Jones Beach State Park
Encyclopedia
Jones Beach State Park is a state park
of the U.S. state
of New York
. It is located in southern Nassau County
, in the hamlet of Wantagh, on Jones Beach Island
, a barrier island
linked to Long Island
by the Meadowbrook State Parkway
, Wantagh State Parkway
and Ocean Parkway (Long Island).
The park is renowned for its great beaches, 10 mi (16.1 km) in length, facing the open Atlantic Ocean
and furnishes one of the most popular summer recreational locations for the New York metropolitan area
. It is the most popular and heavily visited beach on the East Coast
, with an estimated six million visitors per year.
Nikon at Jones Beach Theater
, an outdoor arena in the park, is a popular musical concert venue. The park also has a 2 mi (3.2 km) long boardwalk
. It once featured dining and catering facilities that were popular sites for private parties and weddings; these have been shut down.
The park was created during the administration of Robert Moses
as President of the Long Island State Park Commission
(for which he wrote the legislation in 1923) as part of the development of parkway
s on Long Island. Moses' first major public project, Jones Beach State Park, is considered to be one of the most beautiful parks in the world http://www.longislandexchange.com/jones-beach.html, free from housing developers and private clubs, and instead is open for the general public. Several homes on High Hill Beach were barged further down the island to West Gilgo Beach
to make room for the park. When Moses' group first surveyed Jones Island
, it was swampy and only two feet above sea level. The island would frequently become completely submerged during storms. To create the park, huge dredgers worked day and night to bring up sand from under the ocean, eventually bringing the island to twelve feet above sea level. Another problem that followed was the wind - the beach sand would blow horribly, making the workers miserable, and making the use of the beach as a recreational facility unlikely. The builders discovered that the secret to beach stability was the beach grass, whose roots would grow sideways and hold dunes in place, forming a barrier to the wind. In the summer of 1928 thousands of men worked on the beach planting the grass by hand. Built in the 1920s, many of its buildings and facilities feature Art Deco
architecture. In the center of a traffic circle
that he planned as a terminus for the Wantagh State Parkway
, Moses ordered the construction of an Italianate
-style water tower
to serve as a central feature of the park. The park opened to the public on August 4, 1929, along with the causeway that provided automobile access from the mainland of Long Island. The causeway was the first section in what was to become the Wantagh State Parkway
.
Unusual for the time, no carnival type amusements were permitted in the park area.
Jones Beach is accessible by car, boat, bicycle, and in the summer season by bus. Most visitors arrive by car via the Meadowbrook State Parkway
or the Wantagh State Parkway
. A significant portion of visitors take the LIRR
to Freeport
and then a bus to Jones Beach. Boaters often anchor on the bay side of Jones Beach (i.e. "Zachs Bay"), especially at night during a show such as the fireworks show on July 4
.
A Greenway alongside the Wantagh State Parkway allows bicycling, skating or walking about 4 miles (6.4 km) from Cedar Creek County Park on Merrick Road into the State Park. A similar route to Long Beach is under consideration.
As of 2010, parking costs $10.00, though a NY State Empire Passport ($65 for the April 1 - March 31 season) can be used to park for free. The parking fees are charged from 6 am - 6 pm Sat-Sun-Hol, 8 am - 4 pm weekdays from Memorial Day through Columbus day. The six main public parking areas along the boardwalk can handle as many as 250,000 vehicles. The center parking fields are the busiest on summer weekends. Bicycle parking is free, but bike riding within the park is not allowed during the summer and bikes must be locked at the racks at the end of the Wantagh Parkway bike path.
The Boardwalk Cafe was a large restaurant with an expansive ocean view, built in 1966. It was demolished in 2004 due to erosion from the natural elements, and will be replaced. A replacement $30 million, 350-seat, 70000 square feet (6,503.2 m²) restaurant/catering hall called Trump on the Ocean to be operated by Donald Trump
has been tied up in fights with state to get a permit. Its plans include a 26710 square feet (2,481.4 m²) basement which the state says is illegal in a flood plain.
There are two swimming pools available for public use at Jones Beach; the West Bath House pool is traditionally open all week long, while the East Bath House pool is weekends-only. Due to budget constraints, the East Bath House was closed during the 2009 season.
The West Bath House is also home to a Friendly's ice cream parlor on the upper level – the patio outside overlooks both the pool and the ocean, and there is also a mini bandshell area.
