Casino Country

While not technically a part of the Quiet Corner [1], the twin cities of Norwich and Ledyard form a quasi-urban buffer between the farm country of northeast Connecticut [2] and the maritime character of the southeast seacoast. The area was once known for the important city of Norwich, which was founded in 1659 and quickly took advantage of its position on the deep and wide Thames River to become a very wealthy trading port (second only to New Haven [3] for the time). Later, the area emerged as an early resort destination, with steamers from New York [4] unloading passengers into grand Victorian hotels.

Norwich declined quickly, however, when a bridge was finally constructed over the wide Thames, allowing coastal traffic to bypass the city. It went into a slow decline, losing both population and industry throughout the 20th century. That all reversed dramatically in 1992, when the Mashantucket Pequot tribe worked out a deal with the State of Connecticut to turn a bingo hall into Foxwoods [5] gambling casino.

In 1996, the neighboring Mohegan tribe got into the act as well, opening the smaller but more popular Mohegan Sun [6] casino. Together, the resorts have grown to rival Atlantic City in the traffic they bring in from throughout the Northeast. While the resorts are mostly self-contained entities, Norwich and surrounding towns have also tried to capitalize on the influx with various revitalization schemes.

Getting to Casino Country

To get to node:48181 link Casino Country, take I-395 south from Worcester [7] to exit 85 for Foxwoods (60 mi., 70 min.) or 79A for Mohegan Sun (65 mi., 70 min.). From Hartford [8], take Route 2 until it merges with I-395. Then head north on I-395 to exit 85 for Foxwoods (50 mi., 1 hour total); or south on I-395 to exit 79A for Mohegan Sun (45 mi., 50 min. total).