This site is cosponsored by Newport's:
Anchor B&B ... Quiet, Comfortable B&B Near Harbor
Friends of the Waterfront
     ... Preserving Our Waterfront for the Public 		Interesting Newport Walks/Drives:
Cliff Walk
Ten Mile Drive [Ocean Drive]
Newport Harbor Walk North
Newport Harbor Walk South
Runner on Ocean Drive, Newport, RI Couple on Rocks, Ocean Drive, Newport, RI Fisherman on Rocks, Newport, RI Ocean Drive Man on Bicycle, Ocean Dr., Newport, RI

Newport, RI – Ten Mile Drive
Including Newport's Ocean Drive and Fort Adams

Rolls on Ocean Drive, Newport, RI
        In the early 1800s many wealthy New Yorkers escaped to Newport on "Rhode Island" during the hot summers. Newport is located on the southern end of Rhode Island which is the Rhode Island for which the state is named. [Today Rhode Island is called Aquidneck Island, except on nautical charts where it is still called Rhode Island.]
        Many large resort type hotels were built close to Newport Harbor and within walking distance to Newport Beach [now called Easton's or First Beach] to accommodate the early 1800s summer crowd.

        As steamer transportation
Sailboat on West Pasage, Newport, RI
became more popular and easier around 1850, more wealthy New Yorkers decided to build "summer cottages" along the coastline where the predictable cool on-shore breezes from the Atlantic were a delightful treat during the summer ... and Newport's Ten Mile Drive became the summer place to be.

Brenton Point State Park, Ocean Dr. Newport, RI
        Today, Newport's Ten Mile Drive combines that history of a wealthy summer community with a fabulous Newport recreational treasure of public parks and miles of public access shoreline to rank as one of the most popular "drives" in the country.
The Historic Ten Mile Drive

1. Starts at The Elms on Bellevue Ave.[just south of Memorial Blvd.] and runs south to Narragansett Ave. [there is a red light at this intersection].

2. Turn left [east] onto Narragansett Ave. and drive down to Ochre Point Ave. [[[while you are on Narragansett Ave. you may like to continue to the end of the street to visit the famous Forty Steps on Cliff Walk. If you can find a parking space this is probably the best segment of Cliff Walk and you can walk along the ocean side of Ochre Point Ave. through the campus of Salve University and through the gate to the Breakers – 20 min. round trip.]]]

3. Turn right onto Ochre Point Ave. where a number of the historic estates are located and now owned and used by Salve Regina University: Ochre Court, Vinland, Vinland Gate House — and where the The Breakers mansion is.

4. When you reach the end of Ochre Point Ave. turn right [west] on Ruggles Ave. to drive by Ochre Lodge, Althrope Carriage House, Althrope, Fairhome Carriage House, and Stoneacre Carriage House [more of the estates currently used by Salve University].

5. At the intersection of Ruggles and Bellevue Ave. [Fairlawn] turn left [south] on Bellevue Ave to drive by Beechwood, Marble House, Rosecliff, Belcourt Castle, and Rough Point. For an illustrated map segment dated 1939 click here.

6. At the end of Bellevue Ave. [the Avenue itself turns right and continues to a small rotary drive at the end of Cliff Walk where the secret, but public, Reject Beach is]. Turn right onto Coggeshall Ave. and take the first left onto Ocean Ave.

7. On Ocean Ave. drive along the ocean by Bailey's Beach [private], Hazard Beach [private] and Gooseberry Beach [open to the public, pay parking]. Continue on by the "Cove," [for a 360-degree photo of the "Cove" These are large photo files and may take a minute or two to load], and then King's Beach [state], Brenton State Park [360 of Brenton Park], and the Inn at Castle Hill. [[[Brenton State Park is a large park with decent parking and is great to spend a couple of hours to picnic or sail a kite or just hang out on the rocks and enjoy the ocean. ]]]

8. Turn right onto Castle Hill Ave., drive north to the first intersection and go left onto Ridge Rd. to go by the U.S. Coast Guard Station and past Ocean Cliff.

9. At the end of Ridge Rd. go left onto Harrison Ave. to go by Hammersmith Farm [Jackie Kennedy's summer home which unfortunately is no longer open to the public] and Ft. Adams. Ft. Adams is an ideal place to view Newport Harbor, and investigate Rhode Island Public Sailing Center Sail Newport and the Museum of Yachting. The Fort is open for tours. The view of Newport is spectacular.

10. At the next intersection turn left and then left again onto Halidon Ave. to go by the New York Yacht Club. For this illustrated map segment dated 1939 click here.

Canon at Ft. Adams, Newport, RI
. .11. Continue right onto Wellington Ave. to go by the Ida Lewis Yacht Club [Lime Rock Light] and Newport's King Park [for a 360 photo of the park click here] with its statue of Rochambeau who brought the French army to Newport to help Washington win the Revolutionary War. King Park is the southern end of Newport Harbor and the Newport Harbor Walk. [360 of King Park]

Now you are back in downtown Newport and traveled as interesting a ten miles as you can!

Maps
Overall Map from MSN.Mapsource
Click Here for a Nice Printable Map of Newport from Citimaps.com©
Illustrated map segment A dated 1939
Illustrated map segment B dated 1939
Friends of the Waterfront, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) not for profit, public interest group with a mission to:
Protect public access to the water;
Preserve historical uses and rights of way, and
Help foster the development of the waterfront in ways that maximize public access.
Friends of the Waterfront web sites include:
CliffWalk.com,
NewportHarborWalk.com,
TenMileDrive.com, and
NewportWaterfront.org.
We are always looking for volunteer help with our mission tasks. Contact the President
TenMileDrive.com v.6.1.2004 copyright ©, Friends of the Waterfront, Inc., PO Box 932, Newport, RI 02840
Web Master Vic Farmer, Web design and hosting: WebGhosts