Gotham City, Connecticut

[Lyudmila Stechkin]

Gotham City, Connecticut has been mapped extensively in comic books and video games. The map was first standardized during the 'No Man's Land' story arc, but several versions of the city's layout still exist depending upon which universe you are examining. The following is an extensive breakdown of the districts and notable locations which can be found in Gotham City here at Heroes Never Die [HND] along with the source material which the layout has been based off of. 001 GOTHAM CITY 002 GOTHAM CITY 003 GOTHAM CITY 004 GOTHAM CITY

[Lyudmila Stechkin]

Connecticut sits on the eastern coast of the United States, between Rhode Island and New York. The Connecticut River, Thames River, and ports along Long Island Sound have given Connecticut a strong maritime tradition, which continues today. The state also has a long history of hosting the financial-services industry, including insurance companies in Hartford and hedge funds in Fairfield County. As of the 2010 Census, Connecticut features the highest per-capita income, Human Development Index [0.962], and median household income in the United States. Although it is a wealthy state by most measures, the income gap between its urban and suburban areas is unusually wide. Summer is hot and humid throughout the state, with average highs in New London of 81°F and 87°F in Windsor Locks. Although summers are quite sunny in Connecticut, summer thunderstorms often bring quick downpours and thunder and lighting. Winters are generally cool to cold from south to north in Connecticut, with average temperatures ranging from 38°F in the maritime influenced southeast to 29 °F in the northwest in January. The average yearly snowfall ranges from about 50–60" in the higher elevations of the northern portion of the state to only 20-25" along the southeast coast of Connecticut. Early Spring is cool and mid and late Spring is warm to hot. Fall months are mild and bring colorful foliage across northern parts of the state in October and November. During hurricane season, tropical cyclones occasionally affect the region. Thunderstorms are most frequent during the summer, occurring on average thirty times annually. These storms can be severe, and the state usually averages one tornado per year. Gotham County Gotham Country lies to the north of Gotham City, separated by North River. Like the majority of Connecticut, this area is densely populated and generally upper class. The inland section of the location contrasts starkly with the urban coast with a rural to suburban, low to mid income spacing. Gotham Country is connected to Uptown Gotham via Robert Kane Memorial Bridge and Gotham Country R.R. Tunnels as well as to Sommerset County via Mooney Bridge. LOCATIONS: Bat Cave, Brantwood Academy, Drake Household, Wayne Manor Sommerset County Sommerset County lies to the west of Gotham City, separated by Queens River and Gotham River. It mimics Gotham County in many ways such as its terrain and set up with the coast being urban high income and inland being rural low income; however, this area is generally perceived as lesser than Gotham Country. Sommerset County is connected to Midtown Gotham via the Gotham Water District Tunnel and R.R. Tubes, Downtown Gotham via Brown Bridge and Novick Tunnel, South Channel Island via the Old Steam Tunnel and Trigate Bridge, and Gotham Country via Mooney Bridge. LOCATIONS: Archie Goodwin International Airport, Interstate Light & Power

[Lyudmila Stechkin]

