Calf Pasture Beach
Encyclopedia
Calf Pasture Beach is an historically significant park and beach
in East Norwalk
, Connecticut
along Long Island Sound
.
The area of the park lands (including adjacent Shady Beach Park and Taylor Farm Park) is approximately 35 acres (14.2 ha).
The beach is accessible by road or by public transit; Norwalk Transit District
provides direct bus service to the park and the East Norwalk Metro-North station
is about one mile to the north along Calf Pasture Beach Road, Gregory Ave, and East Ave. East Avenue also provides access to I-95 at exit 16.
settlers in the 17th century as grazing land for cows. This activity gave rise to the name of the beach.
The beach was used for disembarkation and encampment during the Tryon raid of the American Revolutionary War
in 1779. After having conducted retribution raids at New Haven
and
Fairfield
William Tryon
led 2,600 British troops by boat to Norwalk at approximately 5:00 p.m. on July 10, 1779. They landed near the Round Beach island at the Calf Pasture
peninsula where they spent the night. The next day they set off on the burning of Norwalk that left only 6 houses standing after the raid.
In 1917 the Norwalk City legislature authorized the city to acquire and create a park at Calf Pasture Beach. Property condemnation to acquire the land was started in 1919. In 1922 the descendents of the Betts, Marvin, and Taylor families who owned much of the adjoining property donated their lands to the city. The park opened formally in 1924 while work on buildings and nearby roads was still underway.
Some additional buildings and sidewalks were constructed at Calf Pasture in 1935 with funding provided by the Federal Emergency Relief Administration
. Many of the buildings and sidewalks at Calf Pasture were washed away during the hurricane of September 1938
. They were then replaced by Works Progress Administration
workers.
Shady Beach was acquired in the 1960s. From its start in 2000 through 2006 the Kayak for a Cause
charitable fundraising event was held at Calf Pasture Beach. In 2007 that event was held at Veterans Park (also in East Norwalk) on the Connecticut shore. In 2008 it returned to Calf Pasture Beach.
All of the park facilities (Calf Pasture Beach, Shady Beach, and Taylor Farm) are still owned and maintained by the City of Norwalk
.
, a fishing pier
, a tree shaded playground
, a small unpaved boatramp
(suited to cartop boat launches not trailers), sand volleyball courts
, bocce courts
, a skateboard park
, baseball
diamonds (with lighting for nighttime games), accessible restrooms, and a restaurant maintained by
Stew Leonard's
. Adjacent Shady Beach Park offers an unmonitored beach, shaded picnic tables, grills, and additional rest room facilities. Adjacent to Shady Beach is
Taylor Farm Park which has a tidal pool and grassy and wooded areas for dogwalking. Taylor Farm Park is the site of an annual Greenwich Kennel club
dog show. During the spring and autumn seasons the parking lot at Calf Pasture Beach is used for kart racing
.
Sailboat
s and kayak
s can be rented within the Park at the Norwalk Sailing School which also offers a small craft safety training program. Calf Pasture Beach is a major landmark along the Norwalk Islands Canoe/Kayak
Trail.
Boater safety courses are offered at the Dominic Lametta training center at U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Flotilla 72 at Calf Pasture.
The annual 4th of July
fireworks show in Norwalk is held at Calf Pasture Beach.
Beach
A beach is a geological landform along the shoreline of an ocean, sea, lake or river. It usually consists of loose particles which are often composed of rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles or cobblestones...
in East Norwalk
East Norwalk
East Norwalk is a neighborhood located in Norwalk, Connecticut.The neighborhood is a culturally diverse, mostly middle-class section of the city, inhabited by many different ethnicities such as Greeks, Italians, Hispanics, African Americans, and long time "Connecticut Yankee" residents...
, Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
along Long Island Sound
Long Island Sound
Long Island Sound is an estuary of the Atlantic Ocean, located in the United States between Connecticut to the north and Long Island, New York to the south. The mouth of the Connecticut River at Old Saybrook, Connecticut, empties into the sound. On its western end the sound is bounded by the Bronx...
.
The area of the park lands (including adjacent Shady Beach Park and Taylor Farm Park) is approximately 35 acres (14.2 ha).
