Quick History Stops: New London, CT, Part 1
For the 250th anniversary of the United States, I took a three-day patriotic trip to the Thames River National Heritage Park in Groton and New London, CT. On Day 1, I spent the morning touring Fort Griswold Battlefield State Park, which included its monument, museum, and the interior of the fort, followed by an early afternoon boat tour, and a visit to Avery-Copp House (first part, second part). After making several quick history stops around Groton, I finished the day at UCONN Avery Point. The second day began Fort Trumbull where I learned architectural history, read informational signage, explored the exterior, and visited the museum. In the afternoon, I took a self-guided tour of Downtown New London Historic District, on the National Register of Historic Places since 1978 with an increase in 1988. In the first of three parts, I visit New London Waterfront Park, the site of the future National Coast Guard Museum, a statue portraying a future writer, and an elegant train station.
I began by walking through New London Waterfront Park, which is has railroad tracks on one side and the harbor on the other. Amtrak runs through the city several times each day; I took one of these trains during my Washington, DC adventure in 2025. The most unique feature of the tracks in this area is Shaw’s Cove Bridge. This swing bridge pivots around an axis, allowing either boats or a train to pass through. The bridge was constructed in 1984 to replace a similar bridge constructed in 1913, which had been on the National Register. Nearby as part of the Black Heritage Trail in the City of New London is a plaque to the Amistad. In 1839, fifty-three kidnapped Africans took over the schooner where they were held and were captured by the U.S. Navy. After two years of court cases, the thirty-five survivors were freed and went to Sierra Leone. A replica of the Amistad owned by Mystic Seaport Museum is sometimes on view but was not at the pier during my visit; I did learn more about the ship during my visit to Mystic back in 2024.
Nearby was the construction of the National Coast Guard Museum, now scheduled to open on August 4, 2027. Signage showed what the museum is supposed to look like in just over a year from my visit. Near the construction site was a statue of a little boy representing Eugene O’Neill, the famous playwright. (I learned more about his home in Danville, California, now a National Historic Site, in March 2026 during a Parked at Home webinar.) His family lived at Monte Cristo Cottage in New London during the summer while he was growing up and once worked for the New London Telegraph as a reporter and poet. The cottage is now a National Historic Landmark owned by the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center. The organization has a birthday event with free tours on the Saturday nearest his birthday on October 16, so I will have to add that event to my list of things to do in the future.
My final stop in the first part was New London Union Station on 27 Water Street currently owned by Amtrak. Built in the class Richardson Romanesque style with red brick, steep roof lines, and tall windows, the station was designed by Henry Hobson Richardson himself. While imitations of this style were rampant throughout New England during the late 19th century, I have previously visited only two other true Richardson buildings: Stonehurst, the Robert Treat Paine Estate in Waltham, MA and Old Colonial Railroad Station in Easton, MA. The station was added to the National Register as New London Railroad Station in 1971.
