The Parkgate Restoration Association (PRA) is asking for the community’s help. The nonprofit, established in 2022, is working to restore the Parkgate Estate, perhaps more commonly known as the Newport Elks Lodge, “to its former Gilded Age Glory,” Caroline Caswell says, treasurer of the association.
Since its establishment, the organization has raised over $100,000 and has replaced the windows on the second and third floors. Recently, PRA was the recipient of a $5,000 award from THRIVE, the RI Humanities Award organization. PRA represents one out of twenty-two organizations to receive this funding grant, and it’s the only organization on Aquidneck Island to win the accolade. Credit can be attributed to Caswell for that: “When I was Assistant Superintendent of Schools, I did a lot of grant writing,” she recalls. She is now putting those skills to use for the nonprofit. While the award is welcome, it isn’t enough to keep the building in good shape.
The estate, like many preserved houses in Newport, has a storied past. Originally built in 1844 as the Atlantic Hotel, it was repurposed during the Civil War and used as the temporary new home of the U.S. Naval Academy to protect it from confederate forces. After the war, the new proprietors of the hotel attempted to reopen the Atlantic in its former glory – even going so far as to install the first roller skating rink in the United States on the property – but the attraction did not catch on. The hotel was torn down, and in its place Parkgate was designed and erected by George Champlin Mason, architect and nephew of Newport’s Oliver Hazard Perry, for a wealthy wool manufacturer from Philadelphia. The estate changed hands, becoming a countess’s summer residence, and was then sold to the Elks Lodge in 1920.
Despite use from the Elks Lodge, for the past half century, the majority of the building has been neglected. The elements have degraded it, and the third floor is a warzone from the elements and animals, doing immense damage to the historic building.
With proper funding, the association’s goal is to restore with historic accuracy the splendor of the estate and seamlessly incorporate the building back into Newport’s beautiful eyeline; situated right off Bellevue Avenue, across the street from the Newport Art Museum and close to the Tennis Hall of Fame, Parkgate has potential to attract tourists to the historic downtown area after undergoing restoration. Caswell also hopes the project will help “preserve the story” of Newport’s history.
From a needs assessment taken in 2020, to fully restore and preserve the building and grounds – from exterior to interior, bringing it up to different architectural codes like meeting the Americans with Disabilities Act requirements – the association estimates it needs 1.5 million dollars. Adjusted for inflation and the rising costs of post-pandemic construction, that figure is now closer to 3 million dollars.
To make the project manageable, the nonprofit is completing the restoration of Parkgate in phases. For now, the next part of the project is to remove the vinyl siding, restore cedar shingles, and to replace integral soffits. The association is looking to raise $750,000. Besides the THRIVE grant, the Elks Lodge has donated $500, Elks Lodge members have given about $10,000, and other philanthropic groups and individuals have been pitching in to help.
If a person is knowledgeable and capable, there may be opportunities to volunteer to help in the third-floor demolition, but the association is looking for immediate monetary donations, which community members can contribute to via the PRA website or their PO box (PO Box 3363, Newport, RI 02840) via check. Caswell stresses that since this is a 501 c (3) organization, all donations are tax deductible.
Looking at least a decade into the future, Caswell says that she and other members of the Newport Elks lodge dream of the public having more access to the estate. While there are currently no plans to reinstate the historic roller rink (though the lodge does have a pickleball court), Caswell and other members of the Elks lodge have talked about opening up a food pantry or using the space as a warming center for the unhoused: “there’s really nothing in our area [where Parkgate is] for folks who have a need but can’t travel far from home,” she explains, also citing that the Elks group does put a strong emphasis on giving back to the community. However, she stresses that there are no concrete plans for the use of the building beyond the Elks Lodge, as that future is still too far away to properly conceptualize.
Still, Caswell notes, there are about 1,100 members of the Newport Elks Lodge who utilize the space, and Parkgate has hosted other community groups like the VFW and the Boy and Girl Scouts. The estate already acts as a community center, and it is in desperate need of help. Now it is up to the community to take care of the same place they use and love.
The following photos of the property in its current condition were provided to us.
