Brenton Point State Park History

 

TOTAL ACREAGE: 88.9 acres

NAMES OF PREVIOUS OWNERS: Gov. William Brenton, Theodore M. Davis

ORIGIN OF NAME: Gov. William Brenton

DEDICATION: October 15, 1974

 

William Brenton was born about 1600 and died 1674. He was an American Colonial Official, active in the settlement of Rhode Island.   He went from England to Boston in 1633 and then left

Massachusetts for Portsmouth, RI in 1637. Brenton was one of a group that settled Newport. He was Deputy Governor of the towns of Portsmouth and Newport between 1640 and 1647. He then moved back to Boston but returned to Newport by 1660. For the next 8 years he held the office as Governor and Deputy Governor.  Brenton died at his residence, Hammersmith Farm, Newport in 1674.

 

In 1941 the United States Army took over  the estate and used it as a sight for Coastal Artillery Battery until 1946.

In 1969,  the State of Rhode Island took over  the  property under the Green Acres Program. In 1974 Governor Phillip W. Noel and the Director of Natural Resources, Dennis J. Murphy III, agreed with the City of Newport that a ten member commission be formed and known as the Brenton Point State Park Commission. Their functions are to oversee any change or construction at Brenton Point State Park.

 

In 1976 Brenton Point State Park was opened to the  public. Brenton Point State Park has an assortment of beautiful gardens, walking trails, restrooms and about 20 picnic tables available to the public on a first come first serve basis.

 

DEDICATION OF BRENTON POINT STATE PARK, NEWPORT, RI

HIS EXCELLENCY PHILIP W. NOEL GOVERNOR OF RHODE ISLAND, TUESDAY OCTOBER 15, 1974 BRENTON POINT.

 

Perhaps nowhere else on Rhode Island's coastline do history and  beauty combine to provide such a singular location for a state park. Here at Brenton Point, midway along renowned Ocean Drive, one cannot escape the force of ocean meeting rocky head-land.  Equally pervasive is the fabric of history from Governor Brentano's acquisition in 1639 to Theodore M. Davis' construction

of "the Reef" in 1889. Gone are the wild and domesticated animals of Governor Brenton, along with the manicured lawn, trimmed shrubbery, the greenhouse and stables of "the Reef". But the dedication of this magnificent area to public use as a state park establishes a role for the land more closely allied to the enduring presence of nature than the embellishment of past owners.

 

The beauty of Brenton Point, absolute and powerful, drew Davis and his peers to the edge of the sea. It is also an  area of proven productivity. In colonial days it was described by  M. de Crevecoeur as a place where "a man can farm with one hand and fish with the other".

 

Price, Governor Brenton's family shoemaker lived on  Price's Neck in a house which stood until the 1938 hurricane. He reportedly said that he needed "little else besides fish hooks, a  good fowling piece, his deer, and milk from his goats to provide his family a good living". William Brenton took possession of about 2000 acres of  the "neck"  in  1639  and named it "Hammersmith" after  his  home  in England. The property was divided into two farms; West, and East or Rocky Farm. The land around his home, located on today's Hammersmith Farm, was cultivated as far south as Castle Hill. The East Farm was laid out in six or eight sections and shortly supported many cows and horses in addition to 11,000 sheep. Food from this magnificent enterprise maintained many  mainland  residents who received shelter at Hammersmith at the out break of the Indian War in the spring of 1676.  At this time, William  Brenton was beginning a four year period as governor having  previously  been elected President of the Rhode Island Colony and so named by the Charter in 1661.

 

History unfolds here like movement of vessels into the East Passage, from the discovery of Aquidneck by Giovanni da Verrazani in about 1524 to the removal of the Navy just past. There were privateers and their pursuers during Queen Anne's War and  the French and Indian War. Prior to the Revolution Captain Cook's "Endeavor", with which he circumnavigated the world, arrived in Newport as a merchantman. Ships harassing Colonial coasters and fishermen included the sloop "Liberty" which was captured and scuttled by angry Newport residents in July 1769 - an act of rebellion which preceded  the burning of the Gaspee.

 

During  the Revolution, cannon on Castle Hill helped  force the British to anchor offshore. The location of  British ships was also noted before their arrival by the chain of fires which rapidly passed messages from Philadelphia to Boston.  Beacon Hill, a mile or so northwest, was a link in the chain.

 

And so, through out history commercial and pleasure craft,  warships under sail or power, Cup Defenders and sailfish have all cast passing shadows on Brenton Point. The vegetation of  the area also has a historical link. Stands of large trees apparently stood nearby despite the effect of ocean winds. Nearly all then standing trees were used by residents and soldiers during the Revolution for fuel since commerce, including firewood, virtually ceased. Cherry Neck, just east of here, received its name because of the cherry trees planted there by Jahleel Brenton, eldest son of Governor William Brenton. The trees have probably been gone for 200 years, but the name remains.

 

The irregular shoreline and rocky islands of this area,  are a  good example of marine erosion and hilly topography  inundated by  the sea. Glacial drift and pieces eroded from weak zones  in the rock are deposited to form beaches in some  sharp  reentrant where  water action is slowed. In places one finds scratches  on the metamorphic bedrock left by glaciers. Changes in the  shore

line are more rapid than one might expect. Only pieces of  foundation  remain where houses stood seaward of the road before  the 1938 hurricane.

 

In developing  the park, some remains of truly impressive landscaping are being uncovered. That Theodore M. Davis, owner of "the Reef", would create beauty is understandable. Mr.Davis made many important archeological discoveries in Egypt's Valley of  the Tomb of Kings. "The Reef", named for its view of Brenton  Reef, contained a collection of Egyptian antiquities described as the finest private collection in the country.

