Murder, Mischief, and the Streets That Vanished From New London
At a Glance
What: Crime and Punishment in Lost New London by Bill Morse
When: Friday, October 30, 2026, 7–8:30 p.m.
Meeting Location: In front of New London Union Station, 35 Water Street, New London, CT
Admission: $25 per person
Duration: 90 minutes
Guide: Bill Morse, author of Lost New London
Experience: Guided historical walking tour exploring crime, punishment, and life in neighborhoods demolished during 1960s redevelopment
Historical Period: Primarily 1895–1912
Included: Souvenir walking guide with a period map and historical photographs
Reservations: Strongly recommended
Weather: Rain or shine; bring appropriate footwear and an umbrella if needed
Organizer: Uncovering New London
Tickets: Click the Event Ticketing link at the bottom of the page
Event Description
Crime and Punishment in Lost New London by Bill Morse takes visitors into the darker corners of the Whaling City’s past on Friday, October 30. The 90-minute evening walking tour explores a vanished neighborhood, uncovering stories of the people who lived, worked, and sometimes broke the law along streets that disappeared during urban renewal.
Beginning at 7 p.m. outside New London Union Station, the tour follows author and local historian Bill Morse through an area once filled with homes, businesses, and residents whose stories have largely faded from view.
It’s a fitting outing for Halloween weekend, although the subject isn’t ghosts or haunted houses. The stories come from New London’s actual history.
A Neighborhood That No Longer Exists
Today’s downtown New London looks very different from the city residents knew at the beginning of the 20th century.
Before redevelopment in the 1960s, the area north of the Parade was home to a busy collection of streets and neighborhoods. Atlantic Street, lower North Bank Street, and lower Water Street formed part of a community where people from different backgrounds lived and worked.
Many of those buildings and streets disappeared when the city undertook a major urban renewal project.
Morse’s walking tour revisits that lost landscape, focusing on the years between 1895 and 1912.
Visitors will explore the places where everyday life unfolded, along with the less respectable side of the neighborhood’s history.
Crime, Punishment, and the People Behind the Stories
The tour examines the people who lived, worked, and sometimes found themselves on the wrong side of the law in this once-bustling part of New London.
Rather than presenting the neighborhood as a collection of vanished buildings, Morse uses its history to bring the former residents and their experiences back into focus.
The subject is especially intriguing because much of the physical evidence has disappeared. Streets have changed, buildings have been demolished, and familiar landmarks have been replaced.
Understanding what happened there requires looking beyond the modern cityscape and imagining the community as it once existed.
The stories promise a different perspective on downtown New London, one that reaches beyond the city’s better-known maritime and military history.
See the Past Through Historic Photographs and Maps
Every participant receives a souvenir guide containing a period map and historical location photographs.
The guide is included in the $25 ticket price and helps visitors follow the route while comparing today’s surroundings with the streets and buildings that once stood there.
Morse is the author of Lost New London, a book exploring the people, homes, businesses, and landmarks erased by the city’s 1960s redevelopment.
His research combines historical photographs with stories of the community that existed before the bulldozers arrived.
The walking tour expands on that work with stories that go beyond the pages of the book.
An Unusual Halloween Weekend Outing
With the tour scheduled for the night before Halloween, the subject offers a different kind of seasonal experience.
There are no staged scares or costumed monsters promised here. Instead, visitors will encounter the real history of a neighborhood whose darker stories have survived long after its buildings disappeared.
The evening setting adds to the experience as participants walk through downtown streets and discover what once occupied the familiar spaces around them.
It’s an outing for people interested in local history, true crime, and the hidden stories of New London.
Where to Meet and What to Bring
The walking tour begins promptly at 7 p.m. in front of New London Union Station at 35 Water Street.
Tickets cost $25 per person, and reservations are strongly recommended.
The tour takes place rain or shine, so participants should wear comfortable walking shoes and bring an umbrella if rain is expected.
The experience concludes at approximately 8:30 p.m.
For anyone curious about the city that existed before urban renewal, this Halloween weekend walk offers a chance to discover a part of New London that can no longer be seen.
Featured image is an artistic representation inspired by the event and may not depict the actual people, location, or activities shown.