- The Towers (Narragansett, Rhode Island)
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The Towers
Location: Narragansett, Rhode Island Coordinates: 41°25′50″N 71°27′22″W / 41.43056°N 71.45611°WCoordinates: 41°25′50″N 71°27′22″W / 41.43056°N 71.45611°W Built: 1883 Architect: McKim, Mead, and White Architectural style: No Style Listed Governing body: Local NRHP Reference#: 69000001
[1]Added to NRHP: November 25, 1969 The Towers, also known as the Tower entrance to the Narragansett Casino is a historic structure located on Ocean Road in Narragansett, Rhode Island. It is the only remnant of the Narragansett Pier Casino built in the 1880s. On November 25, 1969, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places.
Contents
History (1883–1900)
The Narragansett Pier Casino was the center of social life in Narragansett during the late 19th century. The Narragansett Pier Casino rivaled the Newport Casino’s popularity as a resort for the social elite until it burned to the ground in 1900.
Built between 1883–1886, the Narragansett Pier Casino was a fine example of Victorian Shingle Style architecture, designed by McKim, Mead, and White. The Casino offered a variety of sports, including boating, tennis, billiards, bowling, cards, and shooting, restaurants, stores, reading rooms, a theater, a bandstand, a ballroom, and a beautiful beach.
The Narragansett Pier Casino thrived during the Gilded Age until it burned down during the Great Fire of September 12, 1900. That day, a fire broke out in the neighboring Rockingham Hotel. The flames spread quickly to the Casino, leaving only the granite walls of The Towers standing.
Recent history
Today, having survived a number of fires, nor'easters, and hurricanes, the Narragansett Towers are the only remaining part of the original Narragansett Pier Casino. One of the most recognizable landmarks in Narragansett, The Towers currently hosts weddings, dances, dinners, and fashion shows. Its location on Crescent Beach makes it an ideal venue for social events.
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Narragansett towers attached to the casino, ca. 1885
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Narragansett Casino ruins and lifeguard station, ca. 1905 after the fire destroyed most of the complex
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In Popular Culture
The Towers can be seen in the background of the Rhode Island based cartoon, Family Guy, episode "Peter's Got Woods," when Peter rides by on a tandem bicycle with James Woods, both engaged in song.
References
- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. 2007-01-23. http://nrhp.focus.nps.gov/natreg/docs/All_Data.html.
External links
- The Historic Narragansett Towers
- Image gallery including high res view from the other side
Categories:- Buildings and structures on the National Register of Historic Places in Rhode Island
- Buildings and structures completed in 1883
- 1890 establishments
- McKim, Mead, and White buildings
- Buildings and structures in Washington County, Rhode Island
- Landmarks in Rhode Island
- Defunct casinos in the United States
- Towers in Rhode Island
- Destroyed landmarks in the United States
- Rhode Island Registered Historic Place stubs
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