 

A description in Miss Elizabeth C. Brenton's "History of Brenton Neck", suggests that perhaps the circle is closing. For she says of Jahleel Brenton, "he appears to be a great admirer of the beauties of nature." And as he found beauty here, so shall the users of Brenton Point State Park.

 

Lt. Gov. J. Joseph Garrity, Sen. Erich A. O'D. Taylor, Director Dennis J. Murphy, Jr,

Sen. Robert J. McKenna, Mayor Humphery J. Donnelly, III

COMMITTEE:

Chairman James T. Douglas Donato, F. D'Andrea Agnes, R.Curtis, Rep. James F. Mahoney,

Councilman Robert O. Beattie, Delphine H. Washburn, Richard S. Phelps, Edwin W. Connelly

Robert R. Coulombe, George E. Howarth

 

 

DIVISION OF PARKS AND RECREATION:

Welcome to Brenton Point State Park. Occupying the former grounds of one of Newport's grandest estates, the park is located at the point of land where Narragansett Bay meets the  Atlantic, affording its'  visitors one of the most commanding and spectacular views on the East Coast.

 

Brenton Point is named after William Brenton, an early settler whose farm occupied most of the land in this area during the seventeenth century.  In 1876 the land at the point passed into the hands of Theodore M. Davis, a lawyer and one of the most famous Egyptologists of his time. Between 1876 and 1883 he erected "the Reef",  a large shingled mansion characterized by its tall chimneys, distinctive tower and wide windows overlooking the sea. As  landscape gardening enthusiast, M. Davis also created some of the most beautiful and extensive formal gardens in Newport.

 

The L-shaped stables at the rear of the estate were designed to be both fashionably grand and fireproof. The tower originally held a four-faced clock and musical chimes, while the stables quartered twelve men as well as horses, carriages and motorcars. The present park  administration building was known as "The Bungalow" and contained the servants quarters,  laundry and heating plant for the main house.

 

Mr. Davis died in 1910, and following the death of his estranged wife in 1915, the estate became the subject of long litigation. In  1923  "The  Reef"  was purchased  by  Milton  J. Budlong of Providence, a pioneer in the automobile sales field. A few years later the estate was once again the center of controversy, this time during the Budlongs' spectacular divorce suit. Following the final settlement in 1928, Mr. Budlong and his children continued to summer at the house until his death  in 1941.

 

In that same year the estate was taken over by the United States Army to serve as the sight of a coastal artillery battery (the gun mount is still visible next to the mound on the lawn). "The

Reef" was returned to the Budlong family in 1946, but remained unoccupied and left to the elements.

 

In July 1960 a fire destroyed the heavily vandalized main house which was finally torn down in 1963 (the rubble is buried beneath the  mound). In 1969  the State of Rhode Island took over the property under the Green Acres program, and in 1976 Brenton Point State Park was opened to the public.

 

DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT

Brenton Point Park: (NR) This open space is a state park which commands an impressive view toward Beaver Tail Lighthouse and the Atlantic Ocean beyond. The park is located on the former estate of Theodore M. Davis's "The Reef" which was developed beginning in 1882. Boston architects Sturgis and Brigham designed a stone "cottage" for Mr. Davis which cost between $40,000 and $50,000. The estate was famed for it's gardens and greenhouses and for  the Davis   collection  of  "primitive  pictures"  and  archeological relics. The house burned and has been demolished, although several auxiliary buildings remain as ruins.

 

Carriage House,1882: one and a half stories; brick walls with stone facing.  This structure was remodeled for use as servants quarters during the first decade of the 20th century and  a reinforced concrete frame was inserted into the original walls.

 

New Carriage House, 1903-1912: two stories; reinforced concrete frame; iron roof beams; fire brickwalls with stucco finish on the exterior and stone facings.

 

Tower, 1903-1912: stone-faced brick tower which may originally have been a picturesque windmill and water tower.

 

Recommendation:  Brenton  Point Park is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as part of the Ocean Drive Historic District. The park and the surviving structures should  be maintained  in keeping with its own history and its key location on Ocean Drive. The Historical Preservation Commission should be consulted  before significant alterations to the property of  the buildings are undertaken.

 

"The  Reef" takes its name from the prominent Brenton family of Newport, a charming member of which was strangely connected with such a wreck. During the British occupation of Newport in  the Revolution, Jahleel Brenton, a Tory entertained two English officers at his home. One of  the  men, Lieutenant Stanley, observed that Alice Brenton,  adopted daughter of Jahleel, looked remarkably like a young sister of his who had left England  years before and had been lost at sea.  To the astonishment of all, it was found that Alice Brenton was indeed Beatrice Stanley whom the Brentons had saved as a child, and the sole survivor from a wreck on this reef.

 

Taken from: Rhode Island American Guide Series

Houghton Mifflin Co. Boston, Ma.1937

Page 433

May 10, 1967

 

To: Mr. C. Bolwell, Mr. W. Cotter, Mr. T. Wright

From: Anthony Judge, Jr.

Dept: Green Acres

Subject: Ocean Drive Park-G.A. 102

 

Please be advised that the area indicated on the attached engineering survey map designated as G.A.102, known as Ocean Drive, was acquired by condemnation on May 8, 1967 at 10:47 A.M. Until such time as the area is developed, maintenance responsibility has been assigned to the Division of Conservation. May we suggest that you exercise your respective responsibility as it applies to your Division in the protection and  maintenance supervision of State property.

 

Anthony Judge

Supervisor

Green Acres Acquisition