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Recognized and appreciated for her beautifully restored Lighthouse, Rose Island lies a mile offshore between Newport and Jamestown in the shadow of the Pell-Newport Bridge. It is from this vantage point that many thousands of people get a glimpse of the Lighthouse past the impenetrable thicket that covers the rest of the island. It has taken Mother Nature 60 years to reclaim most of Rose Island’s structures and open space, transforming them into valuable bird nesting habitat. Of course, during World Wars I and II the grass was kept short, for then Rose Island was considered by the US War Department to be the ideal munitions storage facility for the Newport Naval Torpedo Station’s millions of pounds of explosives. Rose Island was a safe distance from the populace. In addition, there already existed two large “bombproof” buildings the Navy could easily convert into magazines. Few people know they were the barracks and northwest circular bastion of Fort Hamilton, originally constructed from 1798-1800. In 1999 the Rose Island Lighthouse Foundation (RILF) purchased the Navy’s 15 acre lot and began to create a practical balance between protecting the island’s environment while uncovering its hidden historic structures. A $50,000 grant from the van Beuren Charitable Foundation jump-started RILF’s work to reclaim the NW bastion. As for the magnificent barracks, work to replace the roof will proceed through the summer with funds from a State Preservation Grant and from the Prince Charitable Trusts, and not any too soon! Hurricane force winds in December ripped the roof open–Mother Nature’s in-kind contribution to the demolition work!
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From top: 1819 drawing of Fort Hamilton from the National Archives in Washington, D.C. This 1895 photo by Edward W. Smith reminds us to keep our eyes on the prize. Storm-damaged barracks roof. January 2006 A backhoe was purchased to remove the bombproof cement that supported the roof and also the earth that covered the exterior stone wall. March 2006. © 2006 Newport Harbor Guide. All rights reserved. |
