Before looking at New Haven houses for sale, it’s fun to learn about this historic city. New Haven was one of the first planned cities in America. A year after its founding by English Puritans in 1638, eight streets were laid out in a symmetrical grid. The central block is New Haven Green, a 16-acre square at the center of Downtown. In 1716, the Collegiate School relocated to New Haven, establishing the town as a center of learning. Shortly afterwards the school was renamed Yale, after a large donor. For over a century, the town’s citizens had fought in the colonial militia alongside regular British forces, in the French and Indian Wars. As the American Revolution approached, the militia general and other influential residents hoped that the conflict with the government in Britain could be resolved short of rebellion. However, one company broke into the powder house to arm themselves and joined George Washington. In the summer of 1779, thousands of loyalists and British regulars landed in New Haven Harbor and raided the town. The former president of Yale rode out to confront them and his conciliatory efforts must have been successful as the town was not torched and many of the town's colonial features were preserved. New Haven was subsequently incorporated as a city in 1784. In the late 18th century, a Yale graduate developed the cotton gin and established an armaments factory, bringing great economic benefits. This factory and others, along with busy clock-making and brass hardware sectors, contributed to making the city a powerful manufacturing center. Samuel Colt invented the revolver here in 1836 and Oliver Winchester had another workshop. After the Civil War, the population grew and doubled by the start of the 20th century, primarily because of immigration from Italy. Today, roughly half the population is of Italian-American descent. Jewish immigration to New Haven has also left an enduring mark on the city. From the 1960s through the late 1990s, central areas of New Haven continued to decline despite attempts to resurrect neighborhoods through renewal projects. In the past 20 years, much of the downtown area has been revitalized with new restaurants, nightlife and small retail stores. In particular, the area surrounding the New Haven Green has experienced an influx of apartments and condominiums.

New Haven is the home port of a life-size replica of the historic schooner Amistad, which is open for tours at Long Wharf pier at certain times during the summer. Also at Long Wharf pier is the schooner Quinnipiack, offering sailing cruises of the harbor area throughout the summer.

The New Haven Green is the site of many free music concerts, especially during the summer months. These have included the New Haven Symphony Orchestra, the July Free Concerts on the Green, and the New Haven Jazz Festival in August.

Yale University Art Gallery is the oldest college art museum in America. The Gallery’s encyclopedic holdings of more than 250,000 objects range from ancient times to the present day and represent civilizations from around the globe. Spanning a block and a half of the city of New Haven, Connecticut, the Gallery comprises three architecturally distinct buildings, including a masterpiece of modern architecture from 1953 through which visitors enter.

Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library is one of the world’s largest libraries and is devoted entirely to rare books and manuscripts. The Gutenberg Bible, the first Western book printed from movable type, and John James Audubon’s Birds of America are on permanent public display on the mezzanine. The library holds more than one million books.

New Haven was named the Best Foodie City in the country in 2014. There are 56 highly rated restaurants in New Haven, the most in Connecticut. More than 120 restaurants are located within two blocks of the Green. New Haven-style pizza made its debut at the iconic Frank Pepe Pizzeria Napoletana in 1925. Now several other pizzerias keep the tradition of ‘apizza’ going.