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B−History
History · Shelton

Shelton dates to 1639, and 11% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 49% of U.S. towns · #151 of 155 in Connecticut. What drives it

3 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 46 buildings. Below: 12 old photos and papers, maps from 1889 on, and the census since 1790.

1639founded
3on the National Register
11%homes built before 1940
12old photos & papers
8famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Shelton’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Shelton began

When was Shelton founded?

1639

Shelton dates its founding to 1639 (Wikipedia’s history). It appears in the first U.S. census, 1790.

First census: 2,742 in 17902020 census: 40,869387 years

How historic is Shelton?

B−

More historic than 49% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1800.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Shelton’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Shelton is more historic than 49% of U.S. towns, #151 of 155 in Connecticut. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.

B−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Shelton’s overall grade.
Founding eraNo founding year we can rely on, so the grade uses the other two–Homes built before 194010.8% of homes (±1.7) · typical CT town 15.1% · U.S. 8.4%B−National Register3 listings, 48 historic buildings, 11.5 per 10,000 residents · typical CT town 73.3 · U.S. 2.4B−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 49%
NewerOlder
Connecticut towns of 2,500+ (155)Ahead of 3%

Connecticut towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Connecticut town has 73.3 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Shelton’s 11.5 sits below most of its state (13% of Connecticut towns have fewer) while its 48 historic buildings outnumber those of 85% of U.S. towns.

NoteThe founding year comes from Wikipedia alone; no second source gives 1639.
How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share (±1.7 points) is firm at this size.

Founding year: Wikipedia (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →

What stands out about Shelton’s past

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

Older than the countryEstablished in 1639, 137 years before the Declaration of Independence.Lost villages3 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Shelton, and 6 old place names are still on the map.Shrank, then grewLost half of its people between 1820 and 1850, then grew more than tenfold.On the map since 18896 editions of the USGS map, 1889 to 1984. Watch Shelton change.
★ What stands out · Timeline

Shelton, 1639 to 2020

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 17th century
  2. 1639
    FoundingShelton is established
  3. 19th century
  4. 1800Post officeThe Ripton Parish post office opens
  5. 1807Born hereHenry Curtis Beardslee is born here
  6. 1825Post officeThe Ripton Parish post office closes
  7. 1825Post officeThe Huntington post office opens
  8. 1885Post officeThe White Hills post office opens
  9. 1888Post officeThe White Hills post office closes
  10. 1889On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  11. 1894Born hereJames A. Fitzpatrick is born here
  12. 1895Born hereHelen Barnes is born here
  13. 1898In the archiveDerby, Shelton, and East Derby, Conn., 1898
  14. 20th century
  15. 1900Post officeThe Huntington post office closes
  16. 1910In the archiveBridge Street
  17. 1912Born herePeter Leo Gerety is born here
  18. 1927In the archiveRainier Pulp and Paper Co., Shelton, Washington, ca. 1927
  19. 1940In the archiveGeneral view of Shelton, Connecticut, with Derby, Connecticut, in the distance
  20. 21st century
  21. 2020CensusPopulation peaks at 40,869
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

Shelton’s post office has been open since 1890. Three other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Ripton Parish
1800–1825
Huntington
1825–1900
White Hills
1885–1888
Shelton
1890–today
18001910today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Fairchild Heights Trailer ParkHuntingtonPine Rock ParkSunnysideSunnyside Trailer ParkWhite Hills
6cemeteries and burying grounds inside Shelton
Beth Israel Cemetery of Congregation Or ShalomCoramLawnLower White HillsRiversideSaint Pauls

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

People over time

Shelton, census by census

05,00010,00015,00020,00025,00030,00035,00040,00045,000180018501900195020002,805 in 1820Low: 1,301

Lost half of its people between 1820 and 1850, then grew more than tenfold.

24 censuses, 1790–2020.

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

The story

How Shelton came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Shelton.

