BEST BEACH IN TOWN
GREENWICH — During the day, people rode the merry-goround and practiced marksmanship in the shooting gallery. At night, they sailed by moonlight to the glowing dance hall, live orchestra music floating on the air.
Girls swam in itchy, woolen bathing suits with short sleeves and knee-length pants, while women sported stockings and tennis shoes. Visitors lounged in suits and hats, like churchgoers.
“It’s a wonder anyone learned to swim,” said centenarian Ruth Wilson, drawing laughter from her audience. “They sat on the beach and roasted. I don’t know how they did it.”
Wilson was the guest of honor at a centennial celebration held Saturday to commemorate when two Greenwich families sold Island Beach to the town for $1 in 1918. Nearly 1,000 townspeople ferried to island for the event, organized by resident Kevin O’Connor and the Friends of Island Beach, a local group dedicated to beautifying the property.
First Selectman Peter Tesei proclaimed Aug. 25, 2018, as Island Beach Day and encouraged citizens to enjoy this “irreplaceable natural resource.” State Rep. Michael Bocchino congratulated the town on behalf of state Sen. L. Scott Frantz. State Rep. Livvy Floren said Wilson has looked the same for 50 years, and Camillo said she was his favorite teacher.
Three-hundred years of history
Great Captain’s Island, Island Beach and Wee Captain’s Island, a privately owned property connected to Island Beach by a sand spit at low tide, might have been named after preRevolutionary War commander Capt. Daniel Patrick, according to Greenwich Library Historian Carl White. Patrick and Robert Feake, whose family built Greenwich’s first home, purchased land in Old Greenwich from the Wecquaesgeek Indians.
From 1764 to 1870, Connecticut and New York contended for ownership of the islands, until a special commission granted the islands to Connecticut.
Seven years before Wilson was born, a group of Greenwich businessmen turned Island Beach into a resort with the games and dance hall, a bar and
restaurant, one- and threeroom bungalows and a hand-operated carousel.
After someone was injured on the ride, the carousel was removed. Residents can still sit in the shade of the original merry-goround pavilion.
But business declined because the 90-day season was too short, townspeople faced economic hardships and men were enlisting for World War I.
The island went to market in 1916, but the Representative Town Meeting rejected the purchase in 1918 — Wilson’s birth year — because members were looking to buy Sandy Beach off Mead’s Point for a public beach.
The Lauder and Greenway families bought the island and donated it to the town on Oct. 24, 1918, for $1 in honor of George L. Lauder Jr., who died of influenza at age 37. (The donation in his name is etched into the cement foundation of the beach’s flagpole.)
Mead’s Point residents Mrs. Wilks and Mrs. Campbell donated money for a ferry to Island Beach. The boat encouraged residents to relax at the town’s new beach, rather than Sandy Beach, which was in their backyards. The first boat sailed in 1920.
Island memories
Wilson first came in 1923, when she and the island were both 5 years old.
“This place has been my happy place, ever since I was 5 years old,” Wilson said. “I’m glad to see all of you.”
When she was 10, she and her family lived in a bungalow (now destroyed) for the summer.
“It was heaven,” she said. Wilson spent most of her time in the water, which gave her some relief from her unbearable swimming outfit.
The retired Cos Cob School teacher also lived through the Great Depression, when the cheap ferry to the beach provided an escape for the jobless.
Wilson, the great-aunt of the island’s caretaker of eight years, Jay Manning, practically raised her kids on the island, heating formula for her newborn with straw she collected.
Pointing to the concession stand, she said when she started to visit it was a ladies locker room.
Helen Morano Delago, of Old Greenwich, also remembers the locker rooms. Townspeople had to ride the ferry while fully dressed and change after they arrived on the island and before they left, she said.
Delago, 83, highlighted Greenwich Day, a town tradition from the ’50s and ’60s that has since petered out. Greenwich native Samuel F. Pryor Jr., a retired executive of Pan American World Airways, financed the all-day affair, which included helicopters and submarines, stuntmen who parachuted onto the island, foot races for school kids and the coronation of Miss Island Beach.
Her family’s seasonal Sunday tradition was picnicking on the island. Her father would ride ahead to reserve tables for the family, and they would leave on the last ferry back.
“It’s a beautiful spot, far away from everything,” Delago said. “It’s a wonderful gift.”
A changing landscape
A younger crowd enjoyed the Saturday celebration, too. Kyna Shine was there with her sons, Landon, 10, and Bryce, 6, and Elishia Hinton came with her two boys, Nathan, 9, and Nelson, 7.
The mothers brought fresh fruit, but the boys opted for concession stand fries and burgers.
Nathan and Nelson were both eager to share their favorite parts about the island.
“It’s the beast beach in Greenwich,” said Nathan, who likes playing sports and spends as much time as possible in the water. “I love being here with my best friends and family.”
His younger brother, Nelson, also deemed Island Beach the best beach in Greenwich.
“Great Captain’s Island has no food,” he said, between bites of burger.
Storms during the 20th and 21st centuries have ravaged the island, but some agreed that wiping out the infrastructure paved the way for improvements.
The bungalows, for example, were destroyed and never rebuilt. But for Kevin O’Connor, it was too crowded for the cottages anyway.
“It’s definitely better the way it is now,” said O’Connor, who resuscitated the Friends of Island Beach for the anniversary. Many of the founding members have died or cannot make the trip to the island, so he took over in time to orchestrate the centennial event.
Manning, the caretaker, said Superstorm Sandy was a blessing in hindsight. The storm incurred $2 million in damages, but the town was able to install new sidewalks and a new playground, and it rebuilt the dock.
Still, he hopes to grow more grass and add more sand to the beach on the side of the pier that faces Wee Captain’s Island.
Though he did not know what to expect, Manning said Saturday’s event was nice. Likewise, his greataunt said she did not anticipate such a turnout.
O’Connor approved of the intergenerational turnout and appreciated the perspective of the old-timers.
He started visiting the island when he was 7. As a kid, he could not ask for anything better than riding the boat to the island. Now, he recognizes how fortunate Greenwich residents are.
“We just thought it was appropriate to be thankful for what we have,” said O’Connor. “A lot of generations have gone and everyone loves it.”