Stratford is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. It is situated on Long Island Sound at the mouth of the Housatonic River. Stratford is in the Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk Metropolitan Statistical Area. It was founded by Puritans in 1639.The population was 51,384 as of the 2010 census. It has a historical legacy in aviation, the military, and theater. Stratford is bordered on the west by Bridgeport, to the north by Trumbull and Shelton, and on the east by Milford.