Hartford–Springfield

{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2024}} {{Use American English|date=July 2024}} {{Infobox settlement | name = Greater Hartford–Springfield | settlement_type = [[Conurbation]] | image_skyline = [[File:Hartford CT (cropped).JPG|200px]]<br>[[File:Springfield Skyline, MA.jpg|200px]] | image_alt = | image_caption = Top to bottom: a view of [[Hartford]] as seen from East Hartford; a portion of [[Springfield, Massachusetts|Springfield]]'s skyline, as seen from West Springfield | nickname = | image_map = | mapsize = 200px | map_caption = | subdivision_type = Country | subdivision_name = [[United States]] | subdivision_type1 = [[U.S. state|State]] | subdivision_name1 = [[Connecticut]]<br>[[Massachusetts]] | subdivision_type2 = Subregions | subdivision_name2 = * [[Greater Hartford]] * [[Springfield metropolitan area, Massachusetts|Springfield Metropolitan Area]] | subdivision_type3 = Counties | subdivision_name3 = '''Massachusetts''' * [[Franklin County, Massachusetts|Franklin County]] * [[Hampden County, Massachusetts|Hampden County]] * [[Hampshire County, Massachusetts|Hampshire County]] '''Connecticut''' * [[Hartford County, Connecticut|Hartford County]] * [[Middlesex County, Connecticut|Middlesex County]] * [[New London County, Connecticut|New London County]] * [[Tolland County, Connecticut|Tolland County]] | unit_pref = US | area_blank1_title = Seven-county | area_blank1_sq_mi = 4,092 | area_footnotes = <ref>{{cite web|url=https://explorer.naco.org|title=NACo County Explorer|publisher=National Association of Counties|access-date=January 17, 2019}}</ref> | population_as_of = 2020 | population_blank1_title = Seven-county | population_blank1 = 2,162,136<ref name="USCensusEst2017">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/data/tables.2017.html|title=Population and Housing Unit Estimates|access-date=June 27, 2018|archive-date=May 4, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180504181213/https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/data/tables.2017.html|url-status=live}}</ref> | population_density_blank2_sq_mi = 533 | timezone = [[Eastern Time Zone|Eastern]] | utc_offset = −05:00 | timezone_DST = [[Eastern Daylight Time|PDT]] | utc_offset_DST = −04:00 | area_code = [[Area code 413|413]], [[Area code 860|860]]/[[Area code 959|959]] | area_code_type = [[North American Numbering Plan|Area codes]] }}

The '''greater Hartford–Springfield area''' is an [[metropolitan area|urban region and surrounding suburban areas]] that encompasses both north-central [[Connecticut]] and the southern [[Connecticut River Valley]] in [[western Massachusetts]]; its major city centers are [[Springfield, Massachusetts]], and [[Hartford, Connecticut]].<ref name="westernmassedc1">{{cite web |url=http://www.westernmassedc.com/Data__Demographics/knowledgecorridor/ |title= Knowledge Corridor® |publisher=Western Mass EDC |access-date=2012-08-04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120324153022/http://www.westernmassedc.com/Data__Demographics/knowledgecorridor/ |archive-date=2012-03-24 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

The area is also sometimes called the '''Knowledge Corridor''', initially employed as a 2012 rename ("New England's Knowledge Corridor") for the Hartford–Springfield Economic Partnership, an interstate cooperative venture to foster an economic, cultural, and civic partnership between the two major cities on the [[Connecticut River]].<ref name="westernmassedc1"/><ref>{{cite web |author=David Driver |url=http://www.hartfordspringfield.com/about_us/overview |title=About Us Overview |publisher=Hartford Springfield Economic Partnership |access-date=2012-08-04 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120913032246/http://www.hartfordspringfield.com/about_us/overview |archive-date=2012-09-13 |url-status=dead }}</ref> The term Knowledge Corridor has gained a degree of currency, mostly with some government organizations as well as local businesses and universities using the name.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/fact-sheet-high-speed-intercity-passenger-rail-program-northeast |title=Fact Sheet: High Speed Intercity Passenger Rail Program: Northeast Region |date=2010-01-28 |access-date=2012-08-04 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170121104613/https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/fact-sheet-high-speed-intercity-passenger-rail-program-northeast |via=[[NARA|National Archives]] |work=[[whitehouse.gov]] |archive-date=2017-01-21 }}</ref> The [[New Haven–Springfield Line]] and [[Connecticut River Line]] form the primary rail route through the region, and are sometimes themselves called the Knowledge Corridor in planning documents.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.massdot.state.ma.us/knowledgecorridor/ |title=Knowledge Corridor – Restore Vermonter Project |publisher=Massachusetts Department of Transportation |access-date=7 February 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140315165713/http://www.massdot.state.ma.us/knowledgecorridor/ |archive-date= 2014-03-15 }}</ref>