Jones Beach's West End originally featured two additional Parking Fields known as West End 1, which was closed permanently in 1992 and replaced by the Theodore Roosevelt nature preserve after lying abandoned for nearly a decade, and West End 2, which lies at the westernmost area of the state park adjacent to the jetty on Jones' Inlet. West End 2 is currently a designated surfing area, which is open to stargazers and fisherman at night and bird watchers and other naturalists by day. The West End 2 beach has been closed since April 2009 because of the state fiscal crisis and will remain closed through 2010. The West End 2 beach house is partially open as bathrooms and showers are regularly maintained, but concessions are closed. The West End 2 parking field along with the Field 1 are the two largest ocean front parking areas currently extant in the park. Field 1 has yet to open during the 2010 season and although the park office has not officially suspended service at Field 1, it is unlikely it will open at all during 2010.
A half a mile north of the beach, overlooking Zachs Bay, is the 15,200 seat Nikon at Jones Beach Theater
. This outdoor amphitheatre
opened in 1952 and hosts numerous world famous musicians during the summer months. It is directly across the street from the ocean and is outdoors in an open natural environment.
Ever since 2004, Jones Beach has hosted the New York Air Show
during the last weekend of May (Memorial Day
weekend). The air show is one of the largest in the United States, hosting 403,000 people over two-days during the 2006 show.
State park
State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the federated state level within those nations which use "state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on account of its natural beauty, historic interest, or recreational...
of the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. It is located in southern Nassau County
Nassau County, New York
Nassau County is a suburban county on Long Island, east of New York City in the U.S. state of New York, within the New York Metropolitan Area. As of the 2010 census, the population was 1,339,532...
, in the hamlet of Wantagh, on Jones Beach Island
Jones Beach Island
Jones Beach Island is one of the outer barrier islands off the southern coast of Long Island in the U.S. state of New York. It is named for the father of Thomas Jones. It is sometimes referred to as Oak Beach Island, and the former home of the infamous Oak Beach Inn. It is separated from Long...
, a barrier island
Shoal
Shoal, shoals or shoaling may mean:* Shoal, a sandbank or reef creating shallow water, especially where it forms a hazard to shipping* Shoal draught , of a boat with shallow draught which can pass over some shoals: see Draft...
linked to Long Island
Long Island
Long Island is an island located in the southeast part of the U.S. state of New York, just east of Manhattan. Stretching northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, Long Island contains four counties, two of which are boroughs of New York City , and two of which are mainly suburban...
by the Meadowbrook State Parkway
Meadowbrook State Parkway
The Meadowbrook State Parkway is a long parkway in Nassau County, New York. The southern terminus is at the Bay Parkway in Jones Beach State Park, where the parkway becomes the Ocean Parkway. The northern terminus is at the Northern State Parkway in Carle Place...
, Wantagh State Parkway
Wantagh State Parkway
The Wantagh State Parkway is a state parkway on Long Island in New York, in the United States. It links the Ocean Parkway at Jones Beach State Park with the Northern State Parkway in Westbury. The parkway is located approximately east of Manhattan and east of the Nassau–Queens border...
and Ocean Parkway (Long Island).
The park is renowned for its great beaches, 10 mi (16.1 km) in length, facing the open Atlantic Ocean
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
and furnishes one of the most popular summer recreational locations for the New York metropolitan area
New York metropolitan area
The New York metropolitan area, also known as Greater New York, or the Tri-State area, is the region that composes of New York City and the surrounding region...
. It is the most popular and heavily visited beach on the East Coast
East Coast of the United States
The East Coast of the United States, also known as the Eastern Seaboard, refers to the easternmost coastal states in the United States, which touch the Atlantic Ocean and stretch up to Canada. The term includes the U.S...
, with an estimated six million visitors per year.
Nikon at Jones Beach Theater
Nikon at Jones Beach Theater
Nikon at Jones Beach Theater is an outdoor amphitheatre, located at Jones Beach State Park in Wantagh, New York. It is one of two major outdoor arenas in the New York metropolitan area, along with PNC Bank Arts Center...
, an outdoor arena in the park, is a popular musical concert venue. The park also has a 2 mi (3.2 km) long boardwalk
Boardwalk
A boardwalk, in the conventional sense, is a wooden walkway for pedestrians and sometimes vehicles, often found along beaches, but they are also common as paths through wetlands, coastal dunes, and other sensitive environments....
. It once featured dining and catering facilities that were popular sites for private parties and weddings; these have been shut down.
Development by Robert Moses
Robert Moses
Robert Moses was the "master builder" of mid-20th century New York City, Long Island, Rockland County, and Westchester County, New York. As the shaper of a modern city, he is sometimes compared to Baron Haussmann of Second Empire Paris, and is one of the most polarizing figures in the history of...
as President of the Long Island State Park Commission
Long Island State Park Commission
The Long Island State Park Commission was created in 1924 by the New York State Legislature to build and operate parks and parkways on Long Island. Governor Al Smith appointed as its first President, Robert Moses, who had drafted the bill creating the Commission and who served until 1953...
