Thursday December 14th from 7:00 PM to 8:30 PM in the Hubbard Room
In September 1781, Connecticut native Benedict Arnold and a force of 1,600 British soldiers and loyalists took Fort Griswold and burnt New London to the ground. The brutality of the invasion galvanized the new nation, and 'Remember New London!” would become a rallying cry for troops under General Lafayette.
Eric D. Lehman, author of Homegrown Terror: Benedict Arnold and the Burning of New London, will chronicle the events leading up to the attack and highlight this key transformation in Arnold—the point where he went from betraying his comrades to massacring his neighbors and destroying their homes. His talk will also touch on the connections Arnold had with Middletown during the war, both before and after his betrayal. Lehman teaches literature and creative writing at the University of Bridgeport. In addition to his contributions to numerous newspapers, journals, and magazines, Lehman is the author of twelve books of fiction, travel, and history, including the Insider’s Guide to Connecticut, A History of Connecticut Food, and Shadows of Paris, for which he is a 2017 Connecticut Book Award Finalist. He will have copies of Homegrown Terror for sale and inscription.
This program, which is free and open to the public, is sponsored by the Middlesex County Historical Society. Russell Library is located at 123 Broad Street in Middletown and is handicap accessible. For more information on this presentation, please call 860-346-0746 or see https://mchsct.org
