Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to Fenwick

We’ll email a one-tap link to publish your post. No password, and nothing is public until you click it.
Already a member? Sign in
–Not graded
History · Fenwick

Fenwick was first counted by the census in 1900, and 51% of its homes were built before 1940

2 places in town are on the National Register. Below: maps from 1893 on and the census since 1900.

1900first census
2on the National Register
51%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Magicpiano · CC BY-SA 3.0
Quick answers

How Fenwick began

When was Fenwick founded?

1900

Fenwick first appears in the census in 1900.

First census: 23 in 19002020 census: 53126 years
Founding year: the first census.

What stands out about Fenwick’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Fenwick are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Shrank, then grewLost two-thirds of its people between 1910 and 1930, then grew 8-fold.On the map since 18934 editions of the USGS map, 1893 to 1970. Watch Fenwick change.Old housesHalf of Fenwick’s homes were built before 1938.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Fenwick’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Fenwick’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
People over time

Fenwick, census by census

0190019201940196019802000202034 in 1910Low: 6

Lost two-thirds of its people between 1910 and 1930, then grew 8-fold.

12 censuses, 1900–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Fenwick’s Wikipedia page.

On the map

Fenwick on the map, 1893 to 1970

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Fenwick. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Fenwick on the 1893 USGS mapFenwick on the 1941 USGS mapFenwick on the 1958 USGS mapFenwick on the 1970 USGS map1893Saybrook sheet · 1:62,500

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Fenwick.

The story so far

Fenwick, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Fenwick yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Fenwick is a borough in Middlesex County, Connecticut, United States, in the town of Old Saybrook. The borough is part of the Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region. The population was 53 at the 2020 census, making it the least populous borough in Connecticut. Most of the borough is included in the Fenwick Historic District, listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Fenwick is set off from the town center of Old Saybrook by a large cove crossed by a causeway. It is located exactly where the Connecticut River flows into Long Island Sound, and sits on the river's west side. The town has two lighthouses, the Inner and the Outer. The Inner is at the tip of Lynde Point, Fenwick…

Its first post office opened in 1900. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 43 to 53 (+23%).

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

By decade

Fenwick, decade by decade

Today1 recent
Katharine Hepburn House2016Katharine Hepburn House
On the National Register

2 listings protect 66 historic buildings

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
2
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
66
each building in a district counts

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

Famous people

Famous people close to Fenwick

Nobody well known was born in Fenwick itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
Amy BrennemanAmerican actress · b. 1964
Gretchen MolAmerican actress and former model · b. 1972
C
Cassie VenturaAmerican singer, dancer, actress, and model · b. 1986
Howard DeanAmerican politician · b. 1948
Glenne HeadlyAmerican actress · b. 1955
Elizabeth KostovaAmerican writer · b. 1964

Questions about Fenwick’s history

What year was Fenwick founded?

The Fenwick post office opened in 1900, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (1), U.S. Geological Survey historical maps and U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.