Read it all →

Shelton was settled by the English as part of the town of Stratford in 1639. On May 15, 1656, the Court of the Colony of Connecticut in Hartford affirmed that the town of Stratford included all of the territory 12 miles (19 km) inland from Long Island Sound, between the Housatonic River and the Fairfield town line. In 1662, Stratford selectmen Lt. Joseph Judson, Captain Joseph Hawley and John Minor had secured all the written deeds of transfer from the Golden Hill Paugussett Indian Nation for this vast territory that comprises the present-day towns of Trumbull, Shelton and Monroe. Shelton was split off from Stratford in 1789, as Huntington (named for Samuel Huntington).

ChaptersOriginsDecline of Shelton's industryRise of Shelton's office spaceDowntown revitalizationOther events

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

From the old history books

What they wrote about Shelton in 1929

Passages that mention Shelton, cut from the printed page as they were published.

Following the completion of a high school course at Shelton, Daniel E. Brinsmade entered the Sheffield Scientific School of Yale University, from which he was graduated with the degree of Bachelor of Philosophy in 1896. It was on his return to Shelton that he became connected with the Shelton Water…
History of Fairfield County, Connecticut, 1639-19281929 · page 269Read the page →
Read the text

Following the completion of a high school course at Shelton, Daniel E. Brinsmade entered the Sheffield Scientific School of Yale University, from which he was graduated with the degree of Bachelor of Philosophy in 1896. It was on his return to Shelton that he became connected with the Shelton Water Com-

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
The last named was a pupil in the grade schools and in the high school of Shelton and in 1902 entered St. John’s College at Brooklyn, New York, where he remained a student for two years. He then took up the study of law at Yale, completing his course by graduation in 1907. In June of that year he w…
History of Fairfield County, Connecticut, 1639-19281929 · page 189Read the page →
Read the text

The last named was a pupil in the grade schools and in the high school of Shelton and in 1902 entered St. John’s College at Brooklyn, New York, where he remained a student for two years. He then took up the study of law at Yale, completing his course by graduation in 1907. In June of that year he was admitted to the bar and opened an office in Shelton, where he remained in active practice until 1917, when he entered professional ranks in Bridgeport, but returned to Shelton in 1924. Throughout the

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.

Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

By decade

Shelton, decade by decade

4 decades in the archive, from the 1890s to the 1940s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1890s–1910s5 items
Derby, Shelton, and East Derby, Conn., 18981898Derby, Shelton, and East Derby, Conn., 1898Bridge Street1910Bridge StreetShelton High Bridge 1913 postcardc. 1913Shelton High Bridge 1913 postcardPostcardAero view of Shelton, Connecticut 19191919Aero view of Shelton, Connecticut 1919Shelton, Connecticut 19191919Shelton, Connecticut 1919
1920s–1940s6 items
Rainier Pulp and Paper Co., Shelton, Washington, ca. 1927c. 1927Rainier Pulp and Paper Co., Shelton, Washington, ca. …General view of Shelton, Connecticut, with Derby, Connecticut, in the distance1940General view of Shelton, Connecticut, with Derby, Con…Untitled photo, possibly related to: General view of Shelton, Connecticut, with Derby, Connecticut, in the distance1940Untitled photo, possibly related to: General view of …Untitled photo, possibly related to: General view of Shelton, Connecticut, with Derby, Connecticut, in the distance1940Untitled photo, possibly related to: General view of …Untitled photo, possibly related to: General view of Shelton, Connecticut, with Derby, Connecticut, in the distance1940Untitled photo, possibly related to: General view of …Untitled photo, possibly related to: General view of Shelton, Connecticut, with Derby, Connecticut, in the distance1940Untitled photo, possibly related to: General view of …
1950s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
Date unknown1 to date
PostcardSheltonCTBirthplaceOfCommodoreHull1908Date?PostcardSheltonCTBirthplaceOfCommodoreHull1908Postcard
Today22 recent
CT 110 nb at CT 108, June 20252025CT 110 nb at CT 108, June 2025Birchbank Road nb, Shelton, CT, June 20252025Birchbank Road nb, Shelton, CT, June 2025Star Pin Company Building2020Star Pin Company BuildingHubbellHeadOffice2019HubbellHeadOfficeSheltonCT PlumbMemorialLibrary2016SheltonCT PlumbMemorialLibrarySheltonCT CommodoreHullSchool2016SheltonCT CommodoreHullSchoolShelton, CT2015Shelton, CTShelton Canal Street crossing 0832012Shelton Canal Street crossing 083Shelton, Connecticut winter2011Shelton, Connecticut winterPostcardSheltonCTPlumbLibraryUndivBack1901to19072011PostcardSheltonCTPlumbLibraryUndivBack1901to1907PostcardWhite oak tree, Shelton, CT - November 13, 20102010White oak tree, Shelton, CT - November 13, 2010Shelton CT lg2010Shelton CT lgShelton, CT 2009-07-31 tornado damage 22009Shelton, CT 2009-07-31 tornado damage 2Shelton, CT 2009-07-31 tornado damage 12009Shelton, CT 2009-07-31 tornado damage 1Shelton, CT winter night2007Shelton, CT winter nightShelton, CT winter night - panoramio - Делян Ковачев2007Shelton, CT winter night - panoramio - Делян КовачевShelton, CT winter night - panoramio - Делян Ковачев (1)2007Shelton, CT winter night - panoramio - Делян Ковачев …Shelton, CT winter2007Shelton, CT winterPlumbMemorialLibrary2007PlumbMemorialLibraryCongregationalChurchHuntingtonSheltonCT2007CongregationalChurchHuntingtonSheltonCTShelton, CT summer2006Shelton, CT summerUS-CT-Shelton2004US-CT-Shelton
On the map

