Thames Landing

Thames Landing. . , The history of Thames Landing reflects the changing nature of New London's seaport economy and society. From 1645 until Benedict Arnold and his Tory army burned the town in September of 1781, warehouses and wharfs occupied the land. , The original wooden structure of Thames Landing was built in 1844 and housed a chandlery owned by Judge Elias Perkins and Captain Franklin Smith. At that time, the area just across the narrow street on the water side of the building had not been filled in, making it possible for the wharf to extend from the building into the harbor. From their offices in Thames Landing, Perkins and Smith could see their tallow, wax candles, and soap shipped over to the whaling ships in the harbor. , Captain Smith made ten whaling voyages before 1844, and took a record number of barrels of oil. In 1846, Perkins and Smith decided to invest in whaling ships, in addition to supplying them, and bought the McLellan, 336 tuns, to venture north to Greenland. 1 , Perkins and Shaw also engaged in trade with the sea islands. During a renovation of Thames Landing in the 1980s, the new owner found brain coral, used as ballast in ships, in the basement. As traditional New London importers, Perkins and Smith may also have indulged in a bit of smuggling on those voyages to the sea islands. , Whaling declined and Thames Landing passed to the New Haven-New London Railroad in 1857. The building became a hive of activity during the Civil War. Western Union and the Adams Express Company occupied the busy main floor, while railroad workers flowed up and down the stairs to and from their lodgings. Connecticut's adopted son, Mark Twain, referred to the busy New London telegraph station in his humorous story, "A Curious Experience," set in New London in the winter of 1862-63. 2 , The extant mansard roof replaced the original burned in 1880. In 1888, Peter Dorsey bought and renovated Thames Landing to house the Winthrop Hotel. Manager John Dahill offered rooms for .25 cents to $1.00 a day or for $2.00 a day on the European Plan. Since the 1930s, the building has been the home of popular restaurants, except for a brief interlude in the mid- twentieth century. According to local legend, Thames Landing housed a popular brothel during World War II. After the war, Thames Landing resumed its role in the more socially acceptable aspects of the hospitality industry. , 1 Caulkins, Frances Manwaring, History of New London, Connecticut, New London (1895) 643-4. , 2 Neider, Charles, Ed., The Complete Short Stories of Mark Twain, Doubleday and Company, Inc, Garden City, New York (1957) 163-186