Shorecrest Celebrates Fifty Years at Misquamicut

“I’ve been looking through the old pictures for days… It’s very nostalgic. Here’s one of me at age three inside the store with my grandparents!” Holly Sisco-Bowen is sharing her family story as we chat in the store and again later that day on the phone. She is lovingly holding the box of her family history and thinking of her mom and dad.

It all started after the ‘38 hurricane. “My father, Cosmo Sisco, was a visionary and had the foresight to imagine what Misquamicut could be after the devastating hurricane. Cosmo and Christine had no money at the time and took a huge risk and opened up Dicky’s Hot Dog stand.” They actually moved an old outhouse from a Tower Hill estate to the beach and renovated it and sold hot dogs to surfers on a kerosene heater. The original store was where Wuskenau Beach is now. “Many surfers still call it Dicky’s Beach!” says Sisco-Bowen.

There were several iterations of the business as it shifted along with the times and the addresses on Atlantic Avenue and the changes and growth of their family. Later they expanded and had a beer garden and Neptune Room. The bar was huge and that was not common in the mid ‘40s. They later again moved down the stretch closer to where the Hotel Maria is now and had Sisco’s General Store but in ‘52 a storm hit and then they rebuilt again.

Eventually, they didn’t want a seasonal store anymore so Holly’s Dad built and ran the Shorecrest Store where it stands now at 57 Shore Road. “I was three when it was built,” she explains. “Later when I was pregnant with my first daughter I didn’t want to miss anything–Morgan is 26 now–so I brought her with me. I would bring both my girls here, Adrian too,” she says with so much happiness. “It is great to keep the family together. It’s a LOT of work, but worth it!”

Over the years cousins and kids and friends and family have worked at the year-round store. And the customers are some of their favorite memories. “We have a little wall in the store with pictures of our dear customers we love who we have lost, like a memorial. Our customers mean the world to us. We can set the calendar to them! We know when one family walks in it is the first week of July and then another that it is August!” She remarks on how the kids of their customers have grown up married and now come with their own kids.

All this summer they will be celebrating the golden 50th anniversary of a family beach legacy. No doubt they already are a part of your memories at Misquamicut, so be sure to pop by, pick up what you need be a part of the hard-earned celebration.

Don’t worry! Dusty’s of Weekapaug will still be here this year for your ice cream fix when you are at the east end of Westerly’s beaches! Peter Silva, 38, is the new owner of the classic business with the Snowman Sentinel outside.

Peter is from Westerly and his business philosophy is simple: to embrace the locals and the tourists. He owns Quonnie’s Bait & Tackle, on Route 1 in neighboring Charlestown, and two years ago he was approached to see if he was interested in owning Weekapaug Bait & Tackle. He was indeed interested, and he made it happen. Then, the Dusty’s FOR SALE sign went up and he started envisioning his plan. Pete and his team have an infectious enthusiasm and like to share joy. Dusty’s of Weekapuag will open for the season on Memorial Day Weekend and hours will be 6am-9pm weekdays (a little earlier and later on the weekends). “We will be one of the first businesses. to open each day. We will start with ice cream and homemade baked goods, and grow our offerings through the season.”

He has teamed with family and friends to make his vision come true. One key ingredient is one of his mentors and dear friend Mary Belanger, who is an esteemed retired owner of The Upper Crust bakery which was long a Westerly favorite. Another key ingredient is his Cousin Kristen Wood who is an amazing baker – and Peter is her biggest fan. Dusty’s is going to bake grab-and-go goods from scratch for beachgoers’ convenience and delight!

Pete’s expertise in fishing and his youth in Westerly RI help him know that customers want convenient bagged lunches whether for an adventure at sea on a boat or an adventure in a chair on the sand watching the boats.
“Salt ponds are rare and we are so lucky to have them here. I welcome everyone to see how unique our home is. I say to everyone, ‘Welcome! You are now a part of this!’”

When the Misquamicut Business Association (MBA) was formed more than two decades ago, its intent was to help local businesses harness the power of collective advertising.“No one business could afford to take out a full-page ad in the New York Post,” said founding MBA member and Andrea owner Rebecca Colucci. “But we could pool our resources to buy one ad that enticed people to the shorelines of Misquamicut.”

