Welcome to the website of The New London Gazette, a newsletter dedicated to sharing with you the charms of New London, a delightful, old seaport community in southeastern Connecticut, New England, USA. The Gazette's printed editions appear monthly April through December with one edition for January, February, and March.

Historic New London is located in Southeastern Connecticut, an extremely popular tourist destination. The lovely old city is conveniently close to the maritime museum and aquarium in Mystic, nearby world class casinos, and other attractions yet its 19th century flavor is spiritually distant enough to be refreshing.

Rich in history, vibrant in its multi-cultural makeup, the small (about six square miles) city of New London on the Thames River offers visitors and residents much to savor. The New London Gazette introduces you to this fascinating city; tells you how and where to find its many attractions, and how to navigate meandering streets laid out in Colonial times.

Colleges

Events

Ferries

Galleries & Museums

Joshua Hempstead's Diary

Historic Sites

Lodgings

Map of New London

Marinas

New London Parks

Restaurant Guide

Surprises, Features & Facts

Transportation

Purchase Books on Southeastern Connecticut History & Genealogy 

Take A Hike

Even in winter New London is a good place to go for a walk either uptown or downtown. It may be small geographically, but it is has large horizons.

At the Beach

For one, there is Ocean Beach. An obvious delight in summer, it is also a good place to go for a walk in winter. And dont be deterred by talk about a closed boardwalk, which will open again soon anyway. Enjoy a pleasant walk at the Ocean Beach Park beautiful Nature Walk this winter.

Entrance to the park is free in the off season, so drive (or walk) to the far edge (western) of the parking lot to pick up a lovely walk along side Alewife Cove down to Long Island Sound.
At the end is an observation deck where shore birds can be spotted on the cove. Signs provide information on vegetation and animal life.

Bayberry shrubs and various grasses are among the native plantings. The leaves and berries of the bayberry are aromatic; the berries were used in colonial times to make candles and soaps. On this walk you can enjoy the natural beauty of New Londons shoreline.

In Town

In town, the Healthy New London Health trail offers a different kind of purpose and scenery. A collaboration of several organizations provides tips for getting started, a log to record 30-minute daily walks, and a map.
Signs mark the route in places along State Street, the waterfront park, Huntington Street, and other downtown streets. Along the trail walkers see historic buildings from New Londons colonial and 19th century past as well as interesting shops and restaurants.

Who Was Trumbull (as in Fort Trumbull)?

Who is New Londons Fort Trumbull, so much in the news these days, named after? The fort was named after Jonathan Trumbull, governor of Connecticut during the Revolutionary War. A pious man from Lebanon, CT, he became governor in 1769. Prior to that, in 1765 during the fervor over the Stamp Act, Jonathan Trumbull had come down foursquare on the side of the Sons of Liberty in disobeying the Act. (See article in Nov 2005 Gazette.)

Once the Revolution started, Trumbull led Connecticuts effort from his War Office in Lebanon, including a major role in provisioning the American army. Trumbull also made frequent trips to New London where he stayed at the Shaw Mansion, home of his friend Nathaniel Shaw. Shaw ran the Naval Office in New London where he saw to the provisioning and repair of Connecticut ships, many of which engaged in privateering.

In 1775, before the start of the Revolution, concern had mounted over the lack of a fortification around New London. No action was taken however because, as Frances Manwaring Caulkins wrote, of a void in the treasury. Once the war started, construction began and in December 1776 the fortification was named in honor of Governor Trumbull. Another fort, built on the other side of the river, was named in honor of Lieutenant Governor Griswold.

Fort Trumbull was attacked in 1781 by the traitor Benedict Arnold who burned New London. In Fort Trumbull State Park today is a block house built right after the Revolution and the newer fort built in the 19th century. Caulkins describes the land where the fort was built as:

...a broad, irregular platform of rocks, rising twenty feet above the water and connected to the main land & by meadows and marshes....A more advantageous site for a fortification is scarcely to be desired....it ...seems nearly useless for any other purpose.

Jonathan Trumbull was no irrational firebrand. Before becoming governor he had played a role in a dispute involving a Spanish ship. The ship had arrived in New London in 1752 after springing a leak on its way to Cadiz laden with rich cargo. While here, much of her valuables disappeared, to the embarrassment of many. Fearing pressure from London and Madrid, the state sent Jonathan Trumbull and Roger Wolcott, Jr., to New London. They succeeded in inventorying the cargo and determining what was lost, earning praise for their efficiency from the British. The issue, far more complicated than this, festered for a number of years before eventually dying.

This year marks the 225th anniversary of the burning of New London and the Battle of Groton Heights at Fort Griswold. Events are being planned for September 2006 to commemorate that tragic, historic event.

[Sources: F.M. Caulkins, History of New London, Connecticut, 1895; E.E. Rogers, Connecticuts Naval Office at New London, 1933; D.M. Roth, Connecticuts War Governor: Jonathan Trumbull, 1974; NL Landmarks, A Tour of Historic Fort Trumbull, 1998)