Learn how we turn our commitment to preservation, storytelling, and education into action in our 2025 Annual Report »
Your Home for History
Connecticut Landmarks is a state-wide network of historic house museums sharing 400 years of New England history. Our museums are starting points for deeper exploration and greater appreciation of the Connecticut experience. Our real-life stories, as told through our houses, collections, and programs, make history matter.
What’s New?
Thank You for an Amazing 2025 Season!
In 2025, Connecticut Landmarks continued to deliver high-quality, thought-provoking programs, tours, and field trips to connect people to our state’s complex past, while navigating rapidly changing funding landscapes and a country that is more divided than ever. We are proud of the role we play in bringing people together to understand the Connecticut story and preserving the past for future generations. We invite you to explore our 2025 Annual Report–which includes a special section about our recently launched strategic plan–to discover how we encourage critical thinking and create spaces for connection through education, preservation, and storytelling at our historic house museums.
Give the Gift of History this Holiday Season
A membership to Connecticut Landmarks is the perfect gift for history buffs, old home enthusiasts, families, lifelong learners, nature lovers, and explorers. Our members enjoy free admission to all seven of our historic sites across the state, discounts to programs and in our museum shops, invitations to special events, plus so much more! Know someone who loves museums, botanical gardens, historic houses, and science centers? Buy your loved one a NARM level membership, opening the door to over 1,000 cultural institutions across the nation, including Connecticut Landmarks’ seven historic house museums. Memberships not only support our education and preservation work, but they truly are the gift that keeps on giving all year long. And best of all, your membership will be emailed immediately — perfect for when you save the best gifts for last!
Winter Clothing Drive
Connecticut Landmarks’ Hempsted Houses have partnered with the Homeless Hospitality Center in New London, Fiddleheads Food Co-op, and the Covenant House of New London to help give the gift of warmth to the New London community this winter season with a winter clothing drive. All donated items will go to the Homeless Hospitality Center and the Covenant House who will distribute the clothing to those in need. Your support is greatly appreciated!
From December 5, 2025 through January 10, 2026, we will be accepting new hats and gloves in all sizes, and new and gently-used coats in all sizes. Donations of children’s winter coats are especially appreciated.
Drop-Off Location (look for designated donation box):
- Fiddleheads Food Co-op, 13 Broad St, New London (view map) during business hours (8 am-9 pm)
Preservation Updates
Request for Proposals: Invitation to Bid – Restoration Work at Nathan Hale Homestead
Connecticut Landmarks is accepting sealed proposals for professional services for the repair and refurbishment of the Nathan Hale Homestead. Project located at 2299 South St, Coventry, CT. Those interested in providing these Services, as set forth in the RFQ/RFP’s specifications, are invited to submit their Proposals in triplicate to Joseph Calabrese, Project Manager, at the Crosskey Architects, LLC office, 750 Main Street, Suite 150, Hartford, CT 06103, until 2:00 pm on October 27, 2025. Proposals submitted after this time will not be accepted. Each proposer must submit a sealed envelope, the outside of which must be clearly marked “NATHAN HALE HOMESTEAD PROJECT – REPAIR AND REFURBISHMENT” and include the proposer’s company name and address.
Bids will be received for furnishing all labor, materials, tools and equipment necessary for the project scope of work consisting of structural repairs to the Hempsted House and associated site work. The Contract will include selective demolition, structural work, interior construction, and all other work necessary for or incidental to the completion of the project.
A mandatory site examination will be held at 10:00 a.m., September 29, 2025, at the project site: 2299 South Street, Coventry, CT 06238. All General Contractors submitting a bid are required to attend. Any questions regarding this bid should be emailed to Joseph Calabrese at jcalabrese@crosskey.com by October 20, 2025, by 3:00 PM.
Significant Restoration Work Underway at the Hempsted Houses
Have you seen the new sign outside our museum? We are pleased to announce that significant restoration work on the upper levels of the 1678 Joshua Hempsted House is currently underway. Connecticut Landmarks and Crosskey Architects have contracted the expertise of Kronenberger & Sons Restoration to complete this project to restore the 350-year-old house’s structural integrity. This work couples with the installation of two commercial-grade dehumidifiers installed in the house to help control moisture and mitigate pest damage. These important preservation efforts ensure our ability to continue engaging visitors in stories about colonial life and northern slavery through the history of the Hempsted and Jackson families in the spaces where they lived – empowering folks to begin their conversation with history and make a difference today.
We would like to thank DeStefano & Chamberlain, Preservation Connecticut, the CT State Historic Preservation Office, Crosskey Architects, and Kronenberger & Sons Restoration for their guidance and expertise with this project. We also want to extend our gratitude to the supporters of the Hempsted Houses. Your commitment to our work, the history of the property, and presence during events, tours, and programs makes the experiences at our museum even more meaningful. We look forward to welcoming you for generations to come!
Click here to discover more about the Hempsted Houses, restoration work, and impact on tours »