(for which he wrote the legislation in 1923) as part of the development of parkway
Parkway
The term parkway has several distinct principal meanings and numerous synonyms around the world, for either a type of landscaped area or a type of road.Type of landscaped area:...
s on Long Island. Moses' first major public project, Jones Beach State Park, is considered to be one of the most beautiful parks in the world http://www.longislandexchange.com/jones-beach.html, free from housing developers and private clubs, and instead is open for the general public. Several homes on High Hill Beach were barged further down the island to West Gilgo Beach
West Gilgo Beach
West Gilgo Beach is a small private gated community located in the Town of Babylon in Suffolk County, New York. The census considers it part of Gilgo-Oak Beach-Captree, New York- History :...
to make room for the park. When Moses' group first surveyed Jones Island
Jones Beach Island
Jones Beach Island is one of the outer barrier islands off the southern coast of Long Island in the U.S. state of New York. It is named for the father of Thomas Jones. It is sometimes referred to as Oak Beach Island, and the former home of the infamous Oak Beach Inn. It is separated from Long...
, it was swampy and only two feet above sea level. The island would frequently become completely submerged during storms. To create the park, huge dredgers worked day and night to bring up sand from under the ocean, eventually bringing the island to twelve feet above sea level. Another problem that followed was the wind - the beach sand would blow horribly, making the workers miserable, and making the use of the beach as a recreational facility unlikely. The builders discovered that the secret to beach stability was the beach grass, whose roots would grow sideways and hold dunes in place, forming a barrier to the wind. In the summer of 1928 thousands of men worked on the beach planting the grass by hand. Built in the 1920s, many of its buildings and facilities feature Art Deco
Art Deco
Art deco , or deco, is an eclectic artistic and design style that began in Paris in the 1920s and flourished internationally throughout the 1930s, into the World War II era. The style influenced all areas of design, including architecture and interior design, industrial design, fashion and...
architecture. In the center of a traffic circle
Traffic circle
A traffic circle or rotary is a type of circular intersection in which traffic must travel in one direction around a central island. In some countries, traffic entering the circle has the right-of-way and drivers in the circle must yield. In many other countries, traffic entering the circle must...
that he planned as a terminus for the Wantagh State Parkway
Wantagh State Parkway
The Wantagh State Parkway is a state parkway on Long Island in New York, in the United States. It links the Ocean Parkway at Jones Beach State Park with the Northern State Parkway in Westbury. The parkway is located approximately east of Manhattan and east of the Nassau–Queens border...
, Moses ordered the construction of an Italianate
Italianate architecture
The Italianate style of architecture was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture. In the Italianate style, the models and architectural vocabulary of 16th-century Italian Renaissance architecture, which had served as inspiration for both Palladianism and...
-style water tower
Water tower
A water tower or elevated water tower is a large elevated drinking water storage container constructed to hold a water supply at a height sufficient to pressurize a water distribution system....
to serve as a central feature of the park. The park opened to the public on August 4, 1929, along with the causeway that provided automobile access from the mainland of Long Island. The causeway was the first section in what was to become the Wantagh State Parkway
Wantagh State Parkway
The Wantagh State Parkway is a state parkway on Long Island in New York, in the United States. It links the Ocean Parkway at Jones Beach State Park with the Northern State Parkway in Westbury. The parkway is located approximately east of Manhattan and east of the Nassau–Queens border...
.
Buildings
The primary buildings on the Jones Beach site are the two enormous bathhouses (west and east) and the 231 feet (70.4 m) water tower, all built to Moses's specifications. After rejecting a number of submissions by architects for the bathhouses, he selected the designs of the young and relatively inexperienced Herbert Magoon. Moses also picked out building materials - Ohio Sandstone and Barbizon Brick - two of the most expensive materials available.Transportation
Meadowbrook State Parkway
The Meadowbrook State Parkway is a long parkway in Nassau County, New York. The southern terminus is at the Bay Parkway in Jones Beach State Park, where the parkway becomes the Ocean Parkway. The northern terminus is at the Northern State Parkway in Carle Place...
or the Wantagh State Parkway
Wantagh State Parkway
The Wantagh State Parkway is a state parkway on Long Island in New York, in the United States. It links the Ocean Parkway at Jones Beach State Park with the Northern State Parkway in Westbury. The parkway is located approximately east of Manhattan and east of the Nassau–Queens border...
