As we know it today, the Thames River is a “working river,” with industrial maritime pursuits ranging from shipyard work and commercial fishing to marine transportation, the production of nuclear submarines for the U.S. Navy, and home to the U.S. Coast Guard Academy and Coast Guard Research and Development Center.

The Thames River is the heart of the region. It is a vital economic and community resource just as it was for the economies and communities of the indigenous people, the Pequots, who first settled this region and named this waterway the Pequot River. The City of New London acknowledges that we are on the ancestral lands of the Mashantucket Pequot, Western Nehântick, Eastern Pequot, Mohegan, and other tribal nations indigenous to Nameaug, now called New London, CT. We pay respect to the generations of Native people—past, present, and future, who stewarded and continue to maintain spiritual and cultural connections to this land and waters. We seek to build meaningful relationships with and elevate the visibility of Native nations and people through education, service, and/or partnership. 

With the arrival of British colonists, the role of this deep-water harbor grew. Colonist John Winthrop Jr., whose father was Governor of Massachusetts Bay Colony, was granted this land in 1646 by the Crown. In 1658, the English named the settlement New London and they called the river the Thames River after the River Thames in London.

New London’s economy grew and it became the colony’s first official commercial port as a local fleet of merchant vessels grew to serve what came to be known as the ‘triangle trade’ that moved manufactured goods from Europe to the colonies, sugar, molasses, and rum from the West Indies to the colonies and Europe, and humans from West Africa transported to the colonies as slaves.

Throughout colonial times, New London was a transportation hub between New York and the Northeast. In the 19th century, New London’s fortunes increased with the advent of whaling, such that it became knowns as the Whaling City.

One of the earliest graveyards in New England and the oldest colonial cemetery in New London County, Ye Antientist Burial Ground is the final resting place of Gurdon Saltonstall, who served as Governor of the Colony of Connecticut from 1708 to 1724, and Lucretia Harris Shaw. The wife of Captain Nathaniel Shaw Jr., Lucretia turned her home into a hospital for soldiers returning from British prison ships. The Shaw Mansion today is home to the New London County Historical Society and serves as an archive for its collection. It is an institution of research and education.

The United States Coast Guard, one of the country’s five armed services, is a unique agency of the federal government. The Coast Guard traces its history to Aug. 4, 1790, when the first Congress authorized the construction of 10 vessels to enforce tariff and trade laws and to prevent smuggling. Known variously through the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries as the Revenue Marine and the Revenue Cutter Service, the U.S. Coast Guard has expanded in size and responsibilities as the nation grew.

Originally built in 1777 on the west bank of what was originally named the Pequot River, the fort was intended to protect New London Harbor from British attack. The first masonry structure was destroyed after Benedict Arnold raided the fort on Sept. 6, 1781, and burned New London. Fort Trumbull provides visitors an expansive view of New London Harbor and Long Island Sound beyond the mouth of the Thames River, a riverwalk, and even a fishing pier.

Located on a hill known as Groton Heights on the east side of the Thames River, the fort started as a ‘River Battery’ earthworks built in 1775. As with Fort Trumbull across the way, it was attacked by Benedict Arnold’s forces on Sept. 6, 1781, as he burned New London.  Colonel William Ledyard, who led a militia of just 165 against a British force of some 800, died when the British killed him with his own sword upon his surrender of the Fort. Fort Griswold provides expansive views of the river and New London, and each year the ‘Battle of Groton Heights’ is reenacted on Sept. 6. The Fort Griswold Battlefield State Park Foundation maintains the site today.

Built by Captain Nathaniel Shaw in 1756, the Shaw Mansion was the scene of significant Revolutionary activity and served as host to Gen. George Washington as he moved troops from Cambridge, Mass., to New York in April, 1776. Capt. Shaw was a prosperous merchant who made his fortunes largely from the West Indies trade. Shaw was a supporter of the Revolution and used his vessels and crews as privateers to plunder supplies from the British fleet sailing past the mouth of the Thames River. Shaw Mansion became naval headquarters for Connecticut’s state navy and some 50 privateers working out of New London Harbor. The success of New London’s privateers under Shaw’s leadership led to Benedict Arnold’s burning of New London in 1781. Ironically, the Shaw Masion, built of granite, was one of the few buildings to survive the attack. The Shaw Mansion is the Headquarters of the New London County Historical Society, and has been used as an archive for their collection since 1907.  It is an institution of research and education, however, tours are available by appointment, with limited availability.

