Oakland Beach Timeline By: Riley Swales, Mike Knowlton, and Ryan McEvoy

In 1875, the railway was built which connected Oakland Beach to Providence and other major cities.

Joseph Carrolo was called Mr. Oakland Beach because he was the one who turned it into a tourist attraction. He lived to be 103 years old.

He bought the Governor Brown House in the early 1900s which was located across from Oakland Beach.

Becomes a densely populated community of small cottages was developed after World War I as a summer colony, largely for nearby Providence’s middle class Irish, Greek, and Italian communities.

Area opens a movie theater, casino, small amusement park, restaurants, etc. drawing in tourists to this area.

During prohibition this was a popular place because it was almost impossible for the police to keep track of the local bars because people would rent the cottages.

During the 1930s the depression hit and many people from Oakland Beach sell their cottages.

Oakland Beach becomes known for inexpensive housing during this time.

Prices were cut at the different attractions during the depression so that people would continue visiting the area.

September 21, 1938 is when the Hurricane of 1938 hit Rhode Island. 309 homes were demolished and more of them were damaged.

The Oakland Beach Yacht Club, waterfront skating pavilion, and most of the amusement park were completely destroyed.

There were plans to rebuild the area but they were cut short in 1941 because of World War II.

During the war, many of the summer cottages were rented to sailors and workers from the Quonset Base.

On August 31, 1954, Hurricane Carol hit and causes more destruction in the area. 4,000 homes were destroyed, 200 boats were destroyed, 19 people died, and an estimate $3,000,000 damage.

In 1980, Joseph Carrolo donates the movie theater to two churches for the Join Our Good Neighbor And Help to help improve the quality of life for the residents of Oakland Beach and the Warwick communities.

Since housing is cheap in this area, people are trying to revitalize the area to make it a better area. The Oakland Beach Carousel Foundation is working on restoring the carousel in hopes that the community will be rebuilt as well.