Groton Historical Sites
Groton’s history can be found throughout the community, in the places, landscapes and stories that have shaped the town over more than three centuries.
Explore Groton’s historic sites, discover stories from the past, and learn more through historical markers, articles, photographs and self-guided tours.
Step back into Groton’s Revolutionary past with this self-guided audio tour of the people, places and events that shaped the town during America’s fight for independence. The tour features 16 historic sites throughout Groton, with the first 10 located within an easy walk of the town center.
Listen at your own pace and discover the stories behind the places you pass every day.
Homestead Links: Massachusetts’ First Golf Course
In 1890, golf came to Groton when James Lawrence created a small course on his family’s 400-acre estate. Known as the Homestead Links, the course began with a few improvised holes but by 1895 had expanded to nine holes, complete with scorecards and course rules.
Homestead Links appears to have been the first golf course in Massachusetts, predating The Country Club in Brookline by several years. An 1894 Boston Daily Globe article traced the beginnings of golf in the Boston area to Lawrence’s Groton estate.
Today, a historical marker near the former Homestead Links commemorates Groton’s little-known place in Massachusetts golf history.
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