The Hartford–Springfield region is [[New England]]'s second-most populous [[conurbation]] after [[Greater Boston]], with approximately 1.9 million residents and 160,000 university students.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://nuwnotes1.nu.com/apps/wmeco/webcontent.nsf/AR/econ_review_2010/$File/2010_wmeco_Review.pdf |title=Western Massachusetts 2010-2011 Economic Review |date=Jan 2011 |publisher=Western Massachusetts Electric |access-date=2011-08-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150202012925/http://nuwnotes1.nu.com/apps/wmeco/webcontent.nsf/AR/econ_review_2010/$File/2010_wmeco_Review.pdf |archive-date=2015-02-02 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author=Jim Kinney |others=Photo by Laura Dinan |url=http://www.masslive.com/business-news/index.ssf/2010/12/rail_and_port_connections_are_critical_t.html |title=On the right track: CSX rails and access to ports could stoke Pioneer Valley's economy |date=12 December 2010 |publisher=masslive.com |access-date=2012-08-04 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120924105937/http://www.masslive.com/business-news/index.ssf/2010/12/rail_and_port_connections_are_critical_t.html |archive-date= 2012-09-24 }}</ref> The region also features "a dense concentration" of hospitals and over 29 universities and [[liberal arts college]]s, including a large number of the United States' most prestigious higher-education institutions.<ref name="westernmassedc1"/> The Knowledge Corridor includes surrounding cities such as [[Northampton, Massachusetts|Northampton]] and [[Amherst, Massachusetts|Amherst]] in the north, and [[New Britain, Connecticut|New Britain]] and [[Middletown, Connecticut|Middletown]] in the south.

Hartford and Springfield's urban cores lie only {{convert|23.9|mi|km}} apart; however, their efforts to cooperate have long been hampered by state border issues, beginning with a lawsuit in 1638.<ref name="masslive1">{{cite web|author=Wayne Phaneuf |url=http://www.masslive.com/history/index.ssf/2011/05/375_years_of_change_business_and_work_landscape_help_define_springfield.html |title=375 years of changing business and work landscape help define Springfield |date=22 May 2011 |publisher=masslive.com |access-date=2012-08-04}}</ref> Hartford's [[Bradley International Airport]] is the closest airport, which sits equidistant between them in [[Windsor Locks, Connecticut]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bradleyairport.com/Directions/index.aspx |title=Directions – Home |publisher=Bradleyairport.com |date=2012-03-08 |access-date=2012-08-04 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120804065023/http://www.bradleyairport.com/Directions/index.aspx |archive-date=2012-08-04 }}</ref> The Hartford–Springfield Knowledge Corridor Partnership was formalized by regional civic, business, and education leaders in 2000 at [[the Big E]] in [[West Springfield, Massachusetts|West Springfield]].<ref>{{cite web |author=David Driver |url=http://www.hartfordspringfield.com |title=The Hartford-Springfield Economic Partnership |publisher=Hartfordspringfield.com |access-date=2012-10-28 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20121205021332/http://www.hartfordspringfield.com/ |archive-date=2012-12-05 }}</ref>

==History== Since their respective foundings in 1635 and 1636, Hartford and Springfield have possessed a common [[Connecticut River]] heritage – both were among the original four settlements of the [[Connecticut Colony]]; however, an early legal dispute between two of the cities' Founding Fathers led the settlements to side with different colonies. In 1638, Springfield founder [[William Pynchon]] became embroiled in a legal dispute with one of the [[Connecticut Colony]]'s leading citizens, Captain John Mason. Mason charged Pynchon—and the settlement of Springfield—with dominating the corn and beaver pelt trade with the Natives, to the detriment of Hartford and the Connecticut Colony. The dispute, which Pynchon and Springfield lost in 1638, led to Springfield's annexing itself to [[Massachusetts]] instead of aligning with its more geographically and ideologically compatible neighbor, [[Connecticut]].<ref name="masslive1"/> Only since the early 2000s have Hartford and Springfield – the two great cities on the Connecticut River – started to collaborate closely, i.e. as the Knowledge Corridor Partnership.