During the last 20 years, social media has changed the advertising game a lot, but that spirit of cooperation among Misquamicut businesses is as strong as ever and, in fact, growing.
“It’s cooperation,” said Charles Trefes, MBA president and owner of the Atlantic Beach Park and Windjammer. “We compete as businesses, but also cooperate with each other because to get
things done for the area, we’re stronger as a group than as individuals.”

And the real winners of all that cooperation are the people who flock to Misquamicut every year to enjoy the shoreline and surrounding town. Like stagehands who bring dazzling stories to
life on stage, the MBA works quietly behind the scenes to ensure tourists have an enticing place to visit year after year. Much of the work the MBA does likely goes unnoticed, but everyone
would notice immediately if they stopped.

“One of our big things is hiring a road crew that picks up all the trash up and down the streets
and sweeps the sidewalks,” said Caswell Cooke, MBA founding member and executive director.

They also hire crews to paint By Emily Olson
When the Misquamicut Business Association (MBA) was formed more than two decades ago, its intent was to help local businesses harness the power of collective advertising. “No one
business could afford to take out a full-page ad in the New York Post,” said founding MBA member and Andrea owner Rebecca Colucci. “But we could pool our resources to buy one ad
that enticed people to the shorelines of Misquamicut.” During the last 20 years, social media has changed the advertising game a lot, but that spirit of cooperation among Misquamicut businesses is as strong as ever and, in fact, growing.

“It’s cooperation,” said Charles Trefes, MBA president and owner of the Atlantic Beach Park and Windjammer. “We compete as businesses, but also cooperate with each other because to get
things done for the area, we’re stronger as a group than as individuals.” And the real winners of all that cooperation are the people who flock to Misquamicut every
year to enjoy the shoreline and surrounding town. Like stagehands who bring dazzling stories to life on stage, the MBA works quietly behind the scenes to ensure tourists have an enticing place
to visit year after year. Much of the work the MBA does likely goes unnoticed, but everyone would notice immediately if they stopped.

“One of our big things is hiring a road crew that picks up all the trash up and down the streets and sweeps the sidewalks,” said Caswell Cooke, MBA founding member and executive director. They also hire crews to paint provides a much-needed service for people looking for a little entertainment as they come out of winter hibernation. Greene said of the drive-in, which has experienced a recent explosion in popularity and growth, “It’s safe, it’s fun. You can pack your whole family up in the car and have a cheap night out.”

And the concept of family is an important one at Misquamicut — many of the small businesses in the area are passed down from one generation to the next. “The generation that’s running the
businesses now, we went to school together while our parents ran the businesses,” said Trefes before describing with pride his daughter’s growing interest in helping out her dad at the Windjammer.

Colucci echoes his sentiment.
“Misquamicut has always been a family-friendly beach. All the business owners are families. It’s simply engineered that way.”

Read Part 1 First!

Another iconic landmark and one of the best hangouts, with live music and great food on the beach, is the Colucci family’s Andrea Seaside Restaurant and Beach Bar, originally the Andrea Hotel. The 100-year-old hotel had 26 rooms and was open part-time year round hosting weddings and holiday celebrations. The hotel building was severely damaged by Superstorm Sandy in 2012. It would have been very expensive to rebuild the old building so the family made the painful decision to demolish it and reinvent the hotel into the restaurant and bar it is today. They did save the old stone fireplace, which had so many family memories, and moved it to the patio. You can sit in front of the fire and watch the sunset over the ocean. It doesn’t get much better than that.

Rebecca Colucci spoke about her family’s history: “The Andrea first opened in 1912. It was originally two houses that were combined into one building and made into a bed and breakfast. My great grandfather, Leonard, bought the Andrea with his two sisters in 1944 after the ‘38 hurricane, and my grandfather Ralf ran it.”

After her grandfather passed away her father, Lenny, bought out his brothers and ran the business along with Rebecca and her sister Michelle.

The Colucci family found out after Sandy just how much support they had from the local community.

