Cheshire is a town in New Haven County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 28,543 at the 2000 census. The center of population of Connecticut is located in Cheshire. In 2009 Cheshire was ranked 72 in Money Magazine's 100 Best Places to Live.Likewise, in 2011 Cheshire was ranked 73 in Money Magazine's 100 Best Places to Live.

Connecticut's 2nd worst air disaster took place over Cheshire on January 18, 1946, when an Eastern Airlines DC-3 crashed in town. The crash occurred near Wolf Hill Road and Copper Valley Court, on land that was occupied by a country club. All seventeen people aboard the aircraft lost their lives.

On January 6, 2008, over 130,000 luminary candles were lit in front of thousands of homes and along streets across Cheshire and Southington, Connecticut in "Cheshire Lights of Hope", a fundraiser for multiple sclerosis and a tribute to the Petit family. The Petits were victims of the highly publicized July 23, 2007, home invasion, during which mother Jennifer and daughters Hayley and Michaela Petit were murdered, leaving behind sole survivor Dr. William Petit. Founded by local couple, Don and Jenifer Walsh, the event raised over $100,000 for Hayley's Hope and Michaela's Miracle Memorial funds. The murder and the aftermath was featured in a segment that aired on the NBC-TV newsmagazine show Dateline NBC on October 5, 2010. The segment was titled "The Family on Sorghum Mill Drive". In 2010, Steven Hayes was convicted of the murders and other crimes during the home invasion and was sentenced to death; his accomplice Joshua Komisarjevsky was convicted of the murders and other crimes in October 2011. On December 9th, a jury recommended the death penalty.

Cheshire ( /ˈtʃɛʃər/ or /ˈtʃɛʃɪər/; also known as the County Palatine of Chester, and archaically, as the County of Chester; abbreviated Ches.) is a ceremonial county in North West England. Cheshire's county town is the city of Chester, although the largest town since county boundary changes in 1974 is Warrington (moved from Lancashire for administrative purposes in 1974). Other major towns include Widnes (also moved from Lancashire in 1974), Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Runcorn, Macclesfield, Winsford, Northwich, and Wilmslow. Historically the county contained the Wirral, Stockport, Altrincham and other towns. The county is bordered by Merseyside and Greater Manchester to the north, Derbyshire to the east, Staffordshire and Shropshire to the south, and Flintshire and Wrexham in Wales to the west. The county is a part of the Welsh Marches.

Cheshire's area is 2,343 square kilometres (905 sq mi) and its population is around 700,000. Apart from the large towns along the River Mersey and the historic city of Chester, it is mostly rural, with a number of small towns and villages that support an agricultural industry. It is historically famous as a former principality and for the production of Cheshire cheese, salt, bulk chemicals, and woven silk.

Connecticut (ⁱ/kəˈnɛtɨkət/) is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south (with which it shares a water boundary in Long Island Sound).

Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately bisects the state. Its capital city is Hartford. Much of southern and western Connecticut (along with the majority of the state's population) is part of the New York metropolitan area; three of Connecticut's eight counties are statistically included in the New York City combined statistical area, the same area is widely referred to as the Tri-State area. Connecticut's center of population is in Cheshire, New Haven County, which is also located within the Tri-State area.

Connecticut is the 3rd least extensive, the 29th most populous, and 4th most densely populated of the 50 United States. Called the Constitution State, Nutmeg State, and "The Land of Steady Habits", Connecticut was influential in the development of the federal government of the United States.