Both Hartford and Springfield were prosperous from the early 19th century through the 1960s as cultural, technological, and industrial centers.{{Citation needed|date=December 2018}} Hartford became the center of the United States' insurance industry, while Springfield became the United States' first epicenter of precision manufacturing, producing innovations like America's first gasoline-powered car, motorcycle, and commercial radio station, among many others.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://springfield375.org/?p=126 |title=Firsts | Springfield 375 |publisher=Springfield375.org |access-date=2012-08-04 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120314004454/http://springfield375.org/?p=126 |archive-date=2012-03-14 }}</ref> Both cities were especially wealthy – at one point in the late 1800s, they were the two wealthiest cities per capita in the United States.{{Citation needed|date=December 2018}} Both cities still feature Victorian architecture built during that period.

During the mid-20th century, both Hartford and Springfield experienced a loss of manufacturing during economic restructuring. The growth of the highway system—in particular [[Interstate 91]]—engendered [[white flight]] to the suburbs, where a disproportionate amount of both cities' wealthy citizens live, (e.g., in [[Longmeadow, Massachusetts]] and [[West Hartford, Connecticut]]).{{Citation needed|date=December 2018}} During the 1960s and 1970s, the Connecticut River was polluted and Interstate 91 was built along both riverfronts – slicing through existing neighborhoods. During this period Hartford, which had historically always been slightly more populous than Springfield, hemorrhaged residents. By 1960, Springfield had become more populous than Hartford, and remains more populous as of 2011.{{Citation needed|date=December 2018}} During the 1990s, Hartford and Springfield established a professional hockey partnership, as the Springfield [[American Hockey League]] team (first the [[Springfield Indians|Indians]] and then the [[Springfield Falcons|Falcons]]) served as the development affiliate of the [[National Hockey League]]'s [[Hartford Whalers]].

Since 2000, both cities have seen an increase in public and private investment, and a general increase in culture, vitality, and civic pride.{{Citation needed|date=December 2018}} The [[New Haven-Hartford-Springfield Commuter Rail Line|Knowledge Corridor high-speed intercity rail line]] is one such project, intended to unite the region and ease residents' dependence on [[Interstate 91]].<ref>{{cite web|author=Department of Transportation |url=https://portal.ct.gov/dot/pp_envir/documents/new-haven-hartford-springfield-commuter-rail-implementation-plan |title=DOTINFO: New Haven-Hartford-Springfield Commuter Rail Implementation Plan |publisher=Ct.gov |date=2011-10-24 |access-date=2012-10-28}}</ref> Also, both cities are pursuing different strategies to reconnect with the [[Connecticut River]] for economic and recreational opportunities.

===Complementary strengths=== For decades after the decline of New England manufacturing, Hartford and Springfield competed for similar businesses. During the early 1990s, a former Springfield mayor even went so far as to launch a campaign for Hartford businesses to "leave Hartford behind" for Springfield, touting Springfield's "quality of life".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.courant.com/1992/11/12/springfields-foray-shakes-up-hartford/ |title=Springfield's Foray Shakes Up Hartford |work=Hartford Courant |date=1992-11-12 |access-date=2012-08-04 |archive-date=2012-06-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120609133049/http://articles.courant.com/1992-11-12/news/0000109986_1_markel-business-leaders-springfield-last-week |url-status=live}}</ref> Since the two cities started to work collaboratively in 2000, both Hartford and Springfield have consciously defined themselves in different but complementary ways, like [[Research Triangle|Raleigh–Durham]], [[Minneapolis–Saint Paul]] or [[Dallas–Fort Worth]]. Both cities still feature many of the same strengths (e.g., prestigious universities and healthcare centers); however, Hartford is increasingly being defined as the Knowledge Corridor's business center, with its postmodern skyline, numerous corporate headquarters, government district, and relatively wider main thoroughfares,<ref>{{cite web |author=David Driver |url=http://www.hartfordspringfield.com/ |title=Hartford Springfield Economic Partnership | Home |publisher=Hartfordspringfield.com |access-date=2012-08-04 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20121205021332/http://www.hartfordspringfield.com/ |archive-date=2012-12-05}}</ref> while Springfield is being defined as the Knowledge Corridor's recreational center, with numerous amusements for both children and adults; renovated, human-scale [[Victorian architecture]]; and a [[walkable]], lively [[Metro Center, Springfield, Massachusetts|Metro Center]].<ref>{{cite web |author=David Driver |url=http://www.hartfordspringfield.com/industries/tourism |title=Tourism | Industries | Content | Hartford Springfield Economic Partnership |publisher=Hartfordspringfield.com |access-date=2012-08-04 |archive-date=2013-01-25 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130125151649/http://www.hartfordspringfield.com/industries/tourism |url-status=live}}</ref> Journalists note that the Springfield features culture that far outsizes its metropolitan population of 1.9 million (see below).<ref>{{cite web|author=File photo |url=http://www.masslive.com/history/index.ssf/2011/05/throughout_its_375_years_springfield_has_a_culture_of_history_and_history_of_culture.html |title=Throughout its 375 years, Springfield has had a culture of history and history of culture |date=15 May 2011 |publisher=masslive.com |access-date=2012-08-04}}</ref> In 2018 the MGM company opened the [[MGM Springfield]] a destination resort casino in with over 2 million square feet of hotel, casino, shopping, and amenities in Springfield. The construction project involved the restoration of a number of historic buildings that had been damaged in the [[2011 New England tornado outbreak]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Trejos |first1=Nancy |title=MGM opens major casino resort in Springfield, Mass. |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/2018/08/23/mgm-springfield-mega-casino-resort-opens-friday-massachusetts/1071616002/ |work=USA Today |access-date=8 October 2018}}</ref>

