Safety in Hartford

Greetings,

I%26#39;m thinking about taking a day trip to Harftford this summer (from Boston) and I wanted to check out the area around the Mark Twain House, but then I read this article on yahoo about crime in the area:

…yahoo.com/s/…violent_cities_1

Is this area safe getting from/ to and parking my car? You know how the news tends to exaggerate, but I don%26#39;t want hang out in a crime zone either!

Safety in Hartford

Hi Kiki...YES they tend to exaggerate! I have lived in Hartford all my life and I FEEL safe. Funny that you have mentioned about the crimes. In USA Today they have Arkansas, AR as being worst when it comes to crimes! Anyway...to answer your TOP question...The crimes are being taken care of as we speak (the State Troppers are on patrols) and Mark Twain House is located on the West End of Hartford (the crimes are in the North End). The West End in Hartford is the SAFEST part in Hartford! The Mark Twain House has parking right on it%26#39;s property so you won%26#39;t have to go far, and right next to The Mark Twain House there is the Harriett Beecher House (I may suggest you check it out) and if you would like some nice coffee or drinks (go to Tisane%26#39;s coffee house) which is right on Farmington Avenue (where Mark Twains house) is located. And...like ANY major cities in the US...there are crimes EVERYWHERE! Unfortunately...the BAD news are the ONLY ones that they show on TV. GOOD LUCK and WELCOME to Hartford! Also..go to www.hartford.com for more info of FUN things to do while visiting!!!!.

Safety in Hartford

Danct,

Thanks for the excellent advice! I did want to visit the Harriet Beecher Stowe House (and Elizabeth Park too), and now I have a cool place to grab a beverage. I will check it out!

Hi Kiki...You will LOVE Elizabeth Park! I would suggest asking the person on the souvenier shop for directions to get to the park. It is like a 4 minutes drive from Mark Twain House. It is SO easy to get to..is is located on Prospect Avenue and Farmington Avenue (where the Mark Twain House) is connected to Prospect, Ave so it is right in your direction. Welcome!

Kiki..just posted: HARTFORD, Conn. -- State troopers could be walking the beat in Hartford as early as Friday as part of a newly-launched operation.

The operation has been named True North.

It is hoped that it will help curb violence in the capital city, and it is already having an impact.

Thursday, police seized five illegal firearms in a raid on a Capen Street house. The number of guns pulled off the street in the past two days stands at 12.

I just heard that Hartford%26#39;s murder rate were top 5 in the nation that has increased 50% !!!

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In Hartford, Conn. for example, murders jumped more than 50 percent, from 16 to 25.

abclocal.go.com/kgo/story…

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In Connecticut, violent crime rose in Bridgeport and fell slightly in Waterbury and Hartford, the statistics show.

But the murder rate leapt dramatically in all three cities, including a jump from 16 to 25 in Hartford, records show.

stamfordadvocate.com/news/…

tripadvisor.com/GoListDetail-i2872-Mid_point…

YES...BUT again..if YOU are familiar with Hartford...ALL the crimes are on the North End and Kiki wants to go to The Mark Twain House which is on the West End...and they are talking numbers....like other major states the crimes are high! Look at Dorchester, Mass...where there are a lot of shootings...it is NOT only happening in Hartford!

Young Lady the media%26#39;s not exagerating about this one,in these times that we are living in are evil and we are not safe anywhere. But in saying that i will suggest a day trip with a friend and that would go for anyone, being a Mother thats my advice to you.V.R.

Thanks for the info. In fact, I have been wanted to take my family to visit Mark Twain Museum as well, but not yet been. I am also thinking to go either this weekend or soon in the future.

I am not afraid of high murder rate because people at Hartford did not shoot visitors if you call police department and check into all the murder cases.

However, I did know some cases where visitors got into fight and injured by panhandlers in San Francisco and other major cities where there are big homeless population. Even so, the reason of fight was that visitor refuse to spare some change, yet said something bad to the panhandlers such as ';lazy bum'; ...etc.

I have learned a tip for over dozen years is to always have $20 bill handy (not in my wallet) but a seperated envelope. When I ran into homeless or panhandlers in New York City, I just gave them the money. I also got stopped once at Cleveland OH, and after giving the guy $20 bill, he ran away right away ...

I heard there are 8 millions of homeless people in this country and dozens millions jobless or low income, and when they are under eviction not able to pay rent or no money to pay utility then came out to panhandle, and tourists are often deemed wealthy have spare cash to travel. I have found it much safer to have spare $20 bills to ';help'; when I ran into them.

tripadvisor.com/GoListDetail-i2872-Mid_point…

I just read the article that Kiki posted carefully... …yahoo.com/s/…violent_cities_1

I have found the shooting came from young people 12 to 16 year old in residential area; they are not shooting visitors...

I would not move to Hartford, but I think visiting Hartford is fine, I guess, especially, famous spots where there are many visitors.

tripadvisor.com/GoListDetail-i2872-Mid_point…

Hartford is a great city. The city%26#39;s violent crime is compressed into the city%26#39;s North End and is dealing mainly with teenagers who are using guns to solve disputes. Disputes between teenagers happen every day but noone hears about because they are not using guns to solve these disputes.

Downtown Hartford and the West End where the Mark Twain House is located is a very safe neighborhood. As in any major city or basically anywhere take the normal precautions (dont leave valuables in car, lock car doors, etc...) and you should be just fine.

Dont let the increase in crime deter you from visiting of this country%26#39;s great cities!!