Meriden
About Meriden
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Meriden is a city in New Haven County, Connecticut, United States. According to 2005 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the city is 59,653. Meriden was the location chosen for the filming of the 1989 Robert DeNiro film Jacknife. Many Meriden landmarks can be seen in the film, and many Meriden residents boast of encountering DeNiro during the filming.
Meriden’s Ted’s Steamed Cheesburger Restaurant was featured in the documentary Hamburger America. Tomie DePaolo’s “21 Fairmont Avenue” is based on the author’s Meriden childhood.
Meriden was originally part of Wallingford. It was granted a separate meetinghouse in 1727, became a town in 1806, and incorporated as a city in 1867.
The oldest house in town still standing, built by Solomon Goffe in 1711, is now a museum, the Solomon Goffe House.
In the 1800s, Meriden earned the nickname “Silver City,” due to the large number of cutlery and related products which were manufactured here by companies such as International Silver and Meriden Cutlery.
In 1900, Castle Craig was dedicated in Hubbard Park. The Curtis Memorial Library opened in 1903. Meriden is known as the home of the first steamed cheeseburger, which remains a popular local favorite to this day. The Franciscan Sisters of the Eucharist have their mother house in Meriden as do the Franciscan Brothers of the Eucharist.