About Our Town

View the Middlefield Town Profile Connecticut Economic Resource Center (PDF).

History

Middlefield, in Middlesex County, is so named because it is halfway between Middletown and Durham, and Middletown and Meriden. For such a small community, Middlefield has an abundance of wonderful history that goes back to the late 17th century and many first settlers of Connecticut. The Old North Burying Ground was established for those living west of Middletown and the first burial was in 1738.

Middlefield became a Town in 1866 by an act of the Connecticut Legislature. The town was previously part of the City of Middletown.

First Selectmen Jon A. Brayshaw (in office 2005 to 2015) and Charles R. Augur (in office 1995-2005) having both served five terms as First Selectman, and have been the longest serving First Selectmen of the Town.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 13.3 square miles (34 km2), of which, 12.7 square miles (33 km2) of it is land and 0.6 square miles (1.6 km2) of it (4.65%) is water.

The west side of Middlefield is flanked by the Metacomet Ridge, a mountainous trap rock ridgeline that stretches from Long Island Sound to nearly the Vermont border. Notable mountains of the Metacomet Ridge in Middlefield include Higby Mountain and Besek Mountain. The 50 mile Mattabesett Trail traverses the ridge. The Nature Conservancy manages the summit and ledges of Higby Mountain.

Education

Middlefield, along with Durham, CT, forms Regional School District 13. It offers a traditional as well as an "Integrated Day" program of education for students in the two communities. The schools in Regional School District 13 are Brewster Elementary School (K through 3 Lyman Elementary School (Grades kindergarten through 4), Memorial Middle School (Grades 4 through 6), Strong Middle School (Grades 7 through 8), and Coginchaug Regional High School (Grades 9 through 12). The town is also home to the private pre-school-8 school The Independent Day School.

Town Seal

The town seal is a view of Middlefield as seen through a gun sight. The crosshairs represent the gun sight manufacturing that has taken place in Middlefield for many years. The four quadrants of the gun sight are broken into different aspects of the town of Middlefield. The upper left-hand quadrant is a picture of the 1700s saltbox homes that still stand in Middlefield. The upper right-hand quadrant represents the orchards and farmland that make up much of the open space of Middlefield. The lower left-hand quadrant represents many of the outdoor activities that go on in Middlefield such as fishing, hunting, boating, skiing, golfing, and many other activities. The lower right-hand quadrant is the old pistol shop that used to be a major part of Middlefield's makeup. The seal was designed by Donald Ginter.