Shelton on the map, 1889 to 1984

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

Shelton on the 1889 USGS mapShelton on the 1891 USGS mapShelton on the 1953 USGS mapShelton on the 1964 USGS mapShelton on the 1972 USGS mapShelton on the 1984 USGS map1889Derby 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 Shelton.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Derby, Shelton, and East Derby, Conn., 1898
Retake this viewDerby, Shelton, and East Derby, Conn., 1898, 1898

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Shelton’s page.

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

3 listings protect 48 historic buildings

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

places listed
3
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
48
each building in a district counts
first listed
1978
Plumb Memorial Library
Plumb Memorial LibraryCommodore Hull SchoolHuntington Center Historic District
BuildingsDistricts

Architectural styles listings

Romanesque1
Neo-Classical1
Postmedieval English1
Greek Revival1
Colonial Revival1
Late Gothic Revival1
Plumb Memorial LibraryRomanesque
Commodore Hull SchoolNeo-Classical
Huntington Center Historic DistrictPostmedieval English

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

Famous people

8 famous people were born in Shelton

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
P
Peter Leo GeretyCatholic archbishop · b. 1912
Helen BarnesAmerican musical comedy actress · b. 1895
James A. FitzpatrickAmerican film producer and narrator · b. 1894
H
Henry Curtis BeardsleeBotanist · b. 1807
B
Black-Eyed SusanAmerican actress
J
Jason PerilloAmerican politician · b. 1977
Help out

Finish Shelton’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
3 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Date a photo1 archive item has no date. Guess the decade.+2Retake an old viewDerby, Shelton, and East Derby, Conn., …: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Stratford10 historic placesAOronoque1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townTrumbull3 historic placesA−Monroe3 historic placesBDaniels FarmIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townDerby6 historic placesBEast Village1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townOrange4 historic placesBSeymour3 historic placesB−Milford11 historic placesA

Questions about Shelton’s history

What year was Shelton founded?

In 1639, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Shelton’s post office opened in 1800, and the first U.S. census counted 2,742 people here in 1790.

How does Shelton rank for history?

Shelton is more historic than 49% of U.S. towns, #151 of 155 in Connecticut. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.

What is on the National Register in Shelton?

Three places: the Plumb Memorial Library (listed 1978), the Commodore Hull School (1983) and the Huntington Center Historic District (2000).

How old are the homes in Shelton?

11% of Shelton’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.7 points), against a typical 15% for a Connecticut town; the median home was built in 1977.

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).

From Wikimedia Commons (28), the Library of Congress (6), the National Register of Historic Places (3), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.