Misquamicut State Beach

Misquamicut State Beach is a Rhode Island state park in the town of Westerly. It is a part of Misquamicut Beach which is a three-mile length of beach that extends westward from Weekapaug to Watch Hill and separates Winnapaug Pond from the Atlantic Ocean.HistoryThe state beach was created in 1959 after a devastating hurricane in 1954 destroyed much of the Misquamicut community. In 1992, the state beach area was nearly forced to close when the forty-year-old septic system broke. The Division of Parks and Recreation was not allowed to build a new septic field so a switch was made to a waterless form of waste management. In 1999, the state built a $1.5 million bathing pavilion (the James J. Federico Jr. State Beach Pavilion) with heated shower stalls and Clivus Multrum composting toilets. The building project was completed in 2000 with a $700,000 expansion and paving of the parking lot. The lot now holds up to 2700 cars.Activities and amenitiesThe state beach offers over a half-mile of oceanfront recreation. The beach pavilion includes a gift shop, shade gazebos, lifeguard towers and outdoor cold showers. Two annual music festivals, Springfest and Fallfest, are held each May and September under the auspices of the Misquamicut Business Association.