. A significant portion of visitors take the LIRR
Long Island Rail Road
The Long Island Rail Road or LIRR is a commuter rail system serving the length of Long Island, New York. It is the busiest commuter railroad in North America, serving about 81.5 million passengers each year. Established in 1834 and having operated continuously since then, it is the oldest US...
to Freeport
Freeport, New York
Freeport is a village in the town of Hempstead, Nassau County, New York, USA, on the South Shore of Long Island. The population was 42,860 at the 2010 census. A settlement since the 1640s, it was once an oystering community and later a resort popular with the New York City theater community...
and then a bus to Jones Beach. Boaters often anchor on the bay side of Jones Beach (i.e. "Zachs Bay"), especially at night during a show such as the fireworks show on July 4
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...
.
A Greenway alongside the Wantagh State Parkway allows bicycling, skating or walking about 4 miles (6.4 km) from Cedar Creek County Park on Merrick Road into the State Park. A similar route to Long Beach is under consideration.
As of 2010, parking costs $10.00, though a NY State Empire Passport ($65 for the April 1 - March 31 season) can be used to park for free. The parking fees are charged from 6 am - 6 pm Sat-Sun-Hol, 8 am - 4 pm weekdays from Memorial Day through Columbus day. The six main public parking areas along the boardwalk can handle as many as 250,000 vehicles. The center parking fields are the busiest on summer weekends. Bicycle parking is free, but bike riding within the park is not allowed during the summer and bikes must be locked at the racks at the end of the Wantagh Parkway bike path.
Facilities
There are multiple concession stands along the boardwalk in season. A few of the larger concessions stay open past the main summer season. Beach dining and catering facilities no longer exist at Jones Beach.The Boardwalk Cafe was a large restaurant with an expansive ocean view, built in 1966. It was demolished in 2004 due to erosion from the natural elements, and will be replaced. A replacement $30 million, 350-seat, 70000 square feet (6,503.2 m²) restaurant/catering hall called Trump on the Ocean to be operated by Donald Trump
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump, Sr. is an American business magnate, television personality and author. He is the chairman and president of The Trump Organization and the founder of Trump Entertainment Resorts. Trump's extravagant lifestyle, outspoken manner and role on the NBC reality show The Apprentice have...
has been tied up in fights with state to get a permit. Its plans include a 26710 square feet (2,481.4 m²) basement which the state says is illegal in a flood plain.
There are two swimming pools available for public use at Jones Beach; the West Bath House pool is traditionally open all week long, while the East Bath House pool is weekends-only. Due to budget constraints, the East Bath House was closed during the 2009 season.
The West Bath House is also home to a Friendly's ice cream parlor on the upper level – the patio outside overlooks both the pool and the ocean, and there is also a mini bandshell area.
Jones Beach's West End originally featured two additional Parking Fields known as West End 1, which was closed permanently in 1992 and replaced by the Theodore Roosevelt nature preserve after lying abandoned for nearly a decade, and West End 2, which lies at the westernmost area of the state park adjacent to the jetty on Jones' Inlet. West End 2 is currently a designated surfing area, which is open to stargazers and fisherman at night and bird watchers and other naturalists by day. The West End 2 beach has been closed since April 2009 because of the state fiscal crisis and will remain closed through 2010. The West End 2 beach house is partially open as bathrooms and showers are regularly maintained, but concessions are closed. The West End 2 parking field along with the Field 1 are the two largest ocean front parking areas currently extant in the park. Field 1 has yet to open during the 2010 season and although the park office has not officially suspended service at Field 1, it is unlikely it will open at all during 2010.
Entertainment
Nikon at Jones Beach Theater
Nikon at Jones Beach Theater is an outdoor amphitheatre, located at Jones Beach State Park in Wantagh, New York. It is one of two major outdoor arenas in the New York metropolitan area, along with PNC Bank Arts Center...
. This outdoor amphitheatre
Amphitheatre
An amphitheatre is an open-air venue used for entertainment and performances.There are two similar, but distinct, types of structure for which the word "amphitheatre" is used: Ancient Roman amphitheatres were large central performance spaces surrounded by ascending seating, and were commonly used...
opened in 1952 and hosts numerous world famous musicians during the summer months. It is directly across the street from the ocean and is outdoors in an open natural environment.
Ever since 2004, Jones Beach has hosted the New York Air Show
New York Air Show
The New York Air Show at Jones Beach is held each Memorial Day Weekend at the Jones Beach State Park, located on Long Island in Nassau County, Wantagh, New York, USA. The air show is one of the largest in the United States, hosting 403,000 people over two days during the 2006 air show. The air...
during the last weekend of May (Memorial Day
Memorial Day
Memorial Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the last Monday of May. Formerly known as Decoration Day, it originated after the American Civil War to commemorate the fallen Union soldiers of the Civil War...
weekend). The air show is one of the largest in the United States, hosting 403,000 people over two-days during the 2006 show.
External links
- Official Jones Beach State Park website
- JonesBeach.com - Concert Listings
- Jones Beach Club - organization dedicated to the park's preservation and enjoyment.