Cara MacDonald

Telling the stories of New London’s waterfront, the Custom House offers lighthouse tours and boat trips, an annual chowda’fest, artifacts relating to local lighthouses, US Customs and the Amistad, along with changing exhibitions and a great Museum Shop.

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. City leaders had petitioned the U.S. Treasury to build them ‘a gem on the waterfront’. Architect Robert Mills, best-known for his design of the U.S. national Washington Monument, provided just that. Housed in the 184-year-old Robert Mills building at 150 Bank Street, today we are a nonprofit historic site—the nation’s oldest continuously operating U.S. Custom House and scene to much of the area’s maritime history. The Custom House is a lively maritime museum, preservation, and educational organization.  Through museum exhibitions and educational programs, the museum actively promotes, protects and celebrates the maritime history and current life of the port of New London and the surrounding region.

Address: 150 Bank St, New London, CT 06320
Distance from Water Taxi Landing: 0.2 miles
Phone number: (860) 447-2501
Hours: Wednesday through Sunday, from 1:00 – 5:00 PM, Saturday 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM, or by appointment

One of the earliest graveyards in New England and the oldest colonial cemetery in New London County, the 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.

Address: 1 Bulkeley Pl, New London, CT 06320
Distance from Water Taxi Landing: 0.8 mile

The Old 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.

Address: 8 Mill Street, New London, CT 06320
Distance from Water Taxi Landing: 0.9 miles
Phone number: (860) 447-5243
Hours: The grounds of the Old Town Mill are open year-round until sunset. The mill is also available to groups by special appointment.

Cedar Grove Cemetery is a 76-acre non-sectarian, non-profit burial ground in the city of New London, Connecticut. Still an active cemetery, Cedar Grove also is the final resting place of many of the city’s most significant citizens, ranging from a noted colonial-era diarist and ship captains from the city’s heyday as a major whaling port, to top elected officials and wealthy Gilded Age industrialists. Established as part of the rural cemetery movement in the 19th century, Cedar Grove was designed as a peaceful haven with park-like natural features.

Address: 638 Broad St. New London, CT 06320
Distance from Water Taxi Landing: 1.9 miles
Phone number: (860) 442-1301
Office Hours: Monday – Friday 8:00 AM – 2:00 PM