tish then entered Groton and New London and set them on
fire. Arnold finally led his forces back to New York.

To commemorate the gallant defence of Fort Griswold and the
terrible scenes which it had witnessed, the State of Connecticut
began the erection of a monument on Groton Heights in 1830 and
carried the shaft to the height of 127 feet. At this height the
monument rested until 1881, when it was carried eight feet higher.
On the face of the shaft is a tablet which bears the following
inscription:

  This monument was erected under the patronage of the State of
  Connecticut, A.D. 1830 and in the 55th year of the independence
  of the United States, in memory of the brave patriots who fell
  in the massacre at Fort Griswold on this spot on the 6th of
  September, A.D. 1781, when the British under the command of the
  traitor Benedict Arnold burnt the towns of New London and Groton
  and spread desolation and woe throughout this region.

Various spots in the little grounds of the fort have been marked
with tablets. The grounds are carefully maintained and are open to
visitors at all times.

Though no effort was ever made to rebuild Fort Griswold, a like
fate did not befall Fort Trumbull. At the outbreak of the War
of 1812 the embankments of Fort Trumbull were nothing but green
mounds. A formal work was commenced, leaving the old block-house
inside the new lines. During this war the fort was often threatened
but never attacked.

An anecdote which shows the spirit of the locality is retailed by
Lossing:[1]

  When the British squadron which drove Decatur into the harbor of
  New London in 1813 menaced the town with bombardment the military
  force that manned the forts were deficient in flannel for cannon
  cartridges. All that could be found in New London was sent to the
  forts and a Mr. Latham, a neighbor of Mrs. Anna Bailey’s, came
  to her at Groton seeking for more. She started out and collected
  all the petticoats of little children that she could find in
  town. “This is not half enough,” said Mr. 