As an active port city and population center of the region, New London was the site of many challenges to the oppression of slavery and the persistence of segregation. Local historians created the Black Heritage Trail to “celebrate three centuries of Black strength, resilience, and accomplishment.” The trail features 15 sites with plaques noting the significance of each from the Colonial period through the mid-20^th century. A 1749 gravestone reveals the existence of Connecticut’s Black Governors, who did not hold statewide office but were elected by a region or town’s Black residents. Another notes the official vote against Blacks purchasing land after Robert Jacklin purchased a farm in New London. The site of the 1848 lecture series by abolitionist Frederick Douglass, is also part of the trail.

The 1678 Joshua Hempsted House in New London is one of New England’s oldest and best documented dwellings, providing a window into urban life in Colonial New London. Born in the house that bears his name in 1678, Joshua Hempsted (the second) kept a diary from 1711 until his death in 1758. Today, the diary is one of the best sources of information about the people of colonial New London and their activities.

Adjacent to the Joshua Hempsted House is the stone house built in 1759 for Nathaniel Hempsted by Acadian exiles. Both structures survived the 1781 burning of New London by Benedict Arnold and stand today as testaments to 17th– and 18th-century daily life.

Home to the Hempsted family until 1937, the wood-frame house was extensively restored by Connecticut Landmarks.

As a site of northern slavery, the Hempsted Houses work to engage the public in understanding the historical roots and current-day implications of issues related to equality and freedom and empower people to make a difference today.

New London’s 1833 US Custom House was built at the height of the City’s maritime power, when New London was the second-greatest whaling port in the world. While not part of the Revolutionary Period of New London, it is a prominent example of New London’s role as a maritime force before, during and after the Revolution. The Custom House was designed by architect Robert Mills, best-known for his design of the Washington Monument. The building exists today thanks to the dedication of New Londoners who fought plans for its demolition and established the New London Maritime Society in 1983 to repurpose the building as the Custom House Maritime Museum.

8 Mill St., New London; The Olde Town Mill was originally built in 1650 by John Winthrop Jr., the founder of New London and later the Governor of Connecticut. Listed on the National Historic Register, the Mill is one of the oldest industrial sites in Connecticut. On September 6, 1781, General Benedict Arnold burned the mill down during his raid on New London. The mill was rebuilt soon after on the original site. Olde Town Mill is currently closed to visitors due to ongoing bridge construction.

This is the oldest and tallest lighthouse on Long Island Sound, though the current structure is not the original structure. In 1759, under King George II, land is purchased to establish a true lighthouse and New London resident Nathaniel Shaw sells a portion of his land for the site of the new light. The original lighthouse was built 1761 and the lantern was first lit the night of Nov. 7, 1761. In 1791, George Washington signs a contract authorizing the expenditure of $360 quarterly to supply New London Harbor Light’s six lamps with spermaceti whale oil, with the Act for the Establishment and support of Lighthouse, Beacons, Buoys, and Public Piers. By 1800, the lighthouse had developed a 10-foot crack beneath the lantern, and the lamp’s low focal point left it indistinguishable from lights in nearby farmhouses. Congress appropriates $15,700 “for rebuilding, altering, and improving the lighthouse at New London, Conn.” In 1801, architect Abisha Woodward of New London completes construction of the new (current) lighthouse, an 89-foot tapered octagonal tower with 19-inch-thick walls at the base. Today, New London Harbor Light is overseen by New London Maritime Society.

Our state hero, Nathan Hale, taught here in 1774 and 1775, several years after graduating from Yale at the age of eighteen. Hale moved here to take over the Union Grammar School after complaining of the “remote life in the wilderness called Moodus” and leaving East Haddam.

In 1775, Hale enlisted to fight for our independence in the American Revolution, soon after being promoted to the rank of Captain. He was the only soldier to volunteer to spy on the British who had taken control of Long Island when George Washington needed valuable information.

“I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country.” Nathan Hale’s immortal last words on being hanged as a spy by the British in New York on September 22, 1776.