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Hempstead Historic District | CT Trails Weekend

Join us for a walking tour of the Hempstead Historic District, one of New London’s first African-American neighborhoods. Hear the stories of the people who lived in this neighborhood and explore how this diverse area evolved. The neighborhood grew up around the Joshua Hempsted House, built in 1678. Residents have included slaveholders, civic leaders, abolitionists, a Revolutionary War hero, and at least two enslaved people. Advance registration required. 

Free

Juneteenth Festival | Campfire Discussion

Gather around the campfire for a community conversation on the grounds of the Hempsted Houses to commemorate historic and present-day struggles toward freedom and hear more about the work of Joseph McGill of the Slave Dwelling Project. 

Juneteenth Festival | Community Celebration

Gather around the campfire for a community conversation on the grounds of the Hempsted Houses to commemorate historic and present-day struggles toward freedom and hear more about the work of Joseph McGill of the Slave Dwelling Project. 

Make Music Day New London | Old Possum’s Dixieland Jazz Band

Old Possum’s Dixieland Jazz band , specializing in trad jazz, will perform at Hempsted Houses as part of Make Music Day New London, a global celebration of the longest day of the year. Get ready to tap your feet to your favorites from the Great American Songbook, and novelty tunes, too!

Free

Slavery to Emancipation: The Seward Legacy and the Politics of Anti-Slavery

Seward Museum staff will detail the Seward family’s involvement in the fight against slavery by highlighting relationships and political moves. The Sewards participated in controversial trials, pushed the bounds of New York and national slavery laws, and offered their house as a stop on the Underground Railroad. Frances Seward was also very good friends with Harriet Tubman and supported her in various ways.

$5

Captivating Books & Stories Inspired by Sites Along the Thames River

Cruise along the Thames River and hear about sites along the Thames that sparked authors' imaginations to write their stories. Explore books that tell the tales of the people and events that inspired them like Night of the Moonjelllies, Love and Brutality: The Mysterious Saga of Gallows Road, For Adam's Sake: A Family Saga in Colonial New England; Diary of Joshua Hempsted, Morton F. Plant and the Connecticut Shoreline, Venture Smith: The First Slave Narrative, Jordan Freedman Was My Friend, and Ice Diaries - the incredible true story of Capt. William R. Anderson and his crew's harrowing top-secret mission aboard the USS Nautilus, and more. As these authors attest by their writing, the Thames truly is one river with a thousand stories.

$20 – $30

White Sails, Black Hands: The African-American Experience on Connecticut’s Waters

Spend an afternoon with Hempsted staff on the Thames River Heritage Water Taxi to learn about New London's history. This tour explores the stories of a fugitive slave, Revolutionary patriot, Black governors, whalers, the Amistad, and more. See areas related to Hempsted family history, the early Mamacoke settlement, native fishing grounds, and the sites of colonial ferries, Fort Trumbull, and other important landmarks.

$20 – $30

Exploring the Thames: Stories from a Colonial Diary and of Growth Along the River

Joshua Hempsted began his diary in 1711 to keep track of his many business activities, court sessions, ship traffic, travels, and other events significant to New London and Connecticut. He kept a diary until just before his death in 1758. Join members of the Hempsted staff as they move through time and tell stories about John Winthrop Jr, the Rogerenes, the lighthouses, and the Battle of Groton Heights, where Stephen Hempsted was seriously wounded. The tour will include stories of the growth of shipbuilding, the Navy, and the Victorian times when the Harbor View neighborhood of summer cottages included one built by Wm. H. Hempsted, the businesses of Groton Bank, and the Avery-Copp House.

$20 – $30

Captivating Books & Stories Inspired by Sites Along the Thames River

Cruise along the Thames River and hear about sites along the Thames that sparked authors' imaginations to write their stories. Explore books that tell the tales of the people and events that inspired them like Night of the Moonjelllies, Love and Brutality: The Mysterious Saga of Gallows Road, For Adam's Sake: A Family Saga in Colonial New England; Diary of Joshua Hempsted, Morton F. Plant and the Connecticut Shoreline, Venture Smith: The First Slave Narrative, Jordan Freedman Was My Friend, and Ice Diaries - the incredible true story of Capt. William R. Anderson and his crew's harrowing top-secret mission aboard the USS Nautilus, and more. As these authors attest by their writing, the Thames truly is one river with a thousand stories.

$20 – $30

White Sails, Black Hands: The African-American Experience on Connecticut’s Waters

Spend an afternoon with Hempsted staff on the Thames River Heritage Water Taxi to learn about New London's history. This tour explores the stories of a fugitive slave, Revolutionary patriot, Black governors, whalers, the Amistad, and more. See areas related to Hempsted family history, the early Mamacoke settlement, native fishing grounds, and the sites of colonial ferries, Fort Trumbull, and other important landmarks.

$20 – $30

Canceled: Connecticut Freedom Trail Celebration

Celebrate the ongoing growth of the Connecticut Freedom Trail by helping to create the Hempsted Houses’ Freedom Garden by painting a freedom rock, and learning more about notable abolitionists like Marth and Mary Hempsted and the roles they played in advocating for the complete abolition of enslaved people on a special tour of the Joshua Hempsted House. The Connecticut Freedom Trail, founded in 1996, documents and designates sites that embody the struggle toward freedom and human dignity and celebrate the accomplishments of the state's African American communities.

Free

Hempsted Halloween

Get into the spirit of the season & meet the ghosts of New Londoners who have ghoulish stories to tell – hear their tales & talk with them if you dare! Experience the city's oldest house at twilight & make s’mores over an open fire.

Free
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