Abby Epplett, Historian

For the 250 th 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. 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 went to UCONN Avery Point , a campus of the University of Connecticut. The property contains two buildings listed on the National Register of Historic Places: the colonial revival style Avery Point Lighthouse constructed in 1943 by the Coast Guard during World War II, and massive Bradford House .

For the 250 th 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. 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 ). Throughout the day, I had quick history stops around Groton, CT, including the Independence Day Parade and nearby artwork, monuments, buildings, and other infrastructure.

For the 250 th 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. After a 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 , I was able to explore the beautiful yellow Victorian that I had spotted at several points during the trip so far. Avery-Copp House is an independently managed museum from a very different historical period than my other stops in Groton. In the first part , I described the history of the house. In this second part, I will describe the artifacts and technology found in the building, along with how to visit.

For the 250 th 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. After a 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 , I was able to explore the beautiful yellow Victorian that I had spotted at several points during the trip so far. Avery-Copp House is an independently managed museum from a very different historical period than my other stops in Groton. Due to the high number of lovingly preserved artifacts in the house, I will be describing my tour in two parts. The first will describe the history of the house, and the second will describe its artifacts and decor.

For the 250 th 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. After a morning touring Fort Griswold Battlefield State Park, which included its monument, museum , and the interior of the fort , I took the Road to Revolution Boat Tour , a narrated cruise along the Thames River. On this tightly scripted tour, I learned more about the Fort Griswold, life in colonial Connecticut, and other places to visit in the area. I even got to see an Acela train flying past, the same transportation I took during my trip to Washington, D.C. last year.

For the 250 th 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. For the next few weeks, I will cover the historical sites in that area, starting with two parts on Fort Griswold Battlefield State Park . In the first part , I covered the Groton Monument, the Monument House Museum, and other historical sites around the park. In the second part, I will cover the inside of Fort Griswold and Ebenezer Avery House, along with a more detailed story about the battle for which it is known.

For the 250 th 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. For the next few weeks, I will cover the historical sites in that area, starting with two parts on Fort Griswold Battlefield State Park . In the first part, I will cover the Groton Monument, the Monument House Museum, and other historical sites around the park. In the second part, I will cover the inside of Fort Griswold and Ebenezer Avery House, along with a more detailed story about the battle for which it is known.

During my trip to the Windsor area of Connecticut back in August 2025, I visited several historical places including: Connecticut Trolley Museum , East Windsor Historical Society , Northwest Park , Vintage Radio & Communications Museum , Windsor Historical Society , quick history stops in Windsor, CT , and New England Air Museum ( Part 1 , Part 2 ). Throughout the trip, I stopped at parks in the region, including Scantic River State Park, Windsor Center River Trail, and Windsor Locks State Park.

During my trip to the Windsor area of Connecticut back in August 2025, I visited several historical places including: Connecticut Trolley Museum , East Windsor Historical Society , Northwest Park , Vintage Radio & Communications Museum , Windsor Historical Society , and quick history stops in Windsor, CT . Another stop on that trip was New England Air Museum (NEAM) in Windsor Locks, CT. This museum was extensive enough to warrant a pair of posts. Yesterday in Part 1 , I covered the Military Hangar, New England Women in Aviation Exhibit, Kosciuszko Squadron Battle of Britain Exhibit, and some artifacts in the Civil Aviation Hangar. Today in Part 2, I will cover the rest of the airplanes in the Civil Aviation Hangar, the Space & Observation Mezzanine, the B-29 Hangar with the Tuskegee Airmen Exhibit, the Outside Aircraft Display, and tips for your visit.

During my trip to the Windsor area of Connecticut back in August 2025, I visited several historical places including: Connecticut Trolley Museum , East Windsor Historical Society , Northwest Park , Vintage Radio & Communications Museum , Windsor Historical Society , and quick history stops in Windsor, CT . Another stop on that trip was New England Air Museum (NEAM) in Windsor Locks, CT. This museum was extensive enough to warrant a pair of posts. Part 1 will cover the Military Hangar, New England Women in Aviation Exhibit, Kosciuszko Squadron Battle of Britain Exhibit, and some artifacts in the Civil Aviation Hangar. Part 2 debuting tomorrow will cover the rest of the airplanes in the Civil Aviation Hangar, the Space & Observation Mezzanine, the B-29 Hangar with the Tuskegee Airmen Exhibit, the Outside Aircraft Display, and tips for your visit.

