Woonsocket, RI and Westport, MA

Hi Greg... What a wonderful story you wrote for Monday's Providence Journal! It's great to read about something that happened over 50 years ago! None of my co-workers (in their 20s - 30s) know about things that happened so long ago.. and they probably don't even care in this day and ago... so it's hard to reminisce with them! It's great to find someone who can!!!! I went into your web site and thought I'd email you.

I was about 15 years old at that time, living in Woonsocket, RI... Although we didn't have much damage where I lived in the city, we did have the local Harris Pond Dam break and rushed into another local pond, which we called "Social Pond".. this was my swimming hole while growing up across the street from it. When the dam broke, it swept away a cemetery and many caskets floated down into the flatlands... the "Social" flat-land was the poorer section of Woonsocket... The dam also spilled into Social Pond which emptied into the flatlands.. The water level was almost to the first floor above the stores and tenants had to be evacuated by boat. I have the book as shown on your web site.. "Hurricane Carol Lashes Rhode Island," and my mother had saved several newspaper articles about it which was handed down to me after she passed away and I have them saved.

(Editor's note: Yes, I live in Westport now and yes this gets away somewhat from Hurricane Carol - thought it returns to describe damage in Westport. But most of what the writer mentions was before my time here. However, I do maintain a Web site for the Westport Historical Society and those interested in Westport before 1950 and what the writer describes below should find "Westport Memories" interesting to visit.)

I would like to reminisce about Westport, MA as I noticed you indicated you are from Westport? Anyway, I was 13-14 years old and going steady with a fellow (this was in 1993) whose grandmother owned two Summer cottages on Gooseberry Island at Horseneck Beach, in Westport. Do you remember the island at the far end of the beach? At the end of the road before the stone bridge was Allie's Restaurant which sold novelty souvenir items, and had a small restaurant for sea food, hot dogs, etc.

You had to drive over a stone bridge to get onto the island... This Gooseberry island was privately owned by two brothers who were Greek..one was named Nick. They would come over from Greece every Summer and spend the Summer on the island. Since it was a private island, you had to pay 25 cents to go onto it, but if you had a residence there, you didn't have to pay.

They owned a huge bar & grill & dance hall just over the bridge (called Nick's) and someone always came out to collect the money when a car drove over the bridge.

Before Hurricane Carol hit, you could drive along the 2-lane paved road the whole length of Horseneck Beach...there were Summer cottages on both sides of this road.. one side being the ocean, the other side being marshes beyond the houses. This fellow and I spent many weekends at Horseneck Beach; staying overnight in his grand- mother's house.....she had 2 cottages..the large cottage had 3 bedrooms, open living room & kitchen & toilet only (no bath... showers were outside) which she lived in for the Summer with another grandson while he was on Summer school vacation. The smaller cottage behind the big one was only 1 bedroom and kitchen and toilet....neither cottage was finished inside.. all boards and rafters were exposed. ...the smaller one was always rented out for the Summer. When she rented the big cottage, she would move into the smaller one. At night on Saturday, we would always go to Lincoln Park Amusements in So. Darthmouth..... to take in all the rides, eat hot dogs, and have fun that kids wouldn't think was fun today! What wonderful times we had then!!

After Hurricane Carol hit, we (the fellow and I eventually got married..for 17 years.. and eventually divorced) went out to Gooseberry Island to see the damage on the cottages. Fortunately, her cottages were pretty inland so grandma only had minor roof damages..

BUT THE DEVASTATION ON HORSENECK BEACH WAS HORRENDOUS!!! ALL THE HOUSES ON BOTH SIDES OF THE PAVED ROAD WERE GONE!! Or tossed around like match sticks in the marshes on the other side of the road...and the road was covered with sand dunes! It was impassable! This paved road today is still there, partially covered by sand dunes and this is the road they use for their state vehicles. Horseneck Beach was virtually wiped out!! Hardly a house standing! The far end of the beach faired better... a lot of house sustained outer damage but these houses were the all-year round houses. Allie's Restaurant managed to survive pretty good.

Nick's Restaurant on the island was partially destroyed. After accessing all the damage, the government came in and bought the island from the two brothers, and the government bought all the houses on the island, too. ( The brothers moved back to Greece and stayed there.....never coming back.) You had the option of moving your house over to the "east" side of the beach which was intact because there were not many houses on the east beach, or selling out to the government. Grandma stayed for one more year and then when the time came, she sold the both cottages to the government.

I will never forgot the destruction on Horseneck Beach....unfortunately, I never took pictures of it... I have many pictures of the good times we spent there before the Hurricane but not after....(sob)

So, Greg, that's my story.....remembering Hurricane Carol. Incidentally, my former husband's brother still loves Westport/Horseneck Beach and purchased a home there where he lives during the Summer. As a coincidence, the Prov. Journal's House Feature two or three weeks ago, had a house that Allie use to own and there was an old post card photo of it... that's the way it looked in the 50s!! That house feature brought back many fond memories too!!

Hope you found my story interesting and not too boring for you.

Sincerely, Shirley Corriveault, Woonsocket, RI