==Economy== [[File:Aetna building in Hartford.gk.jpg|200px|right| thumb|The [[Aetna]] headquarters in Hartford]]

The Hartford–Springfield area has a workforce of 1.1 million people and over 41,000 businesses. It is home to six Fortune 500 Companies. Its two major cities, Hartford and Springfield, have a combined GDP exceeding $100 billion per year, more than 16 U.S. states. This figure does not include the smaller cities and towns of the "Knowledge Corridor", (e.g., Northampton, Massachusetts and Middletown, Connecticut) but only the two principal cities.

As of its tenth anniversary in 2010, the Knowledge Corridor Partnership has been cited for both increasing jobs and keeping jobs in the Hartford–Springfield region, e.g. [[Eppendorf (company)|Eppendorf]] in [[Enfield, Connecticut]], brought over 200 jobs to the Corridor, and MassMutual in Springfield brought over 300 new jobs. It is reported that "officials in Connecticut don’t get jealous if they lose a prospect to Massachusetts and vice versa... Because, if the [cities] weren't working together, these companies wouldn't even consider us."<ref>{{cite web|author=Jim Kinney, The Republican |url=http://www.masslive.com/business-news/index.ssf/2010/09/hartford-springfield_partnership_celebra.html |title=Hartford-Springfield Partnership celebrates 10 years of the "Knowledge Corridor" |date=26 September 2010 |publisher=masslive.com |access-date=2012-08-04}}</ref>

===Notable companies=== * [[Aetna]] – [[Hartford, CT]] * [[American Hockey League]] – [[Springfield, MA]] * [[American Saw and Manufacturing Company]] – [[East Longmeadow, MA]] * [[Baystate Health]] – Springfield, MA * [[Big Y]] – Springfield, MA * [[Carrier Corporation]] – [[Farmington, CT]] * [[Cigna]] – [[Bloomfield, CT]] * [[Colt's Manufacturing Company]] – [[West Hartford, CT]] * [[Commonwealth Coast Conference]] – [[Springfield, MA]] * [[Ensign-Bickford Company|Ensign-Bickford Aerospace & Defense Company]] – [[Simsbury, CT]] * [[ESPN]] – [[Bristol, CT]] * [[Eversource Energy]] – [[Berlin, CT]] * [[Friendly's|Friendly Ice Cream Corporation]] – [[Wilbraham, MA]] * [[Gerber Scientific]] – [[South Windsor, CT]] * [[Hamilton Sundstrand]] – [[Windsor Locks, CT]] * [[The Hartford]] – Hartford, CT * [[Hartford Steam Boiler Inspection and Insurance Company]] – Hartford, CT * [[Kaman Aircraft]] – Bloomfield, CT * [[Lego]] - Enfield, CT * [[Massachusetts Green High Performance Computing Center]] – Holyoke, MA * [[MassMutual|MassMutual Financial Services]] – Springfield, MA * [[Merriam Webster]] – Springfield, MA * [[Otis Elevator]] – Farmington, CT * [[Peter Pan Bus]] – Springfield, MA * [[The Phoenix Companies]] – Hartford, CT * [[Pratt-Whitney]] – [[East Hartford, CT]] * [[Smith & Wesson]] – Springfield, MA * [[The Stanley Works]] – [[New Britain, CT]] * [[Travelers Insurance]] – Hartford, CT * [[United Healthcare]] – [[Hartford, CT]], [[Rocky Hill, CT]], and [[Windsor, CT]] * [[United Technologies]] – Farmington, CT * [[XL Group]] – Hartford, CT * [[Yankee Candle]] – [[South Deerfield, MA]]

