Groton's Revolutionary story is dominated by a single terrible afternoon: September 6, 1781, when British troops stormed Fort Griswold and massacred the garrison after it had surrendered. The attack, part of Benedict Arnold's coordinated assault on New London across the Thames River, produced the highest single-day casualty count for Connecticut defenders during the entire war and left a wound in the community's memory that has never fully healed.
PEOPLE
KEY EVENTS
STORIES
HISTORICAL VOICE
The Sword Turned Against Its Bearer
Colonel William Ledyard had every reason to believe the fighting was over. His garrison had resisted three British assaults. His men had fought from behind earthworks, inflicting heavy casualties on t...
MODERN VOICE
Every Name on the Monument Was Someone's Neighbor
The Groton Monument is 134 feet tall, and you can climb it. There are 166 steps to the top, and from the observation deck you can see across the Thames River to New London, where the companion raid bu...