CONNECTICUT, southernmost of the New
England states of the U.S., bounded on the N by Massachusetts, on the E by
Rhode Island, on the S by Long Island Sound, and on the W by New York
State.
Known as the Constitution State, because its delegates played a
crucial role in drawing up the U.S. Constitution at the Constitutional
Convention of 1787, Connecticut entered the Union on Jan. 9, 1788, as the fifth
of the original 13 states. By the mid-19th century the state's economy was
dominated by manufacturing, and Hartford, its capital, had become one of the
chief centers of the U.S. insurance industry. In the early 1990s Connecticut
was particularly noted for producing aircraft engines, helicopters, submarines,
and firearms. The state's name is derived from an Algonquian Indian term
probably meaning "place of the long river," referring to the Connecticut River.
Although about 56% of Connecticut is wooded, the state contains little
timber of commercial value. Northern hardwoods, such as beech, birch, maple,
and oak, predominate, and some conifers are intermixed.
The principal mammals of Connecticut are
deer, rabbit, squirrel, fox, chipmunk, otter, and woodchuck. Among the larger
game birds are pheasant, grouse, and duck. Other birds include robin, blue jay,
woodpecker, crow, warbler, and sparrow. Clams, oysters, striped bass, and
bluefish are found in the marine waters of Long Island Sound, and shad, perch,
pickerel, bass, and trout inhabit the freshwater rivers and lakes. |
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