Bristol

Bristol (ⁱ/ˈbrɪstəl/) is a city, unitary authority and county in South West England with an estimated population of 442,500 in 2015. It is England's sixth and the United Kingdom's eighth most populous city, and the most populous city in Southern England after London. People from Bristol are known as Bristolians. The city borders the counties of Somerset and Gloucestershire, with the historic cities of Bath and Gloucester to the south-east and north-east, respectively.

Iron Age hill forts and Roman villas were built near the confluence of the Rivers Frome and Avon, and around the beginning of the 11th century the settlement was known as Brycgstow (Old English "the place at the bridge"). Bristol received a royal charter in 1155 and was in Gloucestershire until 1373, when it became a county. From the 13th to the 18th century, Bristol was among the top three English cities after London (with York and Norwich) in tax receipts. Bristol was eclipsed by the rapid rise of Manchester, Liverpool and Birmingham during the Industrial Revolution.

Connecticut

Connecticut (ⁱ/kəˈnɛtᵻkət/ kə-NET-i-kət) is the southernmost state in the region of the United States known as New England. Connecticut is also often grouped along with New York and New Jersey as the Tri-State area. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its capital city is Hartford, and its most populous city is Bridgeport. The state is named after the Connecticut River, a major U.S. river that approximately bisects the state. The word "Connecticut" is derived from various anglicized spellings of an Algonquian word for "long tidal river."

Connecticut is the third smallest state by area, the 29th most populous, and the fourth most densely populated of the 50 United States. It is known as the "Constitution State", the "Nutmeg State", the "Provisions State", and the "Land of Steady Habits". It was influential in the development of the federal government of the United States. 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, which 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.

Aaron Hernandez

Aaron Josef Hernandez (born November 6, 1989) is a former American football tight end and convicted murderer. Hernandez played college football for the University of Florida, where he was a member of a BCS National Championship team and was recognized as an All-American. He was drafted by the New England Patriots in the fourth round of the 2010 NFL Draft. Hernandez was released by the Patriots in June 2013 immediately after his arrest for the murder of Odin Lloyd.

On August 22, 2013, Hernandez was indicted by a grand jury for the murder of Odin Lloyd, a semi-professional football player, in June 2013. On May 15, 2014, Hernandez was indicted for the 2012 double homicide of Daniel de Abreu and Safiro Furtado. On April 15, 2015, he was found guilty of first-degree murder in the Lloyd case, and is serving a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole at the Souza-Baranowski Correctional Center.

Early years

Aaron Hernandez was born in Bristol, Connecticut, to Dennis Hernandez, who was of Puerto Rican descent, and Terri Valentine-Hernandez, who is of Italian descent. Dennis died from complications from hernia surgery in January 2006, when Aaron was 16. Dennis—who was known as "The King" in the city of Bristol—along with his twin brother, David, were local sports stars in their youth but also reportedly got into street fights and were involved in various crimes including assault and petty larceny. The pair would eventually straighten out their lives when they became fathers. By all accounts, Dennis was a doting father who instilled a hard work discipline in his two sons, honing their athletic abilities and emphasizing the importance of education.

Bristol, Connecticut

Bristol is a suburban city located in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States, 20 miles (32 km) southwest of Hartford. As of the 2010 census, the population of the city was 60,477. Bristol is primarily known as the home of ESPN, whose central studios are in the city. Bristol is also home to Lake Compounce, America's oldest still-functioning theme park. Bristol was known as a clock-making city in the 19th century, and is home to the American Clock & Watch Museum. Bristol's nicknames include the "Bell City", because of a history manufacturing innovative spring-driven doorbells, and the "Mum City", because it was once a leader in chrysanthemum production and still holds an annual Bristol Mum Festival. In 2010, Bristol was ranked 84th on Money Magazine's "Best Places to Live". In 2013, Hartford Magazine ranked Bristol as Greater Hartford's top municipality in the "Best Bang for the Buck" category.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 26.8 square miles (69.5 km²), of which 26.4 square miles (68.4 km²) is land and 0.39 square miles (1.0 km²), or 1.51%, is water. The city contains several distinct sections, including Chippens Hill in the northwestern quarter of Bristol, Edgewood in the northeastern quarter, and Forestville, in the southeastern quarter and cedar lake in the southwestern corner. The majority of Bristol's cityscape is residential in character, though since 2008 there has been a push for commercial development in the city. The city is part of the Naugatuck Valley Regional Planning Organization following the closure of the Central Connecticut Regional Planning Agency, the metropolitan planning organization for Bristol, New Britain, and surrounding towns for decades.

Lake Compounce

Lake Compounce is an amusement park located in Bristol and Southington, Connecticut; the lake itself lies completely in Southington. Opened in 1846, it is the oldest continuously-operating amusement park in the United States. The amusement park covers 332 acres (1.3 km²) of land. The amusement park also has a beach and a waterpark which can be accessed by guests for no extra charge. The park was acquired from Kennywood Entertainment Company, by Palace Entertainment, the U.S. subsidiary of Parques Reunidos.

History

The lake's name is derived from Chief John Compound, a Mattatuck/Tunxis Native American. On December 3, 1684, his wife and several tribal members affixed their waxed fingertip marks to a deed that conveyed the "Compound's Lake" to a group of white settlers, including John Norton, who had migrated to central Connecticut from Massachusetts, for pennies on the dollar and miscellaneous trinkets, including a large brass tea kettle. Legend has it that Chief Compound drowned while trying to cross the lake in a large brass tea kettle.