With its 325 acres of lush lawns, shady glades and sports fields rolling toward Long Island Sound, this extensive municipal park offers many amenities including a bathing beach, bath house, ball fields, picnic areas and hiking trails. Visitors are delighted by the beaches, surf and sunshine along three miles of sparkling coastline. The park was laid out just after the Civil War by Calvert Vaux and Frederick Law Olmsted, whose other efforts include Manhattan's Central Park and Prospect Park in Brooklyn. Their 19th century landscapes have proved timeless as they entice each new generation of park-goers.  At the western end of the park is Fayerweather Island. Walkers can visit this natural wildlife preserve by crossing the breakwater rocks. The island's lighthouse guided navigators into Black Rock Harbor from 1823 to 1932.