Snapshots From the Connecticut Sub Trail

BILL MEMORIAL LIBRARY, GROTON

If there's any place in the world where the marriage of submarines and public art makes perfect sense, it's southeastern Connecticut. The only thing that's surprising about the CT Sub Trail is that it didn't happen earlier. But as it turns out, the timing is perfect: these 21 roly-poly little subs were created as a part of the celebration of Connecticut's Submarine Century. In the tradition of cows, guitars, apples, and hundreds of other themed objects, the fiberglass subs (designed by local artists and unveiled in Groton on the 4th of July) will be on display around the region through October.

The subs are stationed at schools, museums, and businesses. You can locate them using the CT Sub Trail mobile app. I went looking for a few of them and found a colorful and creative expression of appreciation for Connecticut's history, shoreline, and military and maritime heritage.

BILL MEMORIAL LIBRARY, GROTON

CHILDREN'S MUSEUM OF SOUTHEASTERN CONNECTICUT, NIANTIC

CHILDREN'S MUSEUM OF SOUTHEASTERN CONNECTICUT, NIANTIC

CITY PIER, NEW LONDON

CITY PIER, NEW LONDON

ROUTE 32, UNCASVILLE

COCA-COLA BOTTLING CO. OF SOUTHEASTERN NEW ENGLAND, WATERFORD

COCA-COLA BOTTLING CO. OF SOUTHEASTERN NEW ENGLAND, WATERFORD

LESTERTOWN ROAD, GROTON

LESTERTOWN ROAD, GROTON

WWII NATIONAL SUBMARINE MEMORIAL, GROTON

295 MERIDIAN STREET, GROTON

ELLA T. GRASSO TECHNICAL HIGH SCHOOL, GROTON

BANK SQUARE BOOKS, MYSTIC

BANK SQUARE BOOKS, MYSTIC

UCONN-AVERY POINT, GROTON

BANK SQUARE BOOKS, MYSTIC

Ocean Beach Park

In last week's post on Waterford Beach Park, I mentioned that that unspoiled stretch of coastline is adjacent to New London's Ocean Beach Park.

I was about to add a link to my previous post about Ocean Beach Park, but to my surprise I discovered that I have never written a post on Ocean Beach Park.

It had appeared here, in some early posts, in the form of a few pictures with vague text. But amazingly, I had never thought to sit down and write an entire post about this popular southeastern Connecticut destination. (I say popular; that's in the summer. In the fall, winter, and spring, this old-fashioned waterfront entertainment spot with soft white "sugar sand" and a lovely wide boardwalk is practically deserted.)

So here it is: I'm writing a post to tell you to go to Ocean Beach Park.

Walk along the boardwalk and you'll see ferries crossing the sound, passing the New London Ledge Light as they come and go.

At both ends of the boardwalk, you can stop and stare out at the horizon, or step onto the sand and walk further.

There's food available (though not in April.)

There's a playground, too.

And a miniature golf course.

There are also amusement park rides. (This is not one of them.)

 And all of it is refreshingly retro.

Looking at this view, you wouldn't think of Robert Moses, the Glenn Miller Orchestra, or Polka festivals, but all three of these figure into Ocean Beach Park's past. (I know this because I once wrote an article called "Fun Facts About Ocean Beach."

As crowded as the park gets during the summers now, it was even more of a scene in its early years.

But once you get out past the boardwalk, everything changes.

This is where the waves of Long Island Sound meet the marshy, sheltered Alewife Cove.

Follow the Alewife Cove Nature Walk, and you'll see a completely different side of this beach.

It's calmer here, and quieter, but it's wilder, too.

Even in the off-season, when the boardwalk is empty, this trail feels emptier still, and practically untouched.

That's not the case, obviously. Though it might feel like you're the first person to have strolled out this way, you are not. Luckily the people who came before you built an observation deck.

The New London Mural Walk

If you follow me on Instagram, you might have noticed that I'm living in New London again. I haven't really had time to re-explore the city yet, but the other day I took advantage of a free hour and went downtown to check out what's known as "New England's largest mural walk."

New London's walls have been adorned with murals for as long as I can remember, and residents and visitors have admired them (or not, as the case may be - some people apparently become apoplectic  at the sight of a Caryatid) for many years. But in 2012, Hygienic Art and the City of New London, along with other local cultural and business organizations, made it official, dedicating Wall to Wall: the New London Mural Walk.

Though I was already aware of most of the murals on this self-guided tour, I wanted to do the Walk properly, starting at the Hygienic building on Bank Street and following the New London Mural Walk map. I'm glad I did, because it forced me to pay attention to a few newer works that I hadn't realized were part of a larger plan. There's a little something here for everyone, except I suppose people who dislike art and walking. If you dislike art and walking, you'd be well advised to skip this attraction, but then, you probably wouldn't have clicked on this post in the first place. Anyway. There's a wall of Wyland whales here, and, if you venture indoors, a collection of WPA murals and a lobby full of Sol LeWitt. There are works by newer artists as well, and references to New London's history and culture(s), and nods to classical art. (The murals in this post are just a few of the ones you'll see if you take this route.)

But you don't need a map to appreciate how public art has proliferated in New London recently. Just wander, and keep your eyes open.

5 Underrated Small Connecticut Cities

"PEACOCK ALLEY," NORWICH

Happy New Year, and welcome to a new type of post I've been wanting to incorporate into The Size of Connecticut. I had the idea to do a little series of "Top Fives," grouping five similar destinations, in the hope that it might help people looking for a particular type of place to go.

This first one is about some of the small (population-wise, though some are tiny in area as well) Connecticut cities that often fly under the radar of people in the Nutmeg State and outside of it. For the purposes of this post I'm defining city as a municipality that is incorporated as a city (in Connecticut, you can't always tell what's a city and what's a town without looking it up) and one that feels urban: these places are walkable, they're relatively densely populated and built up, they've historically been centers of industry (not just farmland), and they offer plenty of things to do, places to eat, and sights to see.