“It was so touching to see the large number of people who volunteered to help us, sometimes 30 a day would show up to help us dig out. Some were past employees who worked here when I was a child, it was great,” said Rebecca. “The tent we put up was a temporary fix to keep some revenue coming in while we rebuilt. We spent a lot of money on architectural plans and we have a whole beautiful hotel on paper but when we sent it out to bid it was a $10 million project. Then the business we started doing with the temporary structure was more than we ever did with the old hotel and we thought let’s rethink this.”

The two sisters continue to run the business today out of the makeshift building.

One person who had a lot to do with what Misquamicut is today is John Vacca, better known as Johnny Beachcomber. He came to Misquamicut in 1947, right after WWII, and opened a little snack bar. His specialty was the Misquamicut pepper burger and people would come from all over to get Johnny Beachcomber’s pepper burger. Because people started leaving the keys to their cottages with him so often he thought he should go into the real estate business, so Beachcomber Real Estate Agency was born. The company is now owned by his daughter, Michelle Vacca, who also happens to be the Misquamicut Fire District Moderator.

“We’ve been selling, renting, and managing real estate in Misquamicut for 73 years and helping families find the perfect beach property,” said Michelle.  “My parents were married in 1954 and I was born that August. Two weeks after I was born Hurricane Carol came in and wiped out the whole beach. My father had a new wife, a new baby, and no business. Everything was gone and he had to rebuild. My father, Gerard Nardone, and Stanton Terranova Sr. got together and came up with the idea to buy property for a Misquamicut Fire District beach and that’s how the MFD got their beaches. My father was very protective of those beaches. Because of all he’d done for the Town of Westerly the town made him Beach Commissioner of Westerly. They renewed his appointment every year because of who he was. Funny thing is my father couldn’t swim and never went in the water but he loved the beach.”

Sadly the Misquamicut community recently lost Stanton Terranova Sr. who worked with John Vacca to acquire the land for the MFD beaches. Stanton was an electrician by trade but also a skilled businessman. He opened Stanton Realty in 1959 and commissioned his two sisters, Lois and Jane, and brother-in-law Laverne, to work alongside him during the formative years making Stanton Realty a true family enterprise. His entrepreneurship extended into other ventures and one of them was The Pleasant View Inn. From 1965 to 2013 he owned and operated the 112 room oceanfront resort further securing Misquamicut Beach as a summer destination.

The Fiore family owns and operates three businesses at the beach, Alfie’s Surf Shop, Alfie’s Beach Store, and the concession stand Little Mermaid’s. Erika Fiore is the third generation in the family business.

“I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t working in the store. My mom said she taught me to give back change to the customers when I was three.”

Gary Fiore talked about the family business history: “The business was started by Salvatore Fiore, my grandfather, after he migrated from Italy. If you lived in Misquamicut in the 1930s you’d see a bright red 1937 Diamond T truck that he delivered fruits and vegetables with. I still have the old truck.”

Gary looked through a pile of old photographs as he described how the original store started.

“My father, Arthur Fiore, bought some property on Atlantic Avenue and started Fiore’s Market in 1946. His brother, Thomas Bates Fiore, had a market right on the corner across from the carousel in Watch Hill. They would go to Providence, buy the fruit, and load the trucks up every day. My mother worked at the store and my father went on the road. The store got completely leveled by Hurricane Carol in 1954 and they rebuilt it. The market slowly evolved into more of a retail store selling grinders, ice, postcards, and beach supplies. They had fruit and vegetables out in front. I took the business over in the 1980s when my parents retired.”

Today, Alfie’s Surf Shop sells men’s, women’s, and children’s apparel including bathing suits, Reef sandals, and beach supplies from sunscreen to surf boards. Alfie’s Beach Store carries a large variety of souvenirs, t-shirts, sweatshirts, and almost anything else you would ever need at the beach.

You will find the Winnapaug Inn and the Venice Restaurant located together on Winnapaug Pond beside the Winnapaug Golf Course. Antonio and Anna DiMarco came here in the late 1960s from Italy and opened the Inn in 1988. The inn was enlarged in 1997 and they opened the Venice Restaurant next to the inn in 2000.

