Groton Monument

Groton, Connecticut, United States

Landmarks and monuments

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Listed, not yet checked · Oct 2026

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The Groton Monument is a granite obelisk, given as 135 feet tall by the state parks service, in Fort Griswold Battlefield State Park, Groton, Connecticut. Built between 1826 and 1830, it commemorates the defenders killed at the Battle of Groton Heights on 6 September 1781 and, according to the Thames River Heritage Park, has 166 steps.

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Groton Monument

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41.35497° N, 72.07941° W

FIELD GUIDE

The story

The largest Revolutionary War battle in Connecticut, according to the state, ended at Fort Griswold on 6 September 1781, when British forces under Benedict Arnold captured the fort and killed 88 of the 165 American militia stationed there, including their commander, Colonel Ledyard. The Groton Monument, a granite obelisk, was raised to remember them.

The Thames River Heritage Park says it was built between 1826 and 1830 from locally quarried granite and calls it the oldest monument of its type in the country. A marble plaque names the defenders who died. Fort Tours, in its 2024 season guide, says the monument was dedicated in 1830 and that in the centennial year of 1881 its top was enclosed and its height increased to 134 feet; the state parks service and the Heritage Park both give 135.

Beside it stands the Monument House Museum, built in 1830 as the monument caretaker's house. The Daughters of the American Revolution began meeting there in 1894 and members donated artefacts, and the collection includes a painting of the battle and a model of the fort as it looked in 1781. A stained-glass window dedicated in 1902 honours Jonathan Brooks, who was 14 at the time of the battle; the Friends of Fort Griswold say he once shouted "Attention Universe" and told his story to the wind when storm conditions kept everyone else away from the anniversary. A cannon from the Spanish flagship Marie-Teresa stands in front of the monument.

The park grounds, with the original fort ramparts, are open daily from sunrise to sunset. The monument and museum open Wednesday to Sunday, 9 am to 5 pm, from Memorial Day to Labor Day, so from Labor Day until the season reopens the interior and museum are closed. In late October you can still walk the grounds and see the obelisk from outside, but not climb the 166 steps.

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PRACTICAL

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WHAT TO EXPECT

Admission to the park, monument and museum is free, according to the state. In season you can climb 166 steps inside the monument and see battle artefacts, a painting and a fort model in the museum. The grounds are open daily, sunrise to sunset. The monument and museum are closed after Labor Day until the next season. Dogs are allowed on a lead.

ACCESS

Public state park at Monument Street and Park Avenue, Groton. Grounds are open daily, sunrise to sunset. The monument and museum open Wednesday to Sunday, 9 am to 5 pm, Memorial Day to Labor Day; the monument and museum are closed after Labor Day; the grounds and exterior remain open.

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