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Making Peace with the Rock
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Business New Haven
6/1/1998
By:
Priscilla Searles
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Savin Rock. For anyone who spent his youth anywhere near West Haven, the very name brings back memories of fun-filled summer days, hair-raising rides, hot dogs, seafood and entertainment of every description.
The target of a British invasion by 1,500 troops in 1779, the waterfront property included businesses such as Allen's Tavern, opened around 1771. For 15 cents you could rent one of the tavern's ten rooms for a night and they'd throw in free use of the cooking ovens. Located on what later became Beach Street, it was a watering hole for sailors, travelers and veterans of the Revolutionary War.
The tavern was purchased by Hill Brothers in 1850 and became Hill's Homestead. Many years later it was sold again and relocated a few blocks away, retaining its old name.
The Savin Rock House, built at the western end of Beach Street in 1838, was located on a 20-acre parcel. The luxury hotel had 100 rooms and became popular with wealthy patrons who arrived in the hotel's own stagecoach, the Flying Cloud.
Fire was of course the mortal enemy of the old wooden structures and in 1860 a blaze claimed much of the Savin Rock House. Rebuilt, it burned again in 1870 and was not rebuilt a second time.
The year 1870 gave birth to what most of us remember about Savin Rock: amusements. George Kelsey bought the old ball park and relocated it north to what would become White City, home for rides of every description. Kelsey constructed a bandstand which would later provide entertainment by such notable bands as John Philip Sousa's. A fountain and a 1,500-foot pier were also added.
A ferry service started taking people from Savin Rock to New Haven. Although the ferry service only lasted a few years, it was replaced by another service to Lighthouse Point. The ferry made its last run in 1934, when the Lighthouse Pier collapsed. But if you were headed to Savin Rock from New Haven, you didn't need the ferry. In 1867 the first horse-car line went from New Haven to Campbell Avenue and Beach Street.
One of the more famous buildings at Savin Rock in the early days of the 20th century was the Wilcox Pier Restaurant, built in 1900. Constructed on a pier that extended into Long Island Sound, just three miles south of New Haven, it drew wealthy patrons who arrived in fancy carriages from all over the area. With a seating capacity of 1,000, Wilcox's advertising claimed it was the largest shore dinner place in Connecticut. Wilcox's became the most recognizable landmark at Savin Rock, the subject of dozens of postcards produced over the decades.
But Savin Rock didn't remain strictly a location for the rich and famous seeking relief from the summer heat; it became the place memories were created for the masses. Residents of New Haven tried to escape the heat of the city by traveling to Savin Rock on open trolley cars.
The Rock had something for everyone. For 25 cents those so inclined could watch a series of three-round boxing events at White City Stadium, the site of many activities at Savin Rock. Viewers were entertained between bouts with musicians who, at least for one season, included Rudy Vallee.
It's impossible to list the many attractions that remain only a recollection for the thousands of us who spent endless days at Savin Rock. Savin Rock Memories, produced by Gil Johnson and Bennett W. Dorman in 1993, contains the reminisces of dozens of citizens who will forever remember that fun-filled summer days and Savin Rock were synonymous.
And memories are all that is left. Progress has robbed the present generation of rides on the merry-go-round, or one of the roller coasters. There are those who claim that, if you listen carefully, on warm summer days you can still hear the music and the screams of riders braving the Thunderbolt.
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