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New London, Connecticut
All Photos © Tim N. Touchton
Each photograph
is available as an 8x10 for a cost of $ 12.00
plus $2.00 shipping. Check or money order only please.
I took these photographs in July 1990 while visiting my in-laws in Niantic
and a grandmother
who lives in New London. You cannot miss this lighthouse if you drive along
the waterfront
in New London. This lighthouse is directly down the street, a short walk,
from my grandmother-in-law's
home. Beaches in Connecticut are part of that subdivision directly by that
beach. The subdivision basically
has "that" beach as part of their "community" property.
You have to have a neighborhood badge to go
to that beach. However, during the off season nobody checks for the badges.
There is always a parking
problem along most of these beaches because people who don't live in that
neighborhood park where
they are not supposed to park. It does create problems for the homeowners.
We used to take the kids to visit their great-grandmother, on their grandfather's
side, who lives
in New London close to this beach. She would feed us candy, ice cream and
basically spoil the
kids. Her house was always immaculate, both inside and out. We'd walk down
from her house to
the beach and have a great time. (Except the water is extremely cold.) We'd
play on the rocks,
explore the "creatures of the sea" along the shore and in the rocks.
There used to be a very mean
woman who lives just to the bottom side of the first lighthouse photograph.
She was always confused
about "property" lines. You see, a homeowner cannot own out past
the high tide mark. The ocean
owns the land and water past the high tide mark into the water. My kids were
exploring along the water
and rocks at low tide and she really went nuts. Poor confused soul. Kids should
be allowed to see
and explore things without having some nut jump their case. Anyway, we had
many nice trips to this
beach without this woman bothering us. The first photograph is a beautiful
one and my personal favorite
of these three. The water is clear, the rocks magnificent, the sky beautiful
and the lighthouse standing
in all it's splendor. The second photograph has a fantastic sky which, I think,
makes the photograph.
That sky is very typical of this area. The third photograph was taken from
my in-laws boat. Another
great lighthouse to see. I highly recommend a visit to this one. It's hard
to get to unless you have
permission from a local homeowner because you are not allowed on the beach
otherwise.
Information about the New London Harbor Lighthouse:
Present tower established: 1801
Tower height: 89 feet
Fog signals installed: 1875
The first lighthouse built in New London was to guide ships at the mouth
of the Thames River
due to dangerous ledges in the area. This first lighthouse was 64 feet tall
and was made of stone.
This lighthouse was the fourth lighthouse built in the United States. In 1799
the tower had fractured
with a large crack running down the the side. The present lighthouse was built
in 1801 and the light
was put out during the War of 1812 so the British could not use it as a navigational
aid. This was the
first lighthouse to be built in the Long Island Sound and it is the fourth
oldest lighthouse in the United
States, with three lighthouses in the Boston area being older. It is also
one of the original 12 colonial
lighthouses that the early colonial United States government established under
the Lighthouse Board
of 1789.
Directions:
From I-95 take the Coleman Street exit and go south
to Montauk Avenue. Stay on Montauk until
it ends at Pequot Avenue and go down about 4 block or so. You cannot miss
it.
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