Historic Walking Tours of Narragansett Pier
Left: Irving H. Chase Family Memorial Collection (SCM) Right: Narragansett Pier, R.I., Illustrated
This wharf on what is now the Town Beach was where the H.S. Caswell, the steamer to Newport, docked.
To keep children busy during long waits, there was a merry-go-round at the end.
Narragansett Town Beach
The Narragansett Town Beach is the southern half of a mile-long public beach with two full-service
pavilions featuring, during the high season, lifeguards, food and beverage concessions, restrooms
and first aid. It is handicap accessible at both the North and South pavilions. The beach is sandy in
most areas, pebbly in a few — depending mostly on how recent winds and waves have shifted the
sand. It is one of the most popular for surfing — year-round — in the Northeast. The waters in front
of the Towers also are popular with surfers, despite the large rocks that line the shore.
Public access to the beach is largely confined to the several entry points in the southern half-mile
controlled by the town. Lifegards stand duty only in the town-controlled portion and in a small area
in front of the privately owned Dunes Club.
Shortly after 1780, John Robinson built a pier near the present site of the Towers to provide local
farmers with a more convenient means of exporting and importing goods. It is to this wharf that
Narragansett Pier owes its name. By 1801, when Robinson’s son, Benjamin, inherited the property,
a house and a store had also been built here. The pier was destroyed in the Great Gale of 1815
and was rebuilt by Rowland Hazard, who had purchased it from Robinson five years earlier.
There were several other piers built over the years but nothing remains of any of them except for
pilings that mostly appear at low tide or in late winter before annual beach restoration beings.
In the off-season, access to the beach is free, and visitors will seldom have a problem finding
parking either in the two main parking areas or on the street. But with the summer come fees,
and parking — except for Narragansett residents — can be, to say the least, a challenge.
Practical information about the Town Beach