Rocky Point State Park, State park on Narragansett Bay in Warwick, United States.
Rocky Point State Park is a passive-use state park on Narragansett Bay in Warwick, Rhode Island, where most of the former amusement park is now open space. A few structures remain, including the 1906 Circle Swing ride tower, the upper and lower stations and support towers of the Skyliner gondola, ruins of an old water tank, and a large white arch by the entrance.
William Winslow began serving dinners and offering amusements after buying the land in 1847. Byron Sprague bought it in 1865, and the Continental Steamboat Company, with manager Randall A. Harrington, turned it into a resort. After a fire in 1883 the park shifted toward rides and performances. It closed in November 1994, and the city and state bought the land in stages between 2008 and 2013.
The park's name comes from the rocky coastal point where steamboat captain William Winslow began serving shore dinners in 1847. The Shore Dinner Hall, a 4,000-seat food hall just outside the amusement park gates, served clamcakes, steamers, lobster and New England clam chowder. In summer the park screens movies on its lawn and hosts a 5K run.
The park is a passive-use area with a paved walking path along the shore, opened in June 2011. A deep-water fishing pier opened in July 2020. Paths and former ride sites can be uneven, so wear sturdy shoes; coastal weather on Narragansett Bay changes quickly.
The white arch by the entrance is one of 11 "Peace Through Understanding" arches made for the 1964 World's Fair in Flushing, Queens; it was moved here in 1966 and restored in 2016. Its legs curve inward to a rounded apex, and rust streaks mark the peeling paint.
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