Connecticut becomes the 5th state to become part of the United States.

Connecticut’s name is derived from the Indian word quonehtacut, which translates to long tidal river – a reference to the Connecticut River. It is the longest river in New England and is 407 miles long. A number of settlements were built by the river and Hartford, Connecticut’s capital, merges with the river.

On this day January 9th, in 1788, Connecticut becomes the 5th state of the United States. Connecticut is bordered by New York to the West, Massachusetts to the North, and Rhode Island to the east. Connecticut is blessed with having variation in its land with mountains, farms, and even beaches.

The colony of Connecticut was founded in the early 1630’s, and in 1636 a large group of Puritans came from Massachusetts and settled there. It had originally been settled by the Dutch as a fur trading outpost, but by 1654, with the much larger population of English, the Dutch left. In 2010 Connecticut had the highest per capita income, the gross state product being $237 billion, and the per capita income being $54,117. It is also the fourth most densely populated state with 3,580,709 people, ahead of it for being most densely populated is: New Jersey, Masschusetts, and Rhode Island – all part of New England.