I had a history-packed, three-day trip to the Windsor, CT area back in August 2025, when I visited the Connecticut Trolley Museum , East Windsor Historical Society , Northwest Park , Vintage Radio & Communications Museum , and Windsor Historical Society . Between stops at amazing venues that exceeded expectation, I took a few quick history stops around Windsor, CT to see the usual small town New England sites, including historic buildings, memorials, a cemetery, and a classic New England church. This area, called Palisado Avenue Historic District , has been on the National Register of Historic Places since 1987 .

During my trip to the Windsor, CT area back in August 2025, I visited many historical sites, including the Connecticut Trolley Museum , East Windsor Historical Society , and  Vintage Radio and Communication Museum . On the same trip, I spent several hours at Windsor Historical Society . This impressive small town museum enjoys excellent funding and has a well-trained, engaging staff, making this stop among the best historical society visits that I have experienced.

In August 2025, I traveled to the Windsor area of Connecticut and spent three days visiting museums, stopping at historic sites, and walking in parks. On the second day of my adventure, I went to the Vintage Radio and Communications Museum of Connecticut  (VRCMC). Across all of intense museum visitation, this museum exceeded expectation more than any other. In a year that included trips to famous stops Philadelphia, Washington DC, Old Sturbridge Village, and Plimoth Patuxet, along with dozens of other venues, this was the most unique, whimsical, and satisfying stop.

On the same day I visited the Connecticut Trolley Museum and East Windsor Historical Society , I walked through Northwest Park run by the town of Windsor, CT. This 473-acre park includes a tobacco museum, a nature center, a heritage breed animal barn, public art, and twelve miles of walking trails.

During my first day of my adventure in the Windsor, CT area, I stopped by East Windsor Historical Society to look at their collection of buildings and related outdoor artifacts. This venue was not far away from the Connecticut Trolley Museum , which I had visited in the morning, and was a great companion visit. While the society was not open during my visit, it was easy to park and look at the well-preserved space, also known as Museums on the Green. (Falmouth Historical Society on Cape Cod, which I visited back in August 2024 , similarly calls its venue Museum on the Green.)

In mid-August 2025, I took a three-day trip to the Windsor, CT area to explore many museums and parks. My first stop on the trip with the Connecticut Trolley Museum (CTM) in East Windsor. The owner of the museum, the Connecticut Electric Railway Association, Inc., was founded in 1940, making it the oldest trolley preservation organization in the country. While checking off a bucket list item, I saw trolleys and fire trucks, took a ride on a restored trolley, and visited the unique gift shop.

I recently read the eBook Witch Hunt: A Traveler’s Guide to the Power and Persecution of the Witch written by Kristen J. Sollée and published in 2020 by Red Wheel / Weiser . The book was based on Sollée’s road trip to places of importance in witchcraft history with each chapter covering a different location with Europe or the USA. Sollée seamlessly blends her lived experience with detailed research, creating a narrative of magical realism, historic documentation, and modern interpretation, from scholarly books to tourist traps. Besides exploring places less familiar to the average reader, Sollée includes references to literature turned pop culture like Shakespeare’s Macbeth and well-known artworks like Michelangelo’s David and The Fall and Expulsion from Garden of Eden in the Sistine Chapel. The balance of novelty and familiarity kept me engaged through the 2.5 hour reading time. Another talent exhibit by Sollée is her ability to explain new vocabulary. From the “Introductio...

In early November 2024, I visited Bigelow Hollow State Park in Union, CT , a tiny town of 785 people located in The Last Green Valley , a national heritage corridor. Much like Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor and Essex National Heritage Area , both of which appear frequently on this blog, The Last Green Valley is a member of the Alliance of National Heritage Areas (ANHA) , which preserves ecological and historical sites across the United States. The Connecticut area is unique for having the only dark nighttime skies on the East Coast between Boston, MA and Washington, DC, since eighty-four percent of the land is farms and forests. Bigelow Hollow makes up 516 acres (2.09 sq km) of those rural lands.

Finishing up my three-day trip to the Mystic / Lyme area of Connecticut, I made a few quick history stops along the way, including a nature preserve, a state park with a railroad bridge, and a historic farmstead.

Several weeks ago, I took a three-day trip to the Mystic / Lyme area of Connecticut and visited many historical sites. The most remarkable hidden gem I found during this trip was Thomas Lee House & Little Boston School, properties in Niantic, CT belonging to  East Lyme Historical Society . Listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1970 , Lee House was among the best examples of post-medieval houses in New England that I have visited. In the late 1660s, the original portion of the house was built for Ensign Thomas Lee III who used the lower chamber as a Judgement Hall for holding court cases. Additions in 1709 and 1765 brought the house to its current size. The Lee family lived in the house until some point in the 19 th century, when a neighbor bought the property and turned it into a barn. Today, the lower chamber on the left is a 17 th century design, while the lower chamber on the left is an 18 th century or Georgian style design, all...