Uptown Gotham is the portion of Gotham City which houses a surprisingly generous amount of wealth, but what is most shocking is the crime which lurks here as well. Located north of the Sprang River and south of Gotham County, it is one of the best locations available to the citizens of this city or at least appears to be right up until one realizes that it is also home to the infamous Crime Alley. The Robert Kane Memorial Bridge and the Gotham County R.R. Tunnels which lead to Gotham County are the most direct routes for exiting the sector; otherwise one would have to travel through Midtown Gotham via Schwartz Bypass, Sprang Bridge, or one of the other several overpasses to leave since Arkham Bridge is closed to the general public Amusement Mile Amusement Mile is the northernmost point in Gotham City. The Geroldy Amusement Mile was built and funded by Carlo Geroldy in the early twentieth century during Gotham City's industrial boom. Following the removal of many of the city's factories, the 'Mile' fell into bankruptcy and shutdown, turning it into a decrepit amusement park perched on the coastline of Gotham City. Currently under the ownership of the Joker, the park's Fun House is a virtual labyrinth of circus rooms and corridors all decorated to the Joker's taste. LOCATIONS: Funhouse Bowery South of Crime Alley and west of Robbinsville, the Bowery is home to several criminal organizations, most notable of whom is Black Mask. It is because of this that there is nary a resident who does not have either mob connections or is under the thumb of the mafia, thus it is near impossible to remove oneself from this area in anything less than a box. LOCATIONS: Finnigan’s Bar, Gotham Cinema, Gotham City Merchant’s Bank, Jervis Tetch’s Hat Shop, Jezebel Center, Maroni Family Restaurant Burnley Along the banks of the Sprang River sits Burnley, home to the Burnley Freight Yards. Burnley is responsible for most of the freight coming through Gotham City. This is one of the most segregated neighborhoods of Gotham City with Hispanic residents to the west and black residents to the east of Grand Avenue. LOCATIONS: Bryanttown Chemical Processing, Burnley Freight Yards Crime Alley Formerly known as Park Row, this used to be a respectable, desirable neighborhood. Today it is considered to be one of the lesser places that a human being to reside due to the simple fact that one cannot exit their home without worry of massacre though. It seems as though no matter the time someone will find an excuse to get in trouble here, thus adding to the idea that it is little more than a slum. LOCATIONS: Monarch Theatre, Thompkins Medical Center, Wayne Memorial Hill This once great inner-city neighborhood has slowly fallen in ranking, thus leading it to not be categorized as one of the worst residential areas in all of Gotham City. With far too many buildings crammed into one location it is no wonder that become a horrible place of poverty, unfinished housing projects, and a lingering miasma of desperation and danger. LOCATIONS: Aguro Park, Gotham Cemetary, St. Swithin’s Medical Center Newtown-Otisburg Uptown Gotham has often been noted for its wealth and surprisingly extensive crime, but that does not mean that it lacks a healthy residential neighborhood as well. Seeing as it is one of the more safe areas in Gotham City, two large residential districts have been established there; these locations are known as Newtown and Otisburg. LOCATIONS: Ace Chemical Processing Plant, Giordano Botanical Gardens, Glendale Institute of Technology, Knight’s Stadium, Paula Crock's Home Robbinsville The southeastern point of Gotham City, it juts out into the Atlantic Ocean. This is where the majority of wealthy homeowners live in Uptown Gotham. In the early twenties, it was home to a rat’s nest of tunnels to get around prohibition. Criminals use these tunnels still today in order to enter and exit wealthy homes undetected as well as the local businesses and high class restaurants. LOCATIONS: Cape Carmine, Stechkin Mansion Sheldon park The smaller district of Sheldon Park is home to several Gotham nightspots, both trendy and otherwise, as well as the trolley car yards. The barge docks are also in this general area, they being huge cavernous buildings which are used to house the large ships. It lies on the northeastern side of Uptown Gotham. LOCATIONS: Rogers Yacht Basin

[Lyudmila Stechkin]

Midtown Gotham is the innermost portion of Gotham City, it connected to the other three via various networks or, more specifically bridges, since it is surrounded by the Finger River to the north and the Sprang River to the south. The Schwartz Bypass and Sprang Bridge are the most common transportation between this sector and Uptown Gotham, but there are several other means of doing so. Dominated by Chelsea, it is no surprise that this location is very residential in nature. The eastern areas are reserved for water treatment with the South Channel Island holding Arkham Asylum, so it should not assume that it is completely overrun by students. Chelsea Chelsea is on the western end of Midtown Gotham, stretching toward the mainland as if to grab hold and prevent the island from drifting into the sea. It has a large student population because of Gotham University and, as one might expect, a diverse nightlife as a direct result. With students often come culture and most of the bookstores, coffee shops, record stores, and other purveyors of culturally significant items which call Gotham City home can be found here. LOCATIONS: Acoustic Cafe, Burger Haven, Furst Memorial College of Architecture, Gotham University, Kane Planetarium, Little Bohemia, Lyudmila Stechkin's Apartment Coventry The Coventry is a small residential area, home to most of Gotham City's middle class. In recent years there has been an influx of immigrants to the city, thus causing tensions in this neighborhood. Among these immigrants are members of the Escabedo Cartel who have quickly begun receiving the lion's share of drug trafficking business in Midtown Gotham. LOCATIONS: Gotham Zoo Robinson Park Robinson Park is easily the dominant feature of Midtown Gotham. Occupying the center of the island, this feature is strikingly different from the rest of the city in the sense that it can be seen from miles above. It is a popular destination for walks, runs, picnics, and sunny afternoons. Due to its size and relative seclusion though, crime has begun to sow roots here. Exchanges of all kinds take place in the shade of the trees and muggings have become far more prevalent than they once were. LOCATIONS: Ace Water Treatment Plant, Forum of the Twelve Caesars, Gotham City Reservoir, Wayne Botanical Gardens South Channel Island South Channel Island is hunkered between Uptown and Midtown Gotham at the mouth of the Sprang River. It is most notable for the Elizabeth Arkham Asylum for the Criminally Insane which occupies most of the island. Since there are so many high profile criminals, the island is off limits to the general public. LOCATIONS: Arkham Asylum Upper East Side The Upper East Side was once home to Gotham City's booming chemical industry, but in recent years many of the plants have shut down and the Upper East Side has turned into something of a combination business and residential area. LOCATIONS: Aparo Expressway, 'C' Building, Helena Berinelli's Apartment, Knights Dome Sporting Complex, Miller Harbor, Monolith Square, R.H. Kane Building

