Newport Rhode Island off the Beaten Path Destination Spots

I’ve already written about the more well known Newport Rhode Island destination spots but today I’ll share some less-visited gems with you.

These “off the beaten path” destinations include family summer destinations, museums, churches, and schools. Newport has a special place in New England and the nation’s history, and a walk around this small city uncovers the significant influence it has had on our love of sailing and yachts and our fierce fight for independence.

Beaches of Newport Area:

The Newport area names its main beaches with numbers such as first, second, and third. However, the only one in Newport is First Beach. The other two are in nearby Middletown. First Beach is also known as Easton’s Beach, and it is a short walk from the town center.

Easton’s Beach is popular with the local families because it has a lot to entertain the kids in addition to the safe waters. Amenities at the beach include a children’s playground, carousel, aquarium, Skateboard Park, and a snack and souvenir shop. During the summer it is not unusual to see a beach wedding as with the Rotunda it makes an ideal place to take vows and celebrate afterwords.

Brenton State Park:

About half-way around the 10-mile Ocean Drive you’ll come across an unassuming large open green space called Brenton State Park. It is a popular spot with residents for flying kites, having an afternoon picnic, and just generally hanging-out near the ocean with its omnipresent breeze.

The park has a number of cooking pits and picnic tables but get there early in the summer as they are captured quickly, and families often settle in for the day bringing games and balls for fun sports. But it is the kites that dazzle and amaze at this place. Bring your own kite or buy one there as there is usually at least one “kite stand” selling beginner or elaborate kites.

Another popular pastime is checking out the tidal pools the rocks create to see what has been “captured” and you can usually find crabs and other sea creatures in the pools. There are usually plenty of people fishing from the rocks as well as this is considered a prime area for shore fishing.

Museum of Newport History:

For a taste of Newport’s place in New England’s past and present head straight to the Museum of Newport History located in Brick Market. The museum traces the roots of the city from its early settlers escaping the harsh intolerance by the puritans of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, to the occupation by the English during the revolutionary period, and then the influx of wealth brought with the Gilded Age period.

The museum has many artifacts and photographs on display and you can watch a video tour of historic Bellevue Avenue. The museum is an information center and a departure point for guided walking tours.

Green Animals Topiary Garden:
Most people who visit the Newport Mansions know about The Breakers and Marble House and the others along Bellevue Avenue, but few realize the Preservation Society Mansions also include the Green Animals Topiary Garden and even fewer visit it.

Located away from the town center a short drive away in the neighboring town of Portsmouth it tends to be overlooked because it takes a little effort to get there. But it can make a welcome change from the opulence of the main Mansion attractions.

The primary attraction at Green Animals is the gardens and in particular the topiary animal designs. There are about 21 animals and birds depicted in the 80 topiary on display as diverse as an elephant, teddy bear, and a unicorn. The 7-acre estate overlooks Narragansett Bay and in addition to the topiary includes vegetable and herb gardens, orchards and a Victorian House you can visit.

The estate was left to The Preservation Society of Newport County when the owner Alice Brayton died in 1972.

International Yacht Restoration School:

The International Yacht Restoration School or IYRS as it is known locally is primarily a school for students interested in learning the craft of boat building and restoration. The long heritage of Newport as a center of yachts and sailing have provided pleasure to millions who visit Newport for its attractions related to the America’s Cup and chance to see a famous yacht that competed for the prize.

The tradition of Yacht building is kept alive at the IYRS but this is also a place that visitors to Newport can check out. The IYRS has summer tours, exhibits and attractions both on and off the water. When school is in session you can watch students working on the restoration of a Gilded Age yacht. Otherwise tours are conducted in the summer which includes a trip down to the dock to see the finished work of the shipwrights the school graduates each year.

This year the IYRS has linked up with the Museum of Yachting over in Fort Adams State Park for a display on the “Coronet” a schooner from the Gilded Age which is more a floating mansion than a schooner. The exhibit at the museum includes historic photos of the Coronet and details of her luxurious interior you can’t see when viewing the actual restoration project at the school.

In addition to the Coronet display the museum also has two other displays on exhibit for summer 2009 - a water taxi runs across the harbor from the schools docks to the museum.

Washington Square:

The Washington Square area in downtown Newport was the hub of politics and commerce during colonial times. During the War of Independence the British Troops occupied Newport until leaving in 1780. Most of the town by then had been destroyed but a few colonial buildings survived and these can be seen while walking around Washington Square. The square is opposite the Museum of Newport History.

Noteworthy buildings and architecture to see include the White Horse Tavern which claims to be the oldest operating tavern in America, Statue of Oliver Hazard Perry – a significant figure in the War of 1812 – and Colony House, which was Rhode Island’s seat of government until 1900.

A leisurely stroll around Washington Square provides a walk back in time, and even though today the square is surrounded by shops and modern residential dwellings it still has the ambiance of Newport as it was three hundred years ago.

Trinity Church:

A building has been on the Trinity Church location since the early eighteenth century. The present building was completed in 1726 and though not the oldest church in Newport – Saint Mary’s holds that distinction - it is the most striking.

The church architecture is reminiscent of the Old North Church in Boston and the builder is said to have based his designs on those built by Sir Christopher Wren in London, England during the late 17th century. The interior of the present day church has striking features and a tour is scheduled year round after the 10:00am service on Sunday.

Trinity church is often confused as the place Jacqueline Lee Bouvier married John F Kennedy in 1953; however, that event happened at Saint Mary’s Church just a few blocks down on Memorial Boulevard.

If you have more time to visit then check out further destinations in Newport Rhode Island here.

Cliff Calderwood
Executive Editor
Destinations in New England