===Public college and universities=== * [[University of Connecticut]] * [[University of Massachusetts Amherst]] * [[Eastern Connecticut State University]] * [[Central Connecticut State University]] * [[Charter Oak State College]] * [[Westfield State University]]

===Community and technical colleges=== * [[Asnuntuck Community College]] * [[Capital Community College]] * [[Greenfield Community College (Massachusetts)|Greenfield Community College]] * [[Holyoke Community College]] * [[Manchester Community College (Connecticut)|Manchester Community College]] * [[Middlesex Community College (Connecticut)|Middlesex Community College]] * [[Springfield Technical Community College]] * [[Tunxis Community College]]

===Private college and universities=== * [[American International College]] – Springfield, MA * [[Amherst College]] – Amherst MA * [[Bay Path University]] – Longmeadow, MA * [[Cambridge College]] – Springfield, MA * [[Elms College]] – Chicopee, MA * [[Goodwin College]] – Hartford, CT * [[Hampshire College]] – Amherst, MA * [[Hartford Seminary]] – Hartford, CT * [[Mount Holyoke College]] – South Hadley, MA * [[Smith College]] – Northampton, MA * [[Springfield College]] – Springfield, MA * [[Western New England College|Western New England University]] – Springfield, MA * [[Rensselaer at Hartford]] – Hartford, CT * [[Saint Joseph College (Connecticut)|Saint Joseph College]] – West Hartford, CT * [[Trinity College (Connecticut)|Trinity College]] – Hartford, CT * [[University of Hartford]] – Hartford, CT * [[Wesleyan University]] – Middletown, CT

==Lower education institutions== Public schools are highly regarded, in 2016 Massachusetts ranked first in the country for Pre-K through 12 education while Connecticut ranked fifth.<ref>{{cite web |title=Pre-K–12 Rankings Measuring how well states are preparing students for college |url=https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/rankings/education/prek-12 |website=usnews.com |publisher=US News |access-date=6 October 2018}}</ref>

The Hartford–Springfield area is home to a high concentration of preparatory schools.

===Private day and boarding schools=== * [[Avon Old Farms]] – Avon, CT * The Bement School – Deerfield, MA * [[Cheshire Academy]] – Cheshire, CT * [[Choate Rosemary Hall]] – Wallingford, CT * [[Deerfield Academy]] – Deerfield, MA * [[Eaglebrook School]] – Deerfield, MA * [[The Ethel Walker School]] – Simsbury, CT * [[Kingswood-Oxford School]] – West Hartford, CT * [[Loomis Chaffee School]] – Windsor, CT * [[MacDuffie School]] – Granby, MA * [[Miss Porter's School]] – Farmington, CT * [[Stoneleigh-Burnham School]] – Greenfield, MA * [[Suffield Academy]] – Suffield, CT * [[Watkinson School]] – Hartford, CT * [[Wilbraham & Monson Academy]] – Wilbraham, MA * [[Westminster School (Connecticut)]] – Simsbury, CT * [[Williston Northampton School]] – Easthampton, MA

== See also == * [[Greater Hartford]] * [[Springfield metropolitan area, Massachusetts]] * [[Bradley International Airport]]

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== {{Wikivoyage|Knowledge Corridor}} *{{Official website|http://knowledgecorridor.org/}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hartford-Springfield}} [[Category:Education in Connecticut]] [[Category:Economy of Massachusetts]] [[Category:Economy of Connecticut]] [[Category:Economy of Springfield, Massachusetts]] [[Category:Economy of Hartford, Connecticut]] [[Category:Greater Hartford]] [[Category:Springfield metropolitan area, Massachusetts]] [[Category:Northeast megalopolis]]