"The Constitution State"

Welcome to Connecticut

Connecticut/Massachusetts border on I-91
August 8, 2009

Connecticut checks in at one of the smallest states in the country, but packs considerable clout around the county. It has the benefit of being considered part of the New York City metro area, as so many people prefer to living in the more rural areas of the Constitution State than the heart of the Big Apple. A lot of people share this notion, as the state is one of the most densely populated in the country and has the highest standard of living among all the states. But it's not just proximity to New York that makes Connecticut appealing, as it has some nice coastlines to the south and dense forests to the north. I love the geography of Connecticut as well, as it has two anomalies to its shape: a panhandle to the southwest and a notch on its northern border, leaving it with an interesting shape.

Sometimes holding out for an interstate welcome sign is a disappointment. This was one of those times. I first entered Connecticut along U.S. 6 on the Rhode Island border and passed this wimpy little sign. I chalked this up to being on a less popular border crossing and surrounded by trees. I waited until I was headed out of Connecticut to get another sign along I-91, hoping it would be more memorable. I guess I need to stop being surprised that the sign was exactly the same. Aside from the little decal in the lower left corner, this sign looks exactly like one of the blue road signs that tells you how far it is to the next rest stop, even using the same lettering. Plus, this one was on the side of steep hill with almost no shoulder for parking, making the whole experience even more painful.

Welcome to Hartford

August 7, 2009

Whenever I think of Hartford, I immediately think of the former NHL team that used to play there: the Whalers. It always seemed like Hartford got a raw deal when the team packed up and moved to Raleigh in 1997, and it must have been doubly painful to see the Hurricanes win the Stanley Cup in 2006. Anyway, they certainly left a booming city behind, as I don't think I've ever seen as many skyscrapers in a city with fewer than 150,000 people. This is due in large part to the various insurance companies that have their headquarters located here, and it makes for a nice skyline, albeit they are all clumped close together. These buildings seem to be in sharp contrast to some of the outlying areas, which have older structures that date back centuries.

New England loves to embrace its history, and it is fitting that the Connecticut capitol resembles a medieval castle, although not quite as much as New York's. The building has very sharp features and numerous little spires popping up along the front. The rotunda seems too narrow for the building, and it made me a little homesick, as Michigan's capitol has the same problem. Getting this shot was a little frustrating due to the trees in the front, so I climbed the steps of the Connecticut Supreme Court for a better angle, but I still couldn't keep the traffic light out of the bottom of the shot. I would like to point out that the capitol is the only one in New England to have a sizeable plot of land around it for monuments and statues (and even a pavilion for concerts on the other side of the building), as the other states have their capitols located on small plots of land.

Miscellaneous Connecticut Symbols

State Route Sign

License Plate

Seal

Quarter