[Lyudmila Stechkin]

Downtown Gotham is the southernmost portion of Gotham City which clings to Midtown Gotham via a network of tangled bridges that stretch across the Finger River. The Aparo Expressway, which deserves a mention as it holds them together over Miller Harbor, can also be used to traverse the sectors and persons can access Downtown Gotham from Mainland Gotham via Brown Bridge, Novick Tunnel, and Sommerset Subway. While all of Gotham City is considered to be urban, this area is arguably the most urban ‘center’ of the city thanks to its enormous skyline which can be seen as far as Mainland Gotham. This is, in every way, the epitome of Gotham City’s image. Blackgate Isle The only building in Blackgate Isle is Blackgate Maximum Security Penitentiary, one of the largest prisons in the world and the main prison of Gotham City. The jail complex, operated by the Gotham City Department of Correction, has a budget of eight hundred and sixty million dollars a year, a staff of nine thousand officers and fifteen hundred civilians to control an inmate population of more than twelve thousand. The guards are often corrupt and will not hesitate to use force against unruly inmates. Conflicts happen almost weekly, and, as you can imagine, security measures are stringent as a result. LOCATIONS: Blackgate Maximum Security Penitentiary Chinatown Chinatown is the largest cultural center and residential area of Chinese immigrants in Gotham City, and one can find many interesting attractions here, such as the ethnic restaurants. Chinatown also has a large amount of different factories and recently it has been rebuilt to be an important part of the Gotham skyline, with the tallest building in Gotham City, One Gotham Centre, being situated on the border of Chinatown and Upper West Side. This district, despite its proximity to Tricorner, has problems with crime because of the Lucky Hand Triad. LOCATIONS: Brown Bridge, Dixon Docks, Indoor Concert Center, One Gotham Center, One Part Trinity Place, Vauxhall Opera Shell City Hall District This district is where the current seat of government lounges. The infrastructure here is slowly being eaten up by Gotham City's growing financial district. Since the Gotham City Police Department has their attention focused on the Upper West Side, this relatively safe neighborhood has become a place that you do not want to walk around in after dark. LOCATIONS: City Hall Diamond District The Diamond District is lined with jewelry shops, precious gem appraisers, jewel cutters, jewel setters... you get the picture. It grew in importance when Nazi Germany invaded the Netherlands and Belgium, thus forcing thousands of Orthodox Jews in the diamond business to flee Antwerp and Amsterdam and settle in Gotham City. Most of them remained after World War II, and are still a dominant influence in the Diamond District; it is still one of the primary centers of the global diamond industry. The Odessa Mob has a part in the vast majority of the businesses which are here today. LOCATIONS: Iceberg Lounge Fashion District The Fashion District, as the name would suggest, is all about fashion! This district rivals areas of the same persuasion in Metropolis, Paris, and London. Tailors, Textile Merchants, Dyers, you name it. If it has to do with fashion, you can find it here. LOCATIONS: Grant Park Financial District This district is home to Gotham City's Stock Market and even has its very own Wall Street. Towering skyscrapers dominate the scenery, steel and glass reflecting the grunge of the city in high-definition. It has been growing steadily, overtaking the old City Hall District. It is also, surprisingly, Gotham City's religious center. Cathedral Square sits directly in the center of the district, the bells of Catholicism ringing loud for everyone to hear. LOCATIONS: Cathedral Square Old Gotham Old Gotham is the oldest site of habitation on any of Gotham City's Islands, dating back to the sixteen hundreds. It is one of the only places in Gotham that retain the recognizable Art-Deco, Neo-Gothic architecture that remains part of the city's classic image. Though it is a bit poorer than the wealthy neighborhoods that surround it, it is still a lively area and many renovated old buildings have been turned into museums which contribute to a thriving tourism industry. LOCATIONS: Clock Tower, Gotham City Police Department Headquarters, Gotham General Hospital, Wayne Tower Tricorner Tricorner Island is home to one of the largest shipyards and harbors in Gotham City, with dozens of ships delivering and taking their cargo every day. This also gives the criminals of the city an opportunity to deliver their illegal goods through the help of corrupt officials, which Gotham City is not short of. It also has a small residential neighborhood, for those who like to live close to water. LOCATIONS: Gordon Household, Tricorner Yards Upper West Side The Upper West Side is primarily a low income residential area. Despite the poverty, the large police presence makes this one of the safer places to live in Gotham. The city government is pumping stimulus into this district because they're attempting to build up a new seat of government around the Gotham Superior Courthouse. LOCATIONS: Gotham Superior Courthouse, Novick Tunnel, Ranelogh Ferry, Sommerset R.R. Tubes