1939: Connecticut

Area and Population.

With a land area of 4,820 sq. mi. Connecticut ranks forty-sixth in size among the states. Its population of 1,606,903 (U. S. census, 1930) ranks it twenty-ninth. The Bureau of Vital Statistics estimated the population on July 1, 1939 as 1,811,007.

The census of 1930 showed 1,131,770 urban residents; 1,576,673 whites, 29,354 Negroes; 1,222,267 native born, 384,636 foreign born. Of the last the larger numbers are from Italy, Poland, Canada, and Ireland, in that order. Hartford, the capital, had in 1930 a population of 164,072. The next cities in order of size are New Haven, 162,055; Bridgeport, 146,716; Waterbury, 99,902; and New Britain, 68,128.

Education.

The General Assembly changed the name of the Connecticut State College, located at Storrs, to the University of Connecticut. About $3,000,000 is being expended at this institution for new construction which will greatly improve its equipment and extend its facilities. In the school year 1938-39 enrollment in the public schools of the state declined by about three per cent, there being 211,503 pupils in the elementary grades and 84,026 in the high schools. The State Department of Education completed a general reorganization of its personnel and activities; inaugurated improved standards for the certification of teachers; and began a comprehensive study of the history of education in the state.

Agriculture.

Agricultural production, in spite of prolonged dry weather in the summer, held up well and some crops were above normal. The leading products in the state were, in order of value in 1938, hay, tobacco, potatoes, apples, corn, peaches. The cultivation of vegetables and small fruits has been steadily increasing and now utilizes more acreage than other crops except hay and corn. The year showed an increase in both poultry and cattle (especially milch cows) over previous records.

Industry.

Connecticut's natural resources, aside from quarry products, are very limited. The most important occupation in the state is manufacturing. The output in 1937 produced by 262,620 workers, was valued at $1,261,788,693. Metal products, machines and machined parts, textiles, clothing and hats employ three-fourths of the state's industrial workers. The most important new industry is the manufacture of airplanes and their parts, the state ranking third in their production. Strikes have been much less serious in 1938 and 1939 than in 1937 when about one per cent of the workers were involved.

Finance, Banking and Insurance.

The state closed the fiscal year ending June 30, 1939, with a balanced budget, expenses having totaled $65,250,000. As of September 30, 1939, the number of accounts in the 72 mutual savings banks of the state had increased to 977,993, with deposits of $720,499,318. In addition there were 261,342 savings accounts in state banks and trust companies, with deposits of $98,296,403.

On December 31, 1938, exclusive of group insurance, there were 1,760,003 life insurance policies in force in the state. On the same date the five Connecticut life insurance companies, whose main offices are in Hartford, had 2,045,157 policies in force, with admitted assets of $2,253,594,633. Twenty large and several small companies engaged in fire, casualty, and other insurance, operate under Connecticut charters.

Legislative Matters.

In the 1939 General Assembly the Republicans had a large majority in the House but in the Senate two Socialists held the balance of power. The session was notable for the leadership of young and comparatively inexperienced members and for freedom from bosses and lobbyists. After the lapse of a century and a half the Legislature ratified the first ten amendments to the Federal Constitution, but refused to ratify the child labor amendment. The largest biennial budget, $106,206,491, was balanced by rigid economies and without new taxation. Among the achievements of the session were uniform audit of town and municipal budgets; reform of the minor court system, with a proposed Constitutional amendment to change the method of selection of the judges of such courts; provision for alternate jurors in criminal and civil cases; authorization of hospital insurance; creation of a state development commission; revision of statutes regulating drugs, foods, and cosmetics to conform with Federal law, and various improvements in welfare, labor and liquor legislation.

Several important measures were rejected because they involved new financial commitments. See also MUNICIPAL GOVERNMENT.

Events of the Year.

Only town and municipal elections took place in 1939 and they revealed no significant political changes. The trials of the cases growing out of the Merritt Parkway and Waterbury scandals resulted in conviction of most of the persons under indictment. In the Waterbury trial, which was one of the longest in the state's annals, the presiding judge, Ernest A. Inglis, won encomiums for his able discharge of a difficult task.

Highways and Traffic.

In 1939 the Merritt Parkway was substantially completed, only four miles remaining to be opened. Work has also been begun on the Wilbur Cross Highway which will continue from the Merritt Parkway through Hartford to the Massachusetts line. New bridges across the Connecticut at Hartford and across the Thames at New London have been authorized. With 2,781 miles of trunk line and state aid roads, and over 1,500 miles of town aid roads, besides the streets in cities and boroughs, Connecticut now has improved highways nearly adequate to general needs. The principal problem now is not the construction of new routes but the further improvement of those already established.

By October 1, 1939, the number of car registrations had reached 468,312 and of licensed operators, 549,259, figures well in excess of the highest 1938 records for the full year. Gasoline sales indicate a remarkable increase in miles travelled. Vigorous efforts to secure greater safety on the highways reduced the accident ratio for 1938 to the lowest point recorded, and apparently the figure will be about the same for 1939.

Welfare and Correction.

State institutions include the following: for the care of mental cases, the Connecticut State Hospital at Middletown, Norwich State Hospital at Norwich, and Fairfield State Hospital at Newtown; for feeble-minded children, the Mansfield State Training School and Hospital at Mansfield, and a new institution under construction at South Britain; for veterans, Fitch's Home for the Soldiers at Noroton Heights, and a new institution under construction at Rocky Hill; for the deaf, Mystic Oral School for the Deaf, at Mystic; and for tubercular patients, five state sanitoria: Cedarcrest at Hartford, Undercliff at Meriden, Uncas-on-Thames at Norwich, Seaside at Waterford, and Laurel Heights at Shelton.

Penal institutions include Connecticut State Prison at Wethersfield, Connecticut Reformatory at Cheshire, Connecticut School for Boys at Meriden, Connecticut State Farm for Women and State Prison for Women at Niantic, and Long Lane Farm (for girls) at Middletown. A large amount of new construction is in process at Connecticut State Hospital, Fairfield State Hospital, and several other institutions, most of which will be completed in 1940. The costs are being defrayed partly from Federal funds and partly from the proceeds of a bond issue authorized by the General Assembly of 1937.

State Officers.

The elected state officers for the term 1939-41 are; Governor, Raymond E. Baldwin; Lieutenant-Governor, James L. McConaughy; Secretary of State, Mrs. Sara B. Crawford; Treasurer, Joseph E. Talbot; Comptroller, Fred R. Zeller; Attorney-General, Francis A. Pallotti; Commissioner of Education, Alonzo G. Grace.

United States Senators.

Francis T. Maloney, John A. Danaher.