“It was planned as a smaller restaurant,” said Nunzio Demarco, who’s run the restaurant for the last 20 years. “Then we thought we needed two ballrooms so it went from a one-floor building to a three-floor building. We do a lot of events, corporate functions, rehearsal dinners, baby showers, wedding showers, and weddings.”

“A lot of the recipes are my mother’s, like our Bolognese sauce and our marinara sauce. My mother loves to cook and we still carry on that tradition. We have a lot of local customers that have been coming to the restaurant for generations so it’s a real family atmosphere. I grew up in the restaurant business doing a little bit of everything. I actually have an engineering degree from URI but I didn’t pursue engineering as a career. I went into the hospitality industry here in the family business and 20 years later I’m still at it.”

Just steps from Misquamicut Beach situated on five beautiful acres is The Breezeway Resort, a family owned business, that is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. Today, it is managed by John Bellone whose parents, Nicola and Maria Bellone, both emigrated from Italy. They ended up in Misquamicut because Maria loved the ocean. Nicola worked as a mason.

“He was driving to work one day when he saw the for sale sign on the Breezeway Motel and he went to see his friend, Stanton Terranova Sr., who had listed the property,” said John. “Stanton said to my father, ‘I’m not going to do anything until you go ask your wife. You get her permission first.’ My father asked my mother and I guess it was fine because here we are 50 years later.” In 1970, John was just nine months old when the Bellone family moved into a cottage on the property. Originally the Breezeway had 12 motel rooms but over the years the resort has expanded in size and now has 50 rooms.

In 1994 John’s mother, Maria, was walking to the beach when she saw that Dino’s Seafood House was for sale. The Bellone family bought the property, they renovated the restaurant and it became the highly regarded Maria’s Seaside Café. Maria’s Seaside Cafe has the feeling of a bustling Italian trattoria. You can choose from house made ravioli or one of Chef Rafael’s nightly seafood specials.

The Bellone family had been thinking about building a hotel, but was in no hurry, until hurricane Sandy came along. “There was five feet of sand inside the building and the whole restaurant was destroyed,” said John. “It seemed like a good opportunity to build a new restaurant and hotel. I named the new hotel, The Hotel Maria, in honor of my mother, Maria Bellone, who passed away in 2014.”

This summer the beach will again be hosting visitors for another fun filled season. There will be other challenges ahead for the family businesses at the beach in the years ahead but these people have proven they’re resilient and will continue to thrive. It’s been over 100 years since Court and Trudy built their cottage on the beach. Since then Misquamicut has developed into a vibrant residential and resort community. If Trudy could see Misquamicut today I’m sure she’d say “What a pleasant view.”

Misquamicut Beach is considered one of the finest beaches in New England, attracting thousands of people every summer for a healthy dose of sun and fun. Much of Misquamicut’s charm comes from a small group of family-owned businesses that have been passed down from generation to generation. Many of these families migrated here and all brought with them a sense of pride in hard work and a community spirit. These hard-working people helped Misquamicut become the wonderful community we know today.

The history of the beach at Misquamicut goes way back to the first Paleo-Indians that came here to fish, hence the name Misquamicut which, in the Narragansett language, means place of the red fish. With the prosperity created by the Industrial Revolution, a leisure class began to go to the beach for recreational purposes.  In the 1890s, a large tent city at the junction of Benson Avenue and Atlantic Avenue sprang up. The only building on the beach was Captain James Thompson’s Fish Hut.

Court Bliven and his family, who had been staying in tents, purchased a lot in 1894 and built the first cottage called the Pioneer. While inspecting the construction of the cottage Court’s wife Trudy, impressed by the view, exclaimed, “What a pleasant view.” And so the area was named Pleasant View Beach.

As more people came to the beach to enjoy the cool ocean breezes a real estate boom began. You could buy a 50-foot by 150-foot oceanfront lot for $50. In 1908, a trolley line was built down what is today Winnapaug Road all the way to the beach. By 1920 the fledgling resort had four major hotels, more than 120 cottages, and a post office. In 1928 the US Postal Service changed the name from Pleasant View Beach to its Narragansett Indian name, Misquamicut.

