Roger W. Wheeler State Beach (formerly and still sometimes referred to as Sand Hill Cove) is a public recreation area covering on

Block Island Sound Block Island Sound is a strait in the open Atlantic Ocean, approximately wide, separating Block Island from the coast of mainland Rhode Island. On the west, it extends to Montauk Point on the eastern tip of Long Island, as well as Plum Is ...

in the

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

of Narragansett,

Rhode Island Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area and the seventh-least populous, with slightly fewer than 1.1 million residents as of 2020, but it ...

. The area offers picnicking, ocean swimming, and a playground and is open seasonally.

History

The beach became state property when it was seized from

Tory A Tory () is a person who holds a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalism and conservatism, which upholds the supremacy of social order as it has evolved in the English culture throughout history. The ...

sympathizers during the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

. Known as Sand Hill Cove, it became Rhode Island's first state beach when 27 acres were transferred to Metropolitan Park Commission in 1929. In 1970, the beach was renamed in honor of Captain Roger W. Wheeler (1907-1969), the founder of the Rhode Island State Life-Saving System.

References

External links

Roger W. Wheeler State Beach
Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management Division of Parks & Recreation {{authority control State parks of Rhode Island Beaches of Rhode Island Protected areas of Washington County, Rhode Island Protected areas established in 1929 1929 establishments in Rhode Island Beaches of Washington County, Rhode Island