New Haven (population 129,779) is a city in Connecticut. It is situated on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in the county of New haven. New Haven has grown by around 5% since 2000, more than most cities in New England. It is possibly best known as the home of Yale University, an institution that has been important to the city's economy. Yale is the largest employer of New Haven.
The city of New Haven is the 2nd-largest population within the state of Connecticut. New Haven is also part of the bigger Greater New Haven metropolitan area, that is home to over 500,000 people.
In the year 1638, the town was founded by English Puritans who built the city on the "Nine Square Plan," or four-by-four grid. Those original city blocks are a National Historic Planning Landmark. New Haven Green is the central common block, that forms the center of downtown New Haven. The city of New Haven is occasionally called "The Elm City" due to many trees planted there during the first public tree planting program in America.
New Haven has a healthy, diversified economy. Biotechnology, hospitals, professional services, financial services, and retail trade help to form its economic base. More than half of the economy is based on healthcare, education and financial services. Reaserach and development organizations and high-technology companies are attracted by Yale University and Yale Medical School attract. The burgeoning bio-technology sector gets its boost chiefly from local healthcare, Yale Medical School and pharmaceutical firms.
About 9 percent of the economy is manufacturing based, manufacturing everything from airplane parts to watches. In the state of Connecticut, New Haven is the biggest wholesale distribution center. The main employment sectors within the city of New Haven are education and health services; transportation, utilities and trade; government; manufacturing; business and professional services; leisure and hospitality; and finance.
There are three Fortune 1000 companies making their home within Greater New Haven: the headquarters of The Knights of Columbus are in New Haven, Amphenol is based in Wallingford and Hubbell, the electrical equipment producer is based in Orange.