Rocky Point Amusement Park
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| Rocky Point Amusement Park | |
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The Rocky Point Amusement Park was a highly popular landmark on the Narragansett Bay side of Warwick, Rhode Island. It operated from the late 1800s until its close in 1995. The park filed for bankruptcy a year later in 1996.
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[edit] Creation/Early Years
Rocky Point was an idea first thought of by Captain William Winslow in the 1840s. By 1847, he had purchased a portion of the land and began to offer amusements and serve dinner. Over the coming years, Rocky Point would become the only amusement park to ever permanently call Rhode Island home.
[edit] Height of Popularity
During the 1950s-1980s the park was the most popular attraction in Rhode Island. It featured rides such as the Skyliner, Corkscrew Loop Roller Coaster, Log Flume, and the Freefall (similar to the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror in Walt Disney World's Disney-MGM Studios) which fell 13 stories at 55 MPH.
[edit] Final Years
As the 1990s started, Rocky Point began to decline in financial security. The privately owned company that owned the park began to lose money trying to keep the park up to date. The park closed in 1995, then re-opened briefly in 1996 as a farewell to patrons.
[edit] Post Business Era/Vandalism
After the land of Rocky Point was purchased for $8.5 million in 2003, vandalism occurred at the park when a main building known as the "Big House" was lit on fire on September 2, 2004. Police said the fire was suspicious because the building had no electricity at the time.
Another fire started on October 16, 2006 around 11 AM. Smoke could be seen more than 2,000 feet in the air from miles away. This time an executive building on the waterfront was burned. Police reported no injuries in either fire. It is unclear if this fire was caused by vandalism.
In September of 2006 local film maker David Bettencourt began production of a feature length documentary about the history of the park. It is slated for a Fall 2007 release.
