Navy Submarine Force Library and Museum. Groton is sometimes referred to as the "Submarine Capital of the World," due to the long-standing history of submarines in the town, and the fact that Groton has one of the largest submarine bases in the world. The National World War II Submarine Memorial East is located in Groton, including parts of . The Groton and Stonington Street Railway was a trolley line that was created in 1904 to serve the Groton area. The trolley was dismantled and replaced by buses in 1928. Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , of which is land and , or 31.47%, is water. Principal communities Burnett's Corner — historic district located along Packer Road south of Route 184 Center Groton City of Groton — located along the Thames River Groton Heights or Groton Bank — historic district in the northern part of the city area Groton Long Point Long Hill Mystic (06355) — primarily in the neighboring town of Stonington, but a small portion (West Mystic) is in Groton Noank Old Mystic Poquonnock Bridge Fort Hill Submarine Base area (Census designation: "Conning Towers-Nautilus Park") Other minor communities and geographic features are Bluff Point, Eastern Point, Esker Point, Jupiter Point, Mumford Cove, and West Pleasant Valley. Climate Groton has a humid continental climate (Dfb). Demographics As of the census of 2000, there were 39,907 people, 15,473 households, and 9,980 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 16,817 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 83.61% White, 6.95% Black or African American, 0.83% Native American, 3.33% Asian, 0.17% Pacific Islander, 1.66% from other races, and 3.45% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 5.01% of the population. There were 15,473 households, out of which 33.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.5% were married couples living together, 10.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.5% were non-families. 29.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.41 and the average family size was 2.99. In the town, the age distribution of the population shows 24.8% under the age of 18, 11.8% from 18 to 24, 33.0%