page_title: Rocky Point State Park
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Rocky Point State Park / History
caption_attribution_description: English: Base of the former observation tower water tank (now ruins) at Rocky Point State Park in Warwick, Rhode Island. Update: according to this article in the Warwick Beacon, it's not actually the observation tower but a former water tower.
context_page_description: Rocky Point State Park is a passive use state park on Narragansett Bay in Warwick, Rhode Island. The land has been a public attraction since the mid-1800s, most notably as Rocky Point Amusement Park. When the amusement park closed in 1994, it sat abandoned for years until the city and state purchased the land in stages between 2008-2013. It reopened to the public as a state park in October 2014.
context_section_description: Rocky Point has been a public attraction since the mid-1800s, located 10 miles from the state capital on a coastal point in Warwick, Rhode Island. William Winslow first began serving dinner and offering amusements when he purchased the land in 1847. By the middle of the 20th century, it was a very popular amusement park offering dozens of rides, including roller coasters, a log flume, Skyliner, Freefall, ferris wheel, and carousel. It was also home to the Shore Dinner Hall, a 4,000-seat food hall just outside the amusement park gates serving clamcakes, steamers, lobster, and New England clam chowder.
  The park was owned by private interests throughout its history. Initially, steamboat captain William Winslow brought passengers there to dine or to use as a park. It was purchased from him in 1865 by Byron Sprague, and sold again in 1869 to the Continental Steamboat Company which brought Randall A. Harrington on to manage it. Harrington built up the popular space into a premier resort. Following a destructive fire in 1883, its character shifted to emphasizing rides, performances, sports, and other attractions. The park changed hands a few times but maintained its popularity throughout the 20th century. In the 1990s, its parent company struggled financially, and the park closed in November 1994. Many of the rides and attractions were sold, but much of the park sat abandoned for years, a popular site for vandals and urban explorers. It became a safety concern after multiple fires, eroding structures, and pervasive vandalism, and demolition of its remains began in May 2007.
caption: Ruins of an old water tank remain on a hill in the east part of the park.
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