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New Haven, Connecticut: A Grid, a Colony, and Coal-Fired Apizza

New Haven, Connecticut

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New Haven Green and skyline Harkness Tower, Yale University New Haven skyline from East Rock

New Haven was founded in 1638, when English Puritans established New Haven Colony and laid out the town on a grid — the "Nine Square Plan," which arguably makes New Haven America's first planned town. The original nine squares remain at the heart of downtown, centered on the Green. New Haven was incorporated as a city in 1784. Its port and mercantile trade gave way to nineteenth-century industry, and in 1839, after enslaved Africans revolted aboard the schooner Amistad and the ship was captured off Long Island, the captives were imprisoned in New Haven, making the city central to the Amistad trials. In the mid-1900s, as industrial decline reshaped American cities, New Haven took the lead in federal urban renewal programs, a legacy still visible downtown today.

  1. Free natural-history galleries across three levels, including the famous Brontosaurus skeleton.

  2. Free and open to the public, between York and High Streets.

  3. The city's own history museum, with a Roger Sherman exhibition.

  4. Opened 1914; hosted 600-plus pre-Broadway tryouts, including Oklahoma! and A Streetcar Named Desire.

  5. The 1925 birthplace of New Haven-style coal-fired apizza.

  6. Library of Congress-recognized birthplace of the hamburger, cooking since 1895.

  7. Founded 1938 by Salvatore "Sally" Consiglio; now seven locations across two states.

  8. Brick-oven apizza at 700 degrees; closed Mondays.

  9. 124-room boutique hotel steps from the Yale University Art Gallery.

  10. Boutique hotel near Yale with the High George rooftop bar.

A grid, a colony, and the Amistad trials

English Puritans founded New Haven in 1638, establishing New Haven Colony and laying out the town according to the "Nine Square Plan" — a grid that arguably makes New Haven America's first planned town, and whose original nine squares still form the heart of downtown, centered on the Green. New Haven was incorporated as a city in 1784. Early New Haven thrived as a port and mercantile center; by the nineteenth century, industry had become the dominant force in the city's economy. In 1839, enslaved Africans revolted aboard the schooner Amistad; after the ship was captured off Long Island, its captives were imprisoned in New Haven, putting the city at the center of the Amistad trials. In the mid-1900s, as industrial decline reshaped many American cities, New Haven took the lead in federal urban renewal programs, reshaping downtown in ways still visible today.

Getting there

Drivers reach New Haven where I-95, the shoreline corridor, meets I-91 north to Hartford. Rail travelers arrive at Union Station, 50 Union Avenue — the busiest train station in Connecticut — served by Metro-North's New Haven Line direct to Grand Central Terminal, Amtrak's Northeast Regional, Acela, and Vermonter, CT Rail Shore Line East (from Union Station and the State Street stop, east to New London), and the CTrail Hartford Line north to Hartford and Springfield, Massachusetts.

Yale, apizza, and a pre-Broadway stage

The Yale Peabody Museum offers free admission to newly renovated galleries across three levels, including its famous Brontosaurus skeleton, with no reservations required for individual visitors. The Yale University Art Gallery is likewise free and open to the public. The New Haven Museum tells the city's own history, including an exhibition on Roger Sherman, a framer of the Constitution. The Shubert Theatre, opened December 11, 1914, is nicknamed the "Birthplace of the Nation's Greatest Hits" for hosting more than 600 pre-Broadway tryouts, including the 1943 premiere of Oklahoma! and the 1947 premiere of A Streetcar Named Desire, which launched Marlon Brando. New Haven is also the birthplace of New Haven-style apizza: Frank Pepe originated the coal-fired style in 1925, Sally's Apizza followed in 1938, and Modern Apizza bakes its pies in 700-degree brick ovens. Louis' Lunch, founded in 1895, is recognized by the Library of Congress as the birthplace of the hamburger sandwich and still cooks on its original 1898 cast-iron vertical broilers.

Frequently asked questions

How do I get to New Haven?
Drivers reach New Haven where I-95 meets I-91. Union Station (50 Union Avenue), the busiest train station in Connecticut, has Metro-North New Haven Line service direct to Grand Central Terminal, Amtrak Northeast Regional/Acela/Vermonter, CT Rail Shore Line East, and the CTrail Hartford Line.
What is New Haven-style apizza?
A coal-fired pizza style originated by Frank Pepe in 1925; Sally's Apizza (founded 1938 by Salvatore "Sally" Consiglio) and Modern Apizza, whose brick ovens reach 700 degrees Fahrenheit, are two of the city's other classic apizza houses.
Is Louis' Lunch really the birthplace of the hamburger?
It's recognized as such by the Library of Congress. Founded in 1895 at 261 Crown Street, it still cooks burgers on the original 1898 cast-iron vertical gas broilers under fourth-generation family ownership.
Are the Yale museums free to visit?
Yes. Both the Yale Peabody Museum (170 Whitney Ave.) and the Yale University Art Gallery (1111 Chapel St.) offer free general admission; the Peabody requires no reservation for individual visitors.
Where can I stay in New Haven?
The Study at Yale (1157 Chapel Street), a 124-room boutique hotel with Heirloom Restaurant & Lounge, and The Blake New Haven (9 High Street), near Yale with the modern Italian restaurant Siena, are both verified in-town options.
What is the Shubert Theatre known for?
Opened in 1914 and nicknamed the "Birthplace of the Nation's Greatest Hits," it has hosted over 600 pre-Broadway tryouts, including the 1943 world premiere of Oklahoma! and the 1947 premiere of A Streetcar Named Desire.

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