The beach is accessible by road or by public transit; Norwalk Transit District
Norwalk Transit District
The Norwalk Transit District is the primary provider of public transportation services in Norwalk, Connecticut and surrounding communities. The district's fixed-route bus transit system, known as WHEELS, is the primary service of the system linking Norwalk and its immediate suburbs as well as...
provides direct bus service to the park and the East Norwalk Metro-North station
East Norwalk (Metro-North station)
The East Norwalk Metro-North Railroad station is one of three New Haven Line stations serving the residents of Norwalk, Connecticut. It is located in the neighborhood of East Norwalk, from which it derives its name....
is about one mile to the north along Calf Pasture Beach Road, Gregory Ave, and East Ave. East Avenue also provides access to I-95 at exit 16.
History
The area now known as Calf Pasture was used by Connecticut colonyConnecticut Colony
The Connecticut Colony or Colony of Connecticut was an English colony located in British America that became the U.S. state of Connecticut. Originally known as the River Colony, it was organized on March 3, 1636 as a haven for Puritan noblemen. After early struggles with the Dutch, the English...
settlers in the 17th century as grazing land for cows. This activity gave rise to the name of the beach.
The beach was used for disembarkation and encampment during the Tryon raid of the American Revolutionary War
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
in 1779. After having conducted retribution raids at New Haven
New Haven, Connecticut
New Haven is the second-largest city in Connecticut and the sixth-largest in New England. According to the 2010 Census, New Haven's population increased by 5.0% between 2000 and 2010, a rate higher than that of the State of Connecticut, and higher than that of the state's five largest cities, and...
and
Fairfield
Fairfield, Connecticut
Fairfield is a town located in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. It is bordered by the towns of Bridgeport, Trumbull, Easton, Redding and Westport along the Gold Coast of Connecticut. As of the 2010 census, the town had a population of 59,404...
William Tryon
William Tryon
William Tryon was a British soldier and colonial administrator who served as governor of the Province of North Carolina and the Province of New York .-Early life and career:...
led 2,600 British troops by boat to Norwalk at approximately 5:00 p.m. on July 10, 1779. They landed near the Round Beach island at the Calf Pasture
peninsula where they spent the night. The next day they set off on the burning of Norwalk that left only 6 houses standing after the raid.
In 1917 the Norwalk City legislature authorized the city to acquire and create a park at Calf Pasture Beach. Property condemnation to acquire the land was started in 1919. In 1922 the descendents of the Betts, Marvin, and Taylor families who owned much of the adjoining property donated their lands to the city. The park opened formally in 1924 while work on buildings and nearby roads was still underway.
Some additional buildings and sidewalks were constructed at Calf Pasture in 1935 with funding provided by the Federal Emergency Relief Administration
Federal Emergency Relief Administration
Federal Emergency Relief Administration was the new name given by the Roosevelt Administration to the Emergency Relief Administration which President Herbert Hoover had created in 1932...
. Many of the buildings and sidewalks at Calf Pasture were washed away during the hurricane of September 1938
New England Hurricane of 1938
The New England Hurricane of 1938 was the first major hurricane to strike New England since 1869...
. They were then replaced by Works Progress Administration
Works Progress Administration
The Works Progress Administration was the largest and most ambitious New Deal agency, employing millions of unskilled workers to carry out public works projects, including the construction of public buildings and roads, and operated large arts, drama, media, and literacy projects...
workers.
Shady Beach was acquired in the 1960s. From its start in 2000 through 2006 the Kayak for a Cause
Kayak for a Cause
Kayak for a Cause is a non-profit kayaking fundraiser that takes place annually on Long Island Sound on the eastern coast of the United States...
charitable fundraising event was held at Calf Pasture Beach. In 2007 that event was held at Veterans Park (also in East Norwalk) on the Connecticut shore. In 2008 it returned to Calf Pasture Beach.
All of the park facilities (Calf Pasture Beach, Shady Beach, and Taylor Farm) are still owned and maintained by the City of Norwalk
Norwalk, Connecticut
Norwalk is a city in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the population of the city is 85,603, making Norwalk sixth in population in Connecticut, and third in Fairfield County...
