Winsted is a census-designated place and an incorporated city in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. It is part of the town of Winchester. The population of Winsted was 7,192 at the 2020 census, a decrease from 7,712 at the 2010 census. It comprises the majority of the town of Winchester's 10,224 population. Winsted is part of the Northwest Hills Planning Region.
History
thumb|left|Winsted in 1836, a [[woodblock print drawn by John Warner Barber]]
Settled in 1750,
The Gilbert School, originally endowed with more than $600,000 by William L. Gilbert, is a private secondary school that serves as the public high school for the town of Winchester.
In 1955, Hurricane Connie and Hurricane Diane passed over Connecticut within one week, flooding the Mad River and Still River through downtown. The Mad River, which parallels Main Street, caused flooding up to deep through the center of town. This damaged the buildings between Main Street and the river such that all buildings on that side of Main Street through the center of town were subsequently removed and Main Street widened to four lanes. The buildings on the north side of Main Street for the most part survived and were repaired. Further downstream, the Still River flowed between the buildings of the Gilbert Clock Company. The flooding caused extensive damage to their buildings, and this was the final blow to a company which was already in poor financial condition.
Northwestern Connecticut Community College was founded in 1965 by Winsted residents, including Ralph Nader's older brother, Shafeek. It occupies the original Gilbert School building. NCCC was one of the first four community colleges in Connecticut, and is accredited by both the Connecticut Board of Governors for Higher Education and by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges. The Northwestern Community College Foundation was incorporated in 1981 to support the mission of Northwestern Connecticut Community College. NCCF generates private funds for the purpose of benefiting the students attending NCCC and the community of Winsted.
In 2013, Henry Centrella, the former city finance director, was served a complaint which stated that over $2.2 million was misappropriated during his 30-year tenure.
Ralph Nader opened the American Museum of Tort Law in 2015, inside the former Winsted Savings Bank building at 654 Main Street.
Pictures
<gallery mode="packed">
File:1877, Harvey, Sarah E., Winsted, Connecticut.jpg|Sarah E. Harvey, Winsted, Connecticut, , Princeton University Art Museum
File:PostcardWinstedCTViewFromHubbardStreet1906.jpg|View from Hubbard Street,
File:PostcardEastWinstedCTBirdsEyeView1879.jpg|View from Highland Park, 1879
File:PostcardWinstedCTEastFrRockwellSt1876.jpg|View east from Rockwell Street, 1876
File:PostcardWinstedCTGilbertSchool1921.jpg|The Gilbert School,
File:PostcardLitchfieldCoHospWinsteadCTca1904.jpg|Litchfield County Hospital,
File:West Main Street, Looking East, Winsted, CT.jpg|West Main Street,
File:View of Meadow Street, Winsted, CT.jpg|Meadow Street,
File:PostcardWinstedCTGilbertSchool1908.jpg|The Gilbert School,
File:PostcardWinstedCTFirstDistrictSchoolNorthMainStreet1908.jpg|First District School,
File:Winsted Conn.jpg|County hospital as seen from Henry Street,
</gallery>
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of , of which are land and , or 3.73%, are water.
Winsted sits in the eastern part of the town of Winchester at the confluence of the Still and Mad Rivers. This Mad River is one of seven rivers with the same name in New England, one other of which is also in Connecticut. The Still River continues north as a tributary of the Farmington River and is part of the Connecticut River watershed.
The city is laid out in a horseshoe-shaped valley ringed by seven hills; two other hills stand amid this, comprising a total of nine named hills.
There are five stone churches in a crescent from east to west. In their exact center is the Castle Tower Civil War monument, a stone tower of over 40 feet erected in 1890.
The city is crossed by U.S. Route 44, Connecticut Route 8, Connecticut Route 183 and Connecticut Route 263. US 44 leads southeast to Hartford, the state capital, and northwest to North Canaan. Route 8 leads south to Torrington and to Waterbury, and north to U.S. Route 20 in West Becket, Massachusetts.