Situated in the foothills of the Berkshire Mountains and on the New York state border, Ridgefield had a population of 25,033 as of the 2020 census.

[2] Ridgefield was first settled by English colonists from Norwalk in 1708, when a group of settlers purchased land from Chief Catoonah of the Ramapo tribe.

This American Revolutionary War skirmish involved a small colonial militia force (state militia and some Continental Army soldiers), led by, among others, General David Wooster, who died in the engagement, and Benedict Arnold,[5] whose horse was shot from under him.

[3] They faced a larger British force that had landed at Westport and was returning from a raid on the colonial supply depot in Danbury.

The battle was a tactical victory for the British but a strategic one for the Colonials because the British would never again conduct inland operations in Connecticut, despite western Connecticut's strategic importance in securing the Hudson River Valley.

[2] Today, the dead from both sides are buried together in a small cemetery on Main Street on the right of the entrance to Casagmo condominiums: "...foes in arms, brothers in death...".

The Keeler Tavern, a local inn and museum, features a British cannonball still lodged in the side of the building.

In the summer of 1781, the French army under the Comte de Rochambeau marched through Connecticut, encamping in the Ridgebury section of town, where the first Catholic mass in Ridgefield was offered.

The Ridgefield Veterans Memorial Community Center on Main Street, also called the Lounsbury House, was built by Gov.

[citation needed] In the late 19th century, spurred by the new railroad connection to its lofty village and the fact that nearby countryside reaches 1,000 feet (300 m) above sea level, Ridgefield began to be discovered by wealthy New York City residents, who assembled large estates and built huge "summer cottages" throughout the higher sections of town.

[citation needed] These and dozens of other estates became unaffordable and unwieldy during and after the Great Depression, and most were broken up.

In their place came subdivisions of one- and 2-acre (8,100 m2) lots that turned the town into a suburban, bedroom community in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s.

However, strict planning and zoning has frozen development and locked in the aesthetic appearance of the 19th- and early 20th-century through to the 21st-century, especially along its famous mile-long Main Street.

[citation needed] In 1946, Ridgefield was one of the locations considered for the United Nations Secretariat building,[6] but was not chosen due to its relative inaccessibility.

Ridgefield is bordered by the towns of North Salem and Lewisboro in Westchester County, New York and the town of Southeast in Putnam County, New York to the west, Danbury to the north, Wilton to the south and Redding to the east.

The census-designated place (CDP) corresponding to the town center covers a total area of 6.4 square miles (17 km2), of which 0.16% is water.

The line bisects the southern half of the town, running generally north of West Lane, across the north end of the village, past the south end of Great Swamp and generally easterly into Redding in the Topstone area.

Gold, as well as gemstones such as garnet and beryl, have been found here, and dozens of minerals have been unearthed at the old Branchville Mica Quarry.

It became fully professional by the end of the decade and today has 75 musicians and draws soloists of international reputation.

Its public open spaces make up 5,200 acres (2,100 ha), accounting for 23% of the towns overall land.

[citation needed] Noted architect Cass Gilbert purchased historic Keeler Tavern within the district and renovated it for his use as a summer home.

[citation needed] Roughly bounded by Pound Street, Fairview Avenue, Prospect Ridge, and Whipstick Roads, the district was added on October 7, 1984.

[28] The Charter calls for an annual Town and Budget Meeting to be held on the first Monday of May each year.

The chief executive is The First Selectman, who also serves a legislative function as a member of the Board of Selectmen.

The six public elementary schools are Veterans Park, Branchville, Farmingville, Scotland, Barlow Mountain, and Ridgebury.

[32] Ridgefield's Roman Catholic schools are St. Mary, serving preschool through eighth grade, and St. Padre Pio Academy, serving kindergarten through eighth grade and run by the Society of St. Pius X. Ridgefield Academy is a co-educational, independent school serving preschool through eighth grade, situated on a 42-acre (17 ha) turn-of-the-20th-century estate on West Mountain that was once home to the Congregation de Notre Dame.