Groton, Connecticut

town in New London County, Connecticut, United States

Groton is a town in Connecticut. Groton is next to Mystic, Norwich and New London. The town is in New London County in the southeast and coast areas of Connecticut. Groton is next to the Rhode Island state line. It is across the line from Westerly and Watch Hill.[1]

Population

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38,222 people lived there in the 2020 United States Census.[2] Eight years before that, Groton about 40,000 people lived there.

History

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Groton Monument and Fort Griswold, a sketch by John Warner Barber for his Historical Collections of Connecticut (1836)

Groton was founded in 1705. That year, it separated from New London, Connecticut. The town was named after Groton, Suffolk in England.[3] A hundred years before it was established, the Niantic people settled in the area between the Thames River and Pawcatuck River. They eventually settled, however, in Westerly, Rhode Island. The new people to the land were the Pequots. The latter were a branch of the Mohawk people. The Pequots people moved eastward into the Connecticut River Valley.

The summer of 1614 was the first time that the Pequots met white settlers. They started trading furs for the settlers' goods. Those included steel knives, needles and boots. In 1633, the Dutch bought land from them (the Pequots). The earlier then opened a fur trading post. Meanwhile (at the same time), the English bought land for settlement from the local tribes. The Dutch had unintentionally killed the Pequots' chief. This led to revenge by the Pequot tribe, and this escalated into the Pequot War (1636–38). On the night of May 26, 1637, the Colonial forces arrived outside the Pequot village near the Mystic River. The palisade surrounding the village had only two exits. Their leader, Colonel John Mason, gave the order to set the village on fire and block off the exits. Those who tried climbing over the palisade were shot. Those who succeeded in getting over were killed by the Narragansett forces.

Geography

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According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 45.3 square miles (117.3 km2), of which 31.0 square miles (80.4 km2) is land and 14.2 square miles (36.9 km2), or 31.47%, is water.[4]

Principal communities

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The Griswold at Eastern Point, 1906

Other minor communities and geographical areas are Bluff Point, Eastern Point, Esker Point, Jupiter Point, Mumford Cove and West Pleasant Valley.

Climate

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Groton has a humid continental climate (Dfb).

Climate data for New London (Groton) 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1957–2021
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °F (°C) 69
(21)
67
(19)
78
(26)
88
(31)
91
(33)
95
(35)
101
(38)
99
(37)
93
(34)
87
(31)
79
(26)
69
(21)
101
(38)
Mean maximum °F (°C) 56.6
(13.7)
55.8
(13.2)
65.5
(18.6)
73.6
(23.1)
81.9
(27.7)
88.0
(31.1)
91.6
(33.1)
88.7
(31.5)
84.7
(29.3)
76.5
(24.7)
67.4
(19.7)
60.0
(15.6)
92.6
(33.7)
Average high °F (°C) 38.8
(3.8)
40.8
(4.9)
47.3
(8.5)
56.9
(13.8)
66.4
(19.1)
75.2
(24.0)
80.8
(27.1)
79.8
(26.6)
73.6
(23.1)
63.3
(17.4)
53.2
(11.8)
44.1
(6.7)
60.0
(15.6)
Daily mean °F (°C) 31.3
(−0.4)
32.9
(0.5)
39.5
(4.2)
48.9
(9.4)
58.1
(14.5)
67.3
(19.6)
73.4
(23.0)
72.5
(22.5)
65.8
(18.8)
55.2
(12.9)
45.5
(7.5)
36.8
(2.7)
52.3
(11.3)
Average low °F (°C) 23.8
(−4.6)
24.9
(−3.9)
31.6
(−0.2)
40.9
(4.9)
49.9
(9.9)
59.3
(15.2)
65.9
(18.8)
65.1
(18.4)
58.0
(14.4)
47.1
(8.4)
37.9
(3.3)
29.5
(−1.4)
44.5
(6.9)
Mean minimum °F (°C) 4.1
(−15.5)
6.9
(−13.9)
14.7
(−9.6)
29.0
(−1.7)
38.1
(3.4)
46.8
(8.2)
56.0
(13.3)
54.2
(12.3)
43.6
(6.4)
32.2
(0.1)
26.6
(−3.0)
14.2
(−9.9)
1.5
(−16.9)
Record low °F (°C) −14
(−26)
−12
(−24)
0
(−18)
14
(−10)
30
(−1)
38
(3)
47
(8)
41
(5)
29
(−2)
22
(−6)
8
(−13)
−10
(−23)
−14
(−26)
Average precipitation inches (mm) 3.91
(99)
3.42
(87)
4.92
(125)
4.40
(112)
3.67
(93)
3.93
(100)
3.42
(87)
4.19
(106)
4.29
(109)
4.42
(112)
3.75
(95)
4.59
(117)
48.91
(1,242)
Average snowfall inches (cm) 5.8
(15)
8.3
(21)
3.9
(9.9)
0.8
(2.0)
0.0
(0.0)
0.0
(0.0)
0.0
(0.0)
0.0
(0.0)
0.0
(0.0)
0.0
(0.0)
0.5
(1.3)
5.2
(13)
24.5
(62)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) 11.4 9.7 11.5 11.6 11.9 9.5 9.7 9.3 10.2 10.4 10.0 12.4 127.6
Average snowy days (≥ 0.1 in) 3.1 2.7 1.7 0.3 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.2 1.9 9.9
Source: NOAA[5][6]


References

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  1. "Analysis of Connecticut 2020 Census Redistricts the Data Release". Data Haven. Retrieved October 6, 2021.
  2. "Groton, Connecticut Population". The World Population Review. Retrieved October 6, 2021.
  3. The Connecticut Magazine: An Illustrated Monthly. Connecticut Magazine Company. 1903. p. 332.
  4. "Geographic Identifiers:2010 Demographic Profile Data (G001): Groton town, New London County, Connecticut". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved October 25, 2012.
  5. "NowData – NOAA Online Weather Data". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved June 2, 2021.
  6. "Station: Groton, CT". U.S. Climate Normals 2020: U.S. Monthly Climate Normals (1991–2020). National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved June 2, 2021.