The City of H a r t f o r d
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t has long been known as the “Insurance Capital of the World” and it serves as a daily busy hub for some of the most dynamic corporations in the nation. It also serves as the home for UConn football at Rentschler Field and a home-away-from-home for the UConn men’s and women’s basketball teams at the XL Center. The City of Hartford, Connecticut’s state capital, and the Greater Hartford region are ranked highly for workforce productivity, accessibility, income levels, technology, education, the arts and heritage. Hartford is resource-rich with desirable residential real estate, communications, infrastructure, parkland and nature trails, health care and pubic safety. The city serves as the headquarters for several Fortune 500 companies, including United Technologies Corporation, The Hartford Financial Services Group, Aetna, Inc., and Northeast Utilities. Hartford employs seven time more people in the insurances field than the average metropolitan area. Among those employers are Aetna, Hartford Steam Boiler, ING, CIGNA, Travelers and The Phoenix Companies. Hartford is home to the nation’s oldest public art museum (Wadsworth Atheneum), the oldest public park (Bushnell Park), the oldest continuously published newspaper (The Hartford Courant), the second-oldest secondary school (Hartford Public HS), and until its closure in 2009, the sixth-oldest opera company in the nation (Connecticut Opera). In 2010, the Hartford metropolitan area ranked second nationally based on per capita economic activity, behind only San Francisco, California. Hartford is ranked 32nd of 318 metropolitan areas in total economic production and, with its Knowledge Corridor sister city Springfield, Mass, the two cities metropolitan areas generate over $110 billion GDP, more than nearly half of the 50 U.S. states.
Hartford’s neighborhoods are diverse and historic. The central business district, as well as the State Capitol, Old State House and a number of museums and shops are located Downtown. Parkville, home to Real Art Ways, is named for the confluence of the north and the south branches of the Park River. Frog Hollow, in close proximity to Downtown, is home to Pope Park and Trinity College which is one of the nation’s oldest institutions of higher learning. Asylum Hill, a mixed residential and commercial area, houses the headquarters of several insurance companies as well as the historic homes of Mark Twain and Harriet Beecher Stowe. The West End, home to the Governor’s residence, Elizabeth Park, and the University of Connecticut School of Law, abuts the Hartford Golf Club. Sheldon Charter Oak is renowned as the location of the Charter Oak and its successor monument as well as the former Colt headquarters including Samuel Colt’s family estate – Armsmear. The North East neighborhood is home to Keney Park and a number of the city’s oldest and ornate homes. The South End features “Little Italy” and was the home of Hartford’s sizeable Italian community. South Green hosts Hartford Hospital. The South Meadows is the site of Hartford-Brainard Airport and Hartford’s industrial community. The North Meadows has retail strips, car dealerships, and Comcast Theatre. Blue Hills is home of the University of Hartford and also houses the largest per capita of residents claiming JamaicanAmerican heritage in the United States. Other neighborhoods in Hartford include Barry Square, Behind the Rocks, Clay Arsenal, South West, and Upper Albany- which is dotted by many Caribbean restaurants and specialty stores. Hartford has also attracted many significant businesses in other industries including aerospace, precision machinery, information technology and
The City Of
HARTFORD
And Greater Hartford Region
196 UConnHuskies.com
health and medical. Four of the nations Top 25 Companies For Executive Women, as recognized by Executive Female, are located in Hartford. The newest attraction in Hartford opened in 2005 with the debut of the Connecticut Convention Center — a $230 million, 1.6 million-square-foot convention facility that is one of a series of projects that is bringing new life to the city. One of the hubs of downtown activity in Hartford is the XL Center, which is also the home facility for the Hartford Wolfpack of the American Hockey League. Each year, the finest golfers in the world compete at The Travelers Championship, which is played at Cromwell’s Tournament Players Club at River Highlands and is part of the PGA Tour’s FedEx Cup.