.
Facilities
The Calf Pasture Beach area has a large guarded beachBeach
A beach is a geological landform along the shoreline of an ocean, sea, lake or river. It usually consists of loose particles which are often composed of rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles or cobblestones...
, a fishing pier
Pier
A pier is a raised structure, including bridge and building supports and walkways, over water, typically supported by widely spread piles or pillars...
, a tree shaded playground
Playground
A playground or play area is a place with a specific design for children be able to play there. It may be indoors but is typically outdoors...
, a small unpaved boatramp
Slipway
A slipway, boat slip or just a slip, is a ramp on the shore by which ships or boats can be moved to and from the water. They are used for building and repairing ships and boats. They are also used for launching and retrieving small boats on trailers and flying boats on their undercarriage. The...
(suited to cartop boat launches not trailers), sand volleyball courts
Beach volleyball
Beach volleyball, or sand volleyball, is an Olympic team sport played by two teams of two players on a sand court divided by a net.Like volleyball, the object of the game is to send the ball over the net in order to ground it on the opponent’s court, and to prevent the same effort by the opponent....
, bocce courts
Bocce
Bocce is a ball sport belonging to the boules sport family, closely related to bowls and pétanque with a common ancestry from ancient games played in the Roman Empire...
, a skateboard park
Skatepark
A skatepark is a purpose-built recreational environment made for skateboarding, BMX, aggressive inline skating and scooters. A skatepark may contain half-pipes, quarter pipes, spine transfers, handrails, funboxes, vert ramps, pyramids, banked ramps, full pipes, pools, bowls, snake runs stairsets,...
, baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
diamonds (with lighting for nighttime games), accessible restrooms, and a restaurant maintained by
Stew Leonard's
Stew Leonard's
Stew Leonard's is chain of four supermarkets in Connecticut and New York which Ripley's Believe It or Not! deemed "The World's Largest Dairy", with Fortune Magazine listing Stew Leonard's as one of the "100 Best Companies to Work For"."Anyone who comes from Connecticut or thereabouts knows this...
. Adjacent Shady Beach Park offers an unmonitored beach, shaded picnic tables, grills, and additional rest room facilities. Adjacent to Shady Beach is
Taylor Farm Park which has a tidal pool and grassy and wooded areas for dogwalking. Taylor Farm Park is the site of an annual Greenwich Kennel club
Kennel club
A kennel club is an organization for canine affairs that concerns itself with the breeding, showing and promotion of more than one breed of dog...
dog show. During the spring and autumn seasons the parking lot at Calf Pasture Beach is used for kart racing
Kart racing
Kart racing or karting is a variant of open-wheel motorsport with small, open, four-wheeled vehicles called karts, go-karts, or gearbox/shifter karts depending on the design. They are usually raced on scaled-down circuits...
.
Sailboat
Sailboat
A sailboat or sailing boat is a boat propelled partly or entirely by sails. The term covers a variety of boats, larger than small vessels such as sailboards and smaller than sailing ships, but distinctions in the size are not strictly defined and what constitutes a sailing ship, sailboat, or a...
s and kayak
Kayak
A kayak is a small, relatively narrow, human-powered boat primarily designed to be manually propelled by means of a double blade paddle.The traditional kayak has a covered deck and one or more cockpits, each seating one paddler...
s can be rented within the Park at the Norwalk Sailing School which also offers a small craft safety training program. Calf Pasture Beach is a major landmark along the Norwalk Islands Canoe/Kayak
Trail.
Boater safety courses are offered at the Dominic Lametta training center at U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Flotilla 72 at Calf Pasture.
The annual 4th of July
Independence Day (United States)
Independence Day, commonly known as the Fourth of July, is a federal holiday in the United States commemorating the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, declaring independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain...
fireworks show in Norwalk is held at Calf Pasture Beach.
External links
- CT DEP: Calf Pasture Beach
- http://www.norwalkkartingassociation.net/
- http://norwalksailingschool.org/
- http://a0140702.uscgaux.info/
- http://www.greenwichkc.org/
- http://www.westportoutfitters.com/