Danbury is a small city of about 85,000 in western Connecticut's Fairfield County, once known as the "Hat City" for its dominance of the American hat-making industry. At its peak in the early twentieth century, Danbury produced a quarter of all hats in the United States, and the Danbury Museum and Historical Society on Main Street preserves this unusual heritage with exhibits on the craft, the factory workers, and the mercury poisoning that gave rise to the phrase "mad as a hatter."
Today Danbury is a diverse, working-class city in a region better known for the wealth of its Gold Coast neighbors to the south. It sits at the northern end of the Fairfield County commuter belt, close enough to New York for some residents to make the trip but far enough to feel like its own place. Candlewood Lake, the largest lake in Connecticut, is just to the west and offers boating, swimming, and fishing in summer. Tarrywile Park provides woodland trails and the hidden surprise of Hearthstone Castle — a genuine medieval-style castle sitting deep in the Connecticut woods. The downtown has been revitalizing with a growing selection of restaurants reflecting the city's diverse population, particularly the Brazilian and Ecuadorian communities that have made Danbury their home.
The Danbury Railway Museum occupies the beautifully restored Union Station and is worth a visit. Danbury is also the birthplace of Charles Ives, the pioneering American composer whose avant-garde work grew directly from the brass band tradition of his hometown.