About the town » New London, Rusk County, Texas, United States

New London is a city in Rusk County, Texas, United States. The population was 987 at the 2000 census. On March 18, 1937, the London School Explosion killed in excess of three hundred people (most were children). This event led to the legal requirement in the United States that natural gas, which is normally odorless, be given an identifying smell. New London was originally known as just "London". However, as the US Post Office had already established a station at London, Texas in Kimble County, the town changed its name to "New London" in 1931.