Tag Archives: Compo Beach bathhouse

Last week’s Photo Challenge was a tad different. Peter Barlow’s photo showed an object in the ground.  But — as the story explained — that’s not where it originally was. (Click here for the photo.)

It’s one of the spires from the Compo Beach bathhouse.

Peter — a longtime but now former Westporter — says that one of the spires, and some brickwork, fell off in a long-ago hurricane.

He dragged it over to the sand, photographed it, then used the image in several paintings.

At some point, he says, the town decided to remove all the spires. They were knocked off with sledgehammers, with no attempt made to save them.

Peter asked Randy Eaton, on the Parks and Recreation Department’s maintenance staff, if he could have one or two. Randy took a couple for himself, and told Peter he could have any others.

He took 5 or 6 home, in his car — one at a time. (“They’re large and heavy,” he notes.) He’s often thought about restoring one, but never got around to it.

Peter says that at least one of the spires still exists in Westport. But, he adds, “I don’t know if the current owner knows what it is.”

Jonathan McClure was the reader whose guess came closest. He wrote, “Concrete architectural finial from a long ago demolished Compo Beach structure?” The bathhouse is still there, though the spires/finials are just memories.

Peter also sent along this photo:

If you know where in Westport you’d find this, click “Comments” below.

Hint: Unlike the Compo bathhouse spire, this one is definitely still standing.