Norwich

Population: 40,493

The so-called Rose of New England, at the confluence of the Thames, Shetucket, and Yantic Rivers, is the place to go if you like to be surprised by dramatic architecture and topography. From the downtown area, with its hilly, one-way streets and unpretentious waterfront, to Norwichtown, where 18th and 19th century homes surround the town green, to the time-warped old mill village of Taftville, Norwich is as unexpected as its new peacock mural - painted on a set of alley stairs - would suggest. This city can seem a bit abandoned at times, but that's what lets visitors pretend they're the first to have discovered it.

Some other Norwich attractions are the Slater Memorial Museum at the Norwich Free Academy, the Leffingwell House Museum, the Veterans Memorial Rose Garden in Mohegan Park, the Spa at Norwich Inn, and several history-centered walking tours, including one dedicated to local hero-turned-villain Benedict Arnold.

New London

Population: 27,620

With only about five and a half square miles of land to its name, New London is tiny. But the Whaling City, located where the Thames River meets Long Island Sound, makes up for that by being saturated with what feels like more history per square inch than any other place in the state. It's also got more than its fair share of art galleries, coffee shops, and restaurants. Here, old-fashioned beaches and lighthouses meet military pride and an eclectic, artistic, diverse downtown. New London seems to constantly swing between downturn and revitalization, but you could say it's impressive the city exists at all, given that the aforementioned Benedict Arnold burned most of it down in 1781.

A few of New London's highlights include the Lyman Allyn Art Museum, the Custom House Maritime Museum, the Hempsted Houses, the United States Coast Guard Academy, Fort Trumbull State Park, the Old Town Mill, Monte Cristo Cottage, the Connecticut College Arboretum, Ocean Beach Park, the Historic Waterfront District Heritage Trail, and Whale Oil Row.

Middletown

Population: 47,648

Within Connecticut, Middletown's appeal is no secret (though residents of the state's corners who are less familiar with its center can be quite surprised the first time they stumble across this charming city.) But elsewhere, aside from the occasional "Most Romantic Main Street" award, Middletown is relatively unknown. Which is too bad, because this place - funky college town meets plucky New England city in a spot geographically fortunate enough to offer a plethora of activities for sporty outdoor types - should be on more people's "to visit" lists. The main attraction is the downtown area, situated along the Connecticut River. It's full of interesting places to eat, drink, and shop, and it looks like the set of a wholesome Midwestern musical with a Northeastern edge.

A handful of places to go in Middletown are Harbor Park, Wesleyan University, NoRa Cupcakes, and the Parklands at Long Hill. With children, try the Kidcity Children's Museum, Adventure Rooms, and Oddfellows Playhouse.

Winsted

Population: 7,321

Winsted - an incorporated city for Connecticut's purposes but technically a part of Winchester, the larger town that almost completely surrounds it - looks like no other place in the state. Its most unusual feature, a wide Main Street with buildings lining just one side, gives this New England town a feeling of the Old West. The design is the reaction to a catastrophe. In 1955, the floods that deluged many Connecticut towns flattened much of Winsted's downtown. After that, Main Street was rebuilt to give the Mad River, which usually flows happily beside it, room to go mad again. Winsted, called the Laurel City, is one of Connecticut's earliest mill towns, and old brick factory buildings still loom large in its landscape. Now some of these mills are being put to new uses, and the city might just transform itself yet again.

Here's a selection of Winsted points of interest: the Soldiers' Monument and Memorial Park, Whiting Mills, the Gilson Cinema and Cafe, and Ralph Nader's American Museum of Tort Law.

Derby 

Population: 12,830

Derby is Connecticut's smallest city (its motto is literally "Connecticut's Smallest City") which makes it worth visiting simply as a curiosity. (How did those early settlers cram a whole city into such a small space, and why did they bother?) But although this industrious little city with a very small-town vibe is not exactly bustling with activity, there's more to this tiny municipality than a superlative. The Housatonic and Naugatuck Rivers converge here, making for some lovely waterfront walks and views. (There are also six bridges.) Preserved 19th century buildings surround Derby Green, where the road signs bear the names of female relatives of the private developers who convinced the local government to lay out the streets. And Derby is very proud of its very weird history, including this Revolutionary War story about pork.

If you go to Derby, places to check out include the Derby Greenway, the Sterling Opera House, the General David Humphreys House, and Books by the Falls. 

We're Everywhere, Summer Edition

New London is Connecticut's second-smallest municipality. I lived in New London for something like five years. I write about Connecticut history. I write about Jewish stuff. I am fond of tiny, incongruous buildings. Add all that together, and you would not be crazy for assuming that I would have stumbled over this small historic synagogue near Ocean Beach Park. And yet, I had no idea it was there.

I knew that once upon a time, during New London's heyday as an upscale summer resort town, there had been a seasonal shul here for Jews who came to escape the heat of the cities. But I thought that was one of those old memories of a bygone New London, like when whaling ships came home laden with oil and their captains built mansions along the city's tree-lined streets. 

But then Dirk Langeveld, the former editor of New London Patch who sometimes tips me off to fabulously obscure Connecticut spots, told me the synagogue was still there. I Google Mapped it immediately, and when I saw it on my computer screen I knew I had to go find it the next time I was in southeastern Connecticut.

And there it stood, on a residential street I had remarkably never gotten lost on in all my years in New London.

Even if I had, I might have missed it. You have to get up pretty close to see the details, including the little sign on the door indicating that not only is Temple Israel still standing, it's also still functioning as a synagogue. A nice surprise after this find.