Mahoney, once came for a show, and on another occasion the Connecticut National Guard let adults and children fire machine guns into the water, according to an article in the Greenwich Time.

Island Beach has changed over the decades. The bathhouse once on the island's eastern shore is gone, and erosion is slowly eating away at the beaches themselves.

Wealth Greenwich is home to two of the wealthiest zip codes in Connecticut, 06830 and 06831, with average adjusted gross incomes of $638,560 and $721,550, and median household incomes of $109,250 and $155,417, respectively. In recent decades, the town has attracted wealthy expats from around the globe due to its extremely low tax rate, school system, and proximity to Manhattan, which is an hour by Metro North. The median listing price for a home in the town was $2.3 million in 2021. The coastal neighborhood of Belle Haven, along with Backcountry, have some of the wealthiest single family real estate in the world. In 2014, the highest asking price for a residential property in town was the Copper Beech Estate at $190 million. It later sold for $120 million.

Economy Greenwich, along with Stamford, are the economic centres of Fairfield County and its metropolitan statistical area. Prominent companies based in the town of Greenwich are: AQR Capital, Blue Harbour Group, Blue Sky Studios/20th Century Animation, Blyth, Inc., Cambridge Solutions, First Reserve Corporation, Interactive Brokers, Nestlé Waters North America, North Street Capital, Silver Point Capital, Viking Global Investors, W. R. Berkley, a holding company for subsidiaries that sell property-casualty insurance, XFL, and XPO Logistics. Other major institutions in the township are Greenwich Hospital, Hyatt Regency, Tudor Investment Corporation, Eversource Energy, Brunswick School, and Camuto Group.

Arts and culture Greenwich is home to the Greenwich International Film Festival, which acts in coordination with nonprofits to promote socially conscious filmmaking in the city's downtown in an annual June festival, in addition to screenings and events held year-round.

The Greenwich Symphony Orchestra begun in 1958 as the Greenwich Philharmonia, it became fully professional by 1967. The Greenwich Choral Society, founded in 1925, performs locally and elsewhere, including in New York City and Europe.

The Greenwich post office contains a mural, The Packet Sails from Greenwich Green, painted in 1939 by Victoria Hutson Huntley.

The Bruce Museum is a town-owned institution with sections devoted to art and natural history. Putnam Cottage (Knapp Tavern) historic house museum, is also located within Greenwich.

Acacia Lodge No. 85, Ancient, Free & Accepted Masons, founded in 1857 in the top level of the old Cos Cob School House, is located in the town. Its members were originally of Union Lodge No. 5, founded 1763, and though its "home base" was Stamford, it was given the jurisdiction of "Stamford, Horseneck and parts adjacent". Union Lodge often met in Greenwich, and the first recorded meeting place was Knapp's Tavern on the King's Highway.

Recreation The Greenwich Y.M.C.A. and Greenwich Y.W.C.A. offer fitness and social services.

Arch Street, The Greenwich Teen Center has age-specific programs and events on weekdays and weekends.

Dorothy Hamill Rink is a town-owned ice rink open seasonally.

Beaches The town has four beaches on Long Island Sound: • Greenwich Point • Byram Beach • Island Beach (Little Captain's Island) • Great Captain Island

Private membership clubs • Greenwich Country Club • The Milbrook Club • Round Hill Club • The Stanwich Club • Burning Tree Country Club • Field Club of Greenwich • Tamarack Country Club • Fairview Country Club • Indian Harbor Yacht Club • Riverside Yacht Club • Belle Haven Club • Old Greenwich Yacht Club • Rocky Point Club • Greenwich Water Club • Greenwich Boat & Yacht Club • Innis Arden Golf Club

Education Greenwich Public Schools operates the public schools. Greenwich High School is the district's sole high school. As of 2012 elementary schools had the same pattern of racial segregation as the town as a whole with Hispanic students concentrated in the two elementary schools in the south-western corner of the district, New Lebanon and Hamilton Avenue. The 3 middle schools have balanced enrollment. There is a Connecticut racial diversity law which requires that the percentage of students in an ethnic group in a school may not deviate by more than 25% from the average for the district. Thus, as of 2013, the district was out of compliance and was searching for solutions.