One of the earliest immigrants to open a business on the beach, that still exists today, was Harry Trefes. Harry came through Ellis Island in 1905 and later settled in Westerly. In 1921, he purchased the Atlantic Beach Casino. It had been a trolley park that was built by the trolley company to attract customers. The large wooden building had a dance hall, skating rink, carousel, and 200 bathhouses on the bottom floor. Harry changed the name to the Atlantic Beach Park. During the Hurricane of 38, the original building was completely destroyed.

I sat down with 91-year-old Elias Trefes, known as Lou, who reminisced about his father.

“The 38 hurricane washed the casino out, I was there at the time. We had a cottage facing the ocean. My father, mother, and I were sitting there eating breakfast when all of a sudden we heard this giant roar. We went out to the dining room and the wind had blown the roof off. My father said ‘I think we better go to our home in town.’ I cried all night because we had left my little Boston Terrier behind in the cottage. The next morning my father and I went down to see what had happened but the National Guard would not let you go any further than Shore Road. Shore Road was where all the debris had washed up from the storm. We drove down Shore Road and amazingly on a piece of our merry-go-round roof was my little dog. He survived the hurricane riding on that piece of roof. We lost all those people down there but my little dog survived.”

“After the 38 hurricane my father and Frank Enos went up to Lawrence, Massachusetts where there were a lot of old mills that closed after the depression. My father bought one and they took it apart and brought it down here. That’s where all the steel in the Windjammer came from. That’s the building that’s there today. My brother Charlie and I co-owned the business and ran it for 60 years.”

Today, the Trefes family properties are divided between Charles and Lou’s three children. The Atlantic Beach Park is owned by Charles Trefes, son of Charles. The main building, which once housed the roller skating rink, is the Windjammer Surf Bar and the Mariner Room. The Windjammer is a sports bar and restaurant that opens directly onto an oceanfront patio.  On weekends this popular landmark has live entertainment.  Enjoy their delicious seafood dishes, salads, wings, and amazing burgers as well as summer cocktails. After lunch or dinner enjoy the best soft-serve ice cream on the beach at Dusty’s Dairy Bar.

Along with an arcade and kiddie rides, the Atlantic Beach Park’s main attraction is its magnificent 1915 Herschell-Spillman Carousel with Illions horses. The carousel is one of only a few hundred still surviving in the country.

“My daughter, Alliandra, is 15 and probably the youngest person in the country that can actually grease an antique carousel,” said Charles.  “She’s the fourth generation and she’s waiting in the wings.”

On the bayside of Atlantic Avenue Lou Trefes’s daughter, Sally Trefes Sorenson, opened the gift shop Horse of a Different Color. It’s the largest gift, souvenir, and beach supply store in Misquamicut. Sally grew up at the beach and from the time she was 12, she worked with her father doing just about every job at the Atlantic Beach Park. She ran the skating rink concession, bathhouses, the ticket booth, was a lifeguard, and when she turned 18, she bartended at the Windjammer. Sally also managed the Windjammer from 2010 to 2017.

In 1981, when Sally turned 21, her father thought it would be nice to have a gift shop at their end of the beach. He suggested that she open one on a family-owned property across the street. Sally was able to buy out a beach gift shop that was going out of business. It’s been a successful 40-year run but instead of retiring she is taking over the Water Wizz water slide next door and opening a coffee shop and beer/wine tasting room called the Sun & Sea Beanery and Tasting Room.

Lou’s son, Harry Trefes, owns the Bayview Fun Park. Harry decided to build a family entertainment center in 1995 on Trefes family land that was just a vacant lot on the bayside of Atlantic Avenue.

“The idea was to enhance family entertainment by catering to older kids and adults while the Atlantic Beach Park across the road featured rides for younger kids.”

The center features a small beach on the bay where you can rent a kayak or just chill. They do fishing charters, have an awarding winning 18-hole mini-golf course, a Super Slide, Slick Track Go-Karts, splashing bumper boats, two multi-speed dual softball/baseball batting cages, and a four-place bungee jump.

Stay tuned for Part 2 – there are countless family ties in Misquamicut!