Connecticut’s population doubled from 1890 to 1920, and the cities got crowded, creating a desire to get away from it all. And in 1920, Hammonasset Beach State Park opened. Its history is documented in a series of charming photos in this slim volume. That history spans back to the Wisconsinan Ice Melt about 21,000 years ago and takes us up to about the 1940s. The extraordinary people who helped create the first state park commission. Summer romances. The aftermath of storms and hurricanes. It’s all here, in what is a perfect beach read for anyone interested in local history.

Pem McNerney, Living Editor, Shore Publishing