By the late 1800s, swimming (or "bathing" as it was known as then) had become an extremely popular recreational activity in America. In the 1910s, the American Red Cross and Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA) responded to the alarming number of drownings nationwide by beginning to organize, train and equip men specifically for water rescues. They were called "lifeguards."

Norwalk's first lifeguard corps was formed by a group of men, including brothers Louis, John and Alphonso Canevari, in the late 1920s, just a few years after Calf Pasture Beach Park opened. (Louis Canevari operated the picnic grove/beach at adjacent Shady Beach, while he leased - and later purchased - from the Marvin Family.)

Chartered by the Red Cross in 1928, Norwalk's volunteer lifeguards were initially based in a wooden station house built at about mid-beach. After that house was destroyed by a hurricane, a second lifeguard station stood very near this spot until the late 1980s.

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Show me all markers in:  Norwalk, CT  |  Fairfield County  |  06855  |  Connecticut  |  United States of America

Harvesting from the Sea
The British Invasion
A Calf Pasture Primer
Taylor Farm Park
The Marvin Property
Fitch's Point
Roger Ludlow
A Habitat Renewed
The Birds
Mill Pond History

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