Elementary Schools: • Cos Cob School • Glenville School • Hamilton Avenue School • International School at Dundee • Julian Curtiss School • New Lebanon School • North Mianus School • North Street School • Old Greenwich School • Parkway School • Riverside School

Middle Schools: • Central Middle School • Eastern Middle School • Western Middle School

High Schools: • Greenwich High School

Private schools Approximately 25-30% of K-12 residents are enrolled in private schools, a high ratio compared to other municipalities in CT and elsewhere in the region. • Brunswick School, a non-sectarian boys' school (the brother school to Greenwich Academy) (Pre-K–12) • Greenwich Academy, a non-sectarian girls' school (the sister school to Brunswick) (Pre-K–12) • Eagle Hill School (K–10) • Convent of the Sacred Heart, a girls' school with Catholic affiliation (Pre-K–12) • Greenwich Catholic School (Pre-K–8), 471 North Street (of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Bridgeport) • Greenwich Country Day School (originally nursery–9) (Acquired Stanwich School for 10–12, 2017) • Greenwich Japanese School, the New York Nihonjin gakko, a Japanese expatriate school (K–9), which moved to Greenwich from New York City in 1992; it shares the former Rosemary Hall campus with Carmel Academy. • Escuela Argentina en Greenwich (K–8), the only Spanish language international school in the New York metro. • The Stanwich School (Pre-K–12), located at 257 Stanwich Road • Carmel Academy (K–8), a Jewish school sharing a campus with Greenwich Japanese School. In 2010, the school changed its name from Westchester Fairfield Hebrew Academy. • Whitby School (18 months through grade 8), a Montessori and International Baccalaureate World School (IB).

Government The town of Greenwich is one political and taxing body, but consists of several distinct sections or neighborhoods, such as Banksville, Byram, Cos Cob, Glenville, Mianus, Old Greenwich, Riverside and Greenwich (sometimes referred to as central, or downtown, Greenwich). Of these neighborhoods, three (Cos Cob, Old Greenwich, and Riverside) have separate postal names and ZIP codes.

Transport The town is served by the Metro-North Railroad's New Haven Line (the four stations, from west to east, are Greenwich, Cos Cob, Riverside, and Old Greenwich) and is approximately a 50-minute train ride to Grand Central Terminal in Manhattan on the express train and a 60-minute ride on the local. The Amtrak Acela, Northeast Regional, and Vermonter trains stop in the adjacent city of Stamford.

Interstate 95 goes through the southern end of town, and there are four exits from I-95 in Greenwich, exits 2 through 5. The Boston Post Road (also known as East or West Putnam Avenue or simply Route 1) also goes through town, as does the Merritt Parkway, although the Merritt Parkway is a considerable distance from the downtown area. Interstate 684 passes through Greenwich, but cannot be entered or exited there, and the nearest interchange is at the Westchester County Airport in New York State.

Westchester County Airport is the closest commercial airport to Greenwich. It takes approximately 15 minutes to drive from the town's center. This is followed by LaGuardia Airport in Queens, New York, a 35-minute drive approximately. John F. Kennedy International Airport in Queens, New York, is the closest international airport, a one-hour drive approximately. Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey is also easily accessible from Greenwich, taking approximately one hour to drive to.

According to the DataHaven Community Wellbeing Survey, a statewide program funded by various agencies and philanthropies, 4% of adults in Greenwich are "transportation insecure", meaning that they have had to stay at home during the past year due to a lack of adequate transportation. The comparable rate for all adults statewide is 13%.

Fire department The town of Greenwich is protected by the paid career members of the Greenwich Fire Department (GFD) and eight all-volunteer fire companies, in addition to a Fire Police Patrol. The paid GFD is made up of 106 paid firefighters, who staff 6 Engine Companies and 1 Truck Company, as well as several special units, in 6 Fire Stations (shared with volunteer companies), under the command of a Deputy Chief (Tour Commander) per shift, who in-turn reports to the Chief of Department. The 7 volunteer fire companies are made up of a total of approximately 100 volunteer firefighters, who man 9 volunteer engines, 2 volunteer ladders, 4 tankers, 6 squads, 3 utility units, 3 marine units (fireboats), 1 dive rescue unit, 1 special operations unit, 1 heavy rescue and several other support units. The volunteer fire companies are quartered in 7 of the fire stations, located throughout the town, and respond to emergency calls with the paid GFD Units. The all-volunteer fire companies are each commanded by a District Chief, who in-turn reports to a Deputy Chief of the GFD, who reports to the Chief of Department. There is also the Cos Cob Fire Police Patrol, one of the only remaining Fire Police Patrols in Fairfield County, Connecticut. The Patrol operates 2 Units, Patrol 2 (P2) and Utility 2 (U2). The paid Greenwich Fire Department and the 7 all-volunteer Greenwich Fire Companies respond to, on average, approximately 5,000 emergency calls annually.

Police department Located at 11 Bruce Place, GPD has 87 police officers, 22 detectives, 19 sergeants, 10 lieutenants, 3 captains, and one deputy chief with 20+ civilian dispatchers and administrative personnel. and includes a K-9 unit.

Libraries • Byram Shubert Library • Cos Cob Library • Greenwich Library • Perrot Library

Newspapers and print • Greenwich Magazine, owned by Moffly Publications, which publishes other local magazines. • Greenwich Sentinel, local weekly printed newspaper. • Greenwich Time, a daily newspaper based in Greenwich; published by Hearst Corporation, which also owns The Advocate of Stamford. Some sections are identical to the same sections in The Advocate, including the arts and business sections.