Town file
New Britain, Connecticut
New Britain, Connecticut (Hartford County, Connecticut) is the town in one episode of Small Town Murder, the comedy true-crime podcast: episode 613, "The Sick Ripper" (17 July 2025). New Britain is a city of about 74,000 people in Hartford County, north central Connecticut, around fifteen minutes from Hartford.
- Town
- New Britain
- County
- Hartford County
- State
- Connecticut
- Country
- USA
- Episodes
- 613
- Approximate location
- 41.677, -72.786
Episode 613 / 17 July 2025 / 178 min / full
The Sick Ripper
"James says 'This is New Britain, New Britain Connecticut', in north central Connecticut, about 15 minutes outside Hartford, in Hartford County, area code 860" about 0:04:50
The case: Murder of Nielsa Arizmendi (July 2003); The New Britain serial murders (six further victims) (January 2003 to October 2003). Read the case file.
The figures, as told in 2025
- Population
- 74,002
- Median age
- 33.2
- Median household income
- $50,379 a year
- Median home value
- $228,900
- Two-bedroom rent
- about $1,350
- Cost of living
- about 105
- Religious
- about 50-50
- Property crime
- ▲ slightly above average
- Violent crime
- ▼ slightly below average
History, in brief
- New Britain was settled in 1687 and incorporated in 1871. about 0:06:09
- The area was once known as the Great Swamp, when it was part of Berlin; in 1754 the colony approved it as a new parish and named it New Britain. about 0:06:29
- The city's motto is 'Industria implet', which James translates as 'Industry fills the hive and enjoys the honey'. Its nicknames are New Britsky, Hard Hitting New Britain and Hardware City. about 0:06:03
- It was nicknamed Hardware City because it was home to Stanley Works, the American Hardware Corporation and other big manufacturers. about 0:06:56
- By 1913 the American Hardware Corporation was the largest employer in Connecticut, and the city was known as the hardware capital of the world. about 0:07:12
- The wire coat hanger was invented in New Britain. about 0:07:15
- In 2010 Stanley Works purchased Black and Decker, and the company remains headquartered in the city. about 0:07:34
- Famous people from the city include the photographer Annie Leibovitz and the baseball pitcher Steve Dalkowski; Charles Goodyear, who invented vulcanised rubber, lived and worked there. about 0:08:01
- The Little Poland neighbourhood on Broad Street fell on hard times in the 1990s and 2000s, and business owners asked the city to designate it Little Poland as a marketing move. about 0:16:42
The reviews read out
5 stars
"Lived there all their life, the community is amazing and friendly and they feel safe outside, though there are worse parts and they would like improvements."about 0:08:29
3 stars
"A 'mutual understanding' with the city: not great, not bad; very local stores and close to Berlin, Southington and Plainville."about 0:09:00
1 star
"Dirty, lots of drinkers and irresponsible dog owners, litter and glass on the sidewalks, not safe for dog owners, big stray cat problem."about 0:09:41
1 star
"Awful place to live, criminals everywhere destroying everything, not even cockroaches and rats want to be there."about 0:10:23
Nearest Small Town Murder towns
- Middletown, Connecticut11 miles
- Simsbury, Connecticut14 miles
- Barkhamsted, Connecticut20 miles
- Guilford, Connecticut24 miles
- Bantam, Connecticut24 miles
- Ellington, Connecticut24 miles
Everything here is as told in the episode, on the date it went out; figures and places may have changed since. Endings are covered